Bulgarian Press Review, October 28, 2009

Press Review
Sofia, October 28 (BTA)

SWINE FLU

A secondary school in Tryavna, named "Petko Rachev Slaveykov," has been seriously affected by the swine flu virus, “24 Chassa” reports. Over 240 school students had to stay at home for treatment and on Monday the school master contacted the Regional Inspectorate for Protection and Control of Public Health in Gabrovo. Another three schools in the town are also on flu vacation as of Tuesday. So far there have not been serious cases. Tryavna received 100 doses of tamiflu. The school of mathematics in Yambol is on the verge of a flu outbreak. For the time being, the situation in Sofia's schools is normal but those taken ill are many. A second Bulgarian died of swine flue. The man was from Samokov and died in Sofia's Sveta Ana Hospital, "Troud" says.

HOME SCENE

The Finance Ministry and the Regional development and Public Works Ministry have come to an agreement that there will be no rise in the prices of automobile vignettes, "Troud" says. However, the prices of vignettes for trucks and buses will be different, depending on the environmental standards the vehicles satisfy. The fees for driving courses will go up as a result of the requirement to install cameras in the cars, "Troud" writes.

"Big Brother watches new drivers," "Douma" says in a subtitle. Under expected amendments to the Road Traffic Act, the training and examination of candidates for a driving licence will be recorded with a camera, and automobiles displaying the "L" sign will be GPS monitored. According to Transport Minister Aleksandar Tsvetkov, the purpose is to prevent the purchase of driving licences and curb corruption among driving instructors. There is a black market of driving licences in Bulgaria and 30 per cent of them are purchased, Tsvetkov says in "Klassa."

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In part of the Defence Ministry there will be 15 per cent staff cuts, Defence Minister Nikolay Mladenov says in "Sega." "In Bosnia we will be left with 20 military, and the fate of the mission in Kosovo will be clear in the middle of 2010," he says.

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Ex-prime minister Sergei Stanishev will appear for examination in the Sofia City Prosecution Office on Tuesday in connection with the scandal about a classified report of the State Agency for National Security (SANS) handed over to Prime Minister Boyko Borissov by SANS former agent Aleksei Petrov, "Novinar" and "Ataka" write.

"Themis is after the Heroes in 'That' Report," "Monitor" says in the headline of its leading story.

Order, Lawfulness, Justice party leader Yani Yanev says in "24 Chassa that PM Borissov called him on Monday and they reached an understanding that whenever there are tips about corruption in the executive branch, Yanev will inform Borissov first. "He [Borissov] assured me that he will give me the necessary information about various corruption schemes," Yanev says. In his words, the warm relations between GERB and Ataka are an "odd type of hybrid that could lead Bulgaria to a stalemate and prompt reactions at the highest level in the US, the UK, the EU and Israel."

"There are already signs of a possible counter-attack by some wings in SANS alleging that there is corruption in the new government, too," Tihomir Bezlov of the Centre for the Study of Democracy says in "Dnevnik." "If Borissov keeps his word and closes SANS down, all possible lobbies will be activated and early elections may be provoked," Bezlov says.

"The SANS classified report scandal may have a boomerang effect on the incumbents,' political scientist Yuri Aslanov says in "Troud." "The tension may split the tacit ruling coalition - as early as Tuesday the parties supporting the cabinet began issuing contradictory signals and for the first time it was alleged that there was corruption among the new ministers, too," Aslanov notes. "When the state is involved in a drama based on a conflict between antagonistic groups in the special services, nobody could say what the outcome will be."

Sociologist and MBMD Director Miroslava Radeva writes in "Troud" that the government must get to work, gather evidence so that the culprits for the SANS report scandal could be condemned and then turn over this page. In her view, if no minister from the previous cabinet is condemned within three months, people will start thinking that all of it is yet another case of political smoke and mirrors.

ECONOMY

Citing statistics of the National Bank of Bulgaria (BNB), "Klassa" reports that the amount of credits granted to businesses rose by 190 million leva in September. The average-weighted interest rate on new credits was 9.66 per cent, the lowest ever compared with the four previous months.

