Bulgarian press review, January 29, 2010

Press Review
Sofia, January 29

THE HOME SCENE

"Boris Velchev Defends Changes to Code of Criminal Procedure," "Troud writes. Changes to the Code of Criminal Procedure will untie the hands of the prosecuting magistracy. Any objections are "predictable and show fear," said Prosecutor General Boris Velchev on Thursday. He added that in Bulgaria people are much more afraid of the state than of criminals. He raised the question of what the prosecuting magistracy should be in a society with "a huge deficit of justice". Changes to the Code of Criminal Procedure were adopted in principle on Wednesday, but they were criticized harshly by MPs of the remaining four groups in Parliament: the Coalition for Bulgaria, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, the Blue Coalition and Ataka.

***

"Troud" runs an editorial on the changes to the Code of Criminal Procedure (Better to Be Unpunished At Large than Innocent in Prison). For the first time during GERB's rule a support for a bill has been withdrawn for political reasons. The Code of Criminal Procedure institutes the role of the back-up lawyer who will replace a defense lawyer during an absence, irrespective of the reason, without the consent of the defendant. The irony is that a case will not be adjourned due to the absence of the defense lawyer, but it will when the back-up lawyer is absent. The Convention on Human Rights expressly states that a defendant has the right to choose a defense lawyer. The changes will see in the return of the "eternal defendant" after the scrap of a provision that cases should go to court after two years. The amendment is ridiculous against the backdrop of nearly 71,000,000 cases that were suspended after their statute of limitations ran out last year. The scrapping of the mandatory defense before the Supreme Court of Cassation, the limited access to cassation and retrial of criminal cases, and the weight given in court to anonymous tips and evidence obtained through special surveillance means smack of repression, according to the author.

***

In an interview for "24 Chassa", Lozan Panov, President of the Sofia Administrative Court says that the crisis has increased cases against the authorities, but it has brought down the number of divorces. More civil servants tend to file lawsuits after being laid-off. The number of cases instituted by the socially disadvantaged, the elderly and the disabled for bigger pensions and benefits remains the same. The number of legal disputes over tax is also unchanged. Cases over compensation for appropriated properties have doubled, according to Panov.

***

"Troud" reports that Anton the Hamster Petrov, who was one of the suspects held during Operation "Impudent" at the end of December 2009, was released on Thursday. Petrov who is claimed to be one of the masterminds of a kidnapping ring was released on a 20,000-leva bail by the Sofia Appellate Court. Just a week after the Sofia City Prosecution Office claimed that there was enough evidence incriminating Petrov of being part of the ring, the appellate panel found evidence against him inconclusive. Commenting the court's decision, Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov said that the 20,000-leva bail shows involvement with the ring.



***

"Hamster Takes a Bite at Themis," writes "Standart News". The Bulgarian independent court has once again baffled us when it comes to its "logical" decisions in regard to notorious figures of the underworld. Suspicions that something is off at the temple of Themis are growing stronger. It is obvious that one of the links in the chain consisting of the police, the prosecuting magistracy and the judiciary has failed and ordinary people are left with the impression that high-profile arrests are just for show.

***

"Sega" writes that on the votes of GERB Parliament adopted a controversial amendment to the Radio and Television Act which allows owners of advertising companies to apply for television broadcast licenses. So far they have been banned in order not to influence the TV advertising market. The revision was immediately called "the Gergov amendment", as it favors advertising boss Krassimir Gergov and he lobbied tirelessly for it.

***

In an interview for "Standart News", Minister without portfolio Bojidar Dimitrov says that Prime Minister Borissov would be bored if he were President. Dimitrov assures that corrupt officials of the Movement for Rights and Freedom are being investigated. Former agriculture minister Valeri Tsvetanov and two MPs of the Movement will be brought to court very soon. Of the crisis which the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) is undergoing, Dimitrov says that BSP is an old party and a good brand. It has been through many crises, but it remains uncertain how many votes it will be able to garner. Dimitrov even sees it gaining as little as two or three per cent of the vote because of its coalition with the Movement for Rights and Freedoms.

***

In a commentary, "Sega" notes that pre-GERB rightist parties are trying to sit between two stools. The Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) and Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) are backing GERB in words, but they take every opportunity to distance themselves from the ruling party and to sell them selves as the competent authentic Right. It is becoming clearer that by the end if his term Prime Minister Boyko Borissov will turn into a lonely long distance runner. His only loyal partner is the nationalist Ataka party, which suffers from lack of international recognition. At a certain point this might create problems for the cabinet. The sad thing for the UDF and DSB is that they don't have public resources to defend their ideas, even when they are good.

***

"SANS Enters Guantanamo," "Troud" reports. Bulgaria will take in just one Guantanamo inmate under a proposal of a joint working group of the Interior Ministry, the State Agency for National Security (SANS) and the Foreign Ministry. The government is set to reach a decision within a month. The proposal was announced Thursday by Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov at a meeting with the parliamentary committees on defense and internal security. However, before the decision is made, SANS officials will visit Guantanamo to obtain firsthand information, Tsvetanov said.


ECONOMY

"24 Chassa" writes that tobacco growers will receive 116 million leva in March, with a second installment in store around Christmas. The subsidy per one kilo of tobacco will be as much as in 2009, under an agreement signed Thursday between the Agriculture Ministry and the National Association of Tobacco Growers. Prime Minister Boyko Borissov called a late night meeting, after tobacco growers announced that they were calling off the blockades of the Bulgarian-Greek border.

***

"24 Chassa" carries an analysis on subsidized tobacco growing. Under the existing scheme, the amount of subsidies depends on the amount of produced tobacco, which seems fair at first glance. However, only 5 to 10 per cent of the whole tobacco output goes to Bulgarian cigarette factories, and the rest is exported. The companies that buy it know very well the price of a kilo of tobacco. They also know that tobacco growers receive subsidies and they wring their hands with low purchase prices, which the tobacco growers accept, as they know that they are entitled to subsidies. A new scheme should be put in place which will ensure that money goes directly to tobacco growers and will not subsidize middlemen and tobacco companies.

***

"Troud" reports that land deals have been suspended in a third of Bulgaria. In 92 municipalities the market of agricultural land has frozen for a second time in the past three months. All transactions have been suspended including those for lease of land after contracts with geodesic companies that prepare sketch maps expired and new companies are being contracted. In December, deals were temporarily unblocked after the Agriculture Ministry extended the old contracts until Christmas.


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 – Sofia, January 29, 2010

· From February 1, the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) is cutting off cash for 21 municipal and private hospitals as part of the Health Ministry’s controversial and long-awaited hospital care reform plan. The NHIF decision, announced on January 26, means that these hospitals will have to rely on other sources of money – but, more likely, that they will close.


· After a freezing spell in which temperatures fell to - 28oC in some parts of Bulgaria, snow has now returned bringing difficult conditions in the Bulgarian capital Sofia.
12-27 cm of snow fell overnight in Sofia and Western parts of Bulgaria. The press center of the Sofia Municipality reported early Friday that snow clearing operations continued all night and the situation is under control.