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"Ministers' statements on the energy policy are diverging and give the impression of a lack of coordination, which is bad policy,' political scientist Ivan Krustev says in "Troud." "A good policy would be to make divergent statementsЕ but in a coordinated way. Because Bulgaria is in a situation in which the best we could do is to play for time," he says. In Krustev's words, given the current economic situation, in its present version, the Belene N-plant project is a "suicidal" one, exposing the economy to very serious risk and involving a high level of corruption. "The task of the government is not only to prevent the implementation of an unprofitable project but to do it in such a way as to avoid a crisis in Bulgaria's relations with Russia," he observes.

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Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson will construct a huge stadium with 15 playgrounds for different sports and a parking lot in Gorna Oryahovitsa, "Standart News" reports. Negotiations on the project are underway between the municipality and British investors headed by Ferguson.

FOREIGN POLICY

Foreign Minister Rumiana Jeleva has taken a stand in support of Luxembourg's Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker's possible bid for the EU presidency, "Troud" writes. "I am truly glad that he is one of the candidates, and I wish him good luck," she is quoted as saying in the lobbies during the meeting of the EU foreign ministers who discussed the application of the Treaty of Lisbon after its expected final ratification.

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Bulgarian Spaska Mitrova, who lives in Gevgelija and holds both Bulgarian and Macedonian citizenship, will have to appear in court for trial again on November 3, "Troud" says. Her former husband, the court and the local social centre are pressing to make her conditional sentence effective. Mitrova was arrested by Macedonian police on July 29, tried and sentenced to six months' imprisonment for refusing to provide accommodation at her parents' home for her Serbian ex-husband to visit their daughter. She has not seen her daughter for three months.

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The executives of 23 news agencies will participate in an international meeting of the news agencies of Southeastern Europe and the Black Sea region organized by BTA, "Klassa" reports. The forum will be opened by PM Borissov in Sofia on Friday and will continue in Veliko Turnovo.

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Under the headline "Figures of the Transition Period Identify Themselves in Photos" "24 Chassa" tells about on two pages about the exhibition entitled "20 Years in 60 Photos", organized by BTA and the BulFoto agency under the aegis of the European Commission Representation in Bulgaria and with the assistance of Sofia Municipality.

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One of the 450 balls held in Vienna will be a Bulgarian one, "Troud" reports. Sofia Ball is scheduled to take place in Vienna's Lower Austria Palace on January 15, 2010. The prices are between 259 and 560 euro. Performing will be the grandchildren of Bulgarian composer Pancho Vladigerov: Ekaterina Vladigerova (piano) and the twin brothers, Aleksander (trumpet) and Konstantin (piano) Vladigerov. Bulgarian pop stars Orlin Goranov, Vesselin Marinov and Georgi Hristov will sing their hits.

Links to some Bulgarian info websites in English:

· http://www.bta.bg/site/en/indexe.shtml
· http://www.novinite.com/index.php
· http://www.focus-fen.net/

Most discussed topics of the day – October 28, 2009

· The German company RWE is withdrawing from the Belene Nuclear Power Plant project, the Bulgarian Energy Holding said on Wednesday. The project for a second nuclear power plant in Bulgaria thus remains without an investor other than the Bulgarian State. The two main reasons RWE have mentioned are the financial crisis and the failure to complete two of the stages of the project: signing a final agreement with the contractor and financial structuring of the project.

· Bulgaria's Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, voiced Wednesday further accusations about his predecessor, Sergey Stanishev, concealing nine more State Security classified files. Borisov spoke after a meeting of the Council of Ministers, saying the disappearance of the National Agency for State Security (DANS) documents was not a matter of carelessness, but an act with a definite purpose.

· The Bulgarian towns of Yambol and Tryavna have taken measures to control the spread of swine flu, including shutting schools and banning all large public meetings. Elsewhere, Bulgarian health officials confirmed on Wednesday that a 32-year-old man from the town of Samokov, Central Bulgaria, died after being infected with the H1N1 virus, the country's second swine flu-related fatality.