A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| 2013–2014 Bulgarian protests against the Oresharski cabinet Протести срещу кабинета "Орешарски" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 8 July 2013, protesters in Sofia blocked the biggest boulevard in the city – "Tsarigradsko Shose" | |||
| Date | 14 June 2013 – 23 July 2014 (1 year, 1 month and 9 days) | ||
| Location | |||
| Caused by |
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| Methods | |||
| Resulted in |
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| Parties | |||
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| Lead figures | |||
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| Number | |||
| 8,000 police officers deployed in total (between 20 and 500 per day),[51] 811 members of the Gendarmerie[52] | |||
| Casualties | |||
| Death(s) | 0 (None) | ||
| Injuries | 20+[53][54][55] | ||
| Arrested | 280+[56][57][58][59][60][61][62][63][64][65][66][67] | ||
The 2013–2014 Bulgarian protests against the Oresharski cabinet was a series of demonstrations that were held in Bulgaria, mainly in the capital Sofia, against the left-wing coalition cabinet of Oresharski (coalition between Bulgarian Socialist Party and Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS), supported by the ultra-nationalist party Ataka). The demonstrations started on 28 May 2013,[68] but actual large-scale protests did not emerge until 14 June.[69]
While the trigger factor for the demonstrations was the controversial appointment of Delyan Peevski as head of DANS in June 2013, the public discontent stemmed from a variety of causes, to a large extent connected to the general nature of the BSP-MRF governing coalition and perceived legitimacy issues surrounding political processes in Bulgaria. They ended in July 2014 with the resignation of the Oresharski government.
Background
Following the 2013 Bulgarian protests against the Borisov cabinet of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov over government austerity measures encouraged by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund during the recession[70] and high utility bills, the Borisov government resigned and brought forward the Bulgarian parliamentary election, 2013, which saw a very low voter turnout.[71] Though Borisov's party Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) won a plurality with 97 deputies in the National Assembly, it could not form a government and gave up its mandate. The Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) led the government under technocratic Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski.[72] The left-wing government of Plamen Oresharski was approved by the 120 members of the BSP and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms.[73] Outside support to the Oresharski Government was also given by nationalist party Ataka,[74] dubbed by some sources as the "hidden coalition partner",[75] or Siderov's "golden finger",[76] and regarded as a key instrument for allowing the Parliament to proceed with its functions,[77] until June 2014.[78]
On 12 May 2013, a group of more than 100 demonstrators alleging electoral machinations were involved in confrontations with police close to the National Palace of Culture after election day polls indicated that GERB was the projected winner.[79][80] Mass protests for political causes are relatively uncommon in Bulgaria, but have become more frequent since the mid to late 2000s,[81] with environmental issues such as the demands for the preservation of the Strandzha Mountain nature areas on occasions also triggering anti-establishment activism and discontent against governments.[82][83] In Badzhakov's contention, these were the third notable protests against the post-communist status quo in Bulgaria, the first ones encompassing the period between 1989-1991 and directed against the collapsing communist regime and the first democratically elected government that was formed by the Bulgarian Socialist Party, with the second ones opposing the Zhan Videnov government (as well as the possibility of another Socialist successor to it) and occurring as a result of an economic and political crisis between December 1996 and February 1997.[84][85] Student occupations of universities had previously been considered in the autumn of 2010 (due to the Borisov government's policy in the realm of education) and in February 2013 (because of proposed increases in tuition fees for the semesters).[86]
May: Environmental protests
Initially the demonstrations started as a protest by environmentalists and green activists against the nomination of Kalin Tiholov as Investment Planning Minister. Tiholov has been involved in the controversial "Dyuni-gate" affair, whereby he had invested in a major building project at the Dyuni ("dunes") nature spot on the Black Sea coast.[87][88][89] Due to the protests Tiholov withdrew his candidature.[90][91] Protests arose for a variety of topics, with most important the restart of the Belene Nuclear Power Plant and construction in protected areas.[92][93][94]
On 30 May 2013, there was also public discontent against a government proposal (supported by Attack) to remove the smoking ban in restaurants and eateries.[95] In December 2013, the Parliament voted against reversing the prohibition on smoking in enclosed spaces.[96]
Summer months: focus on Peevski appointment
June–July: Protests for the resignation of Peevski as a head of DANS
The second series of protests had a far more political scope. These protests started on 14 June, as response to the election of Delyan Peevski as a head of the Bulgarian security agency DANS (State Agency for National Security).[97][98][99] Peevski, an MP for the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS), is also head of Alegro Capital LTD, a big communications company which includes the TV7 network.[100][101] The decision to elect Peevski has also been linked to the Corporate Commercial Bank ("CCB" or "KTB", Bulg: КТБ), wherein much funding for state development projects is invested. The bank's largest shareholder, Tsvetan Vasilev, has been repeatedly linked in the public sphere to the media holdings of Peevski and his mother Irena Krasteva.[102][103][104] The process of concentration of media ownership in Bulgaria in the hands of business and political oligarchies is believed to have really started in 2007, in part influenced by the economic crisis.[105]
Peevski was approved by parliament within an hour of being nominated by the ruling coalition of Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) and DPS. He was praised by Oresharski for "being outside the system" and thus likely to be effective in working for the interests of Bulgaria.[106] His surprising election immediately provoked nationwide protests the same evening (10,000 in Sofia alone), organized through Facebook.[107][108][109] Over 80,000 people joined the "ДАНСwithme" group on Facebook between 14 and 15 June.[110] Peevski initially subscribed to the viewpoint that the protests were not attributable to genuine popular level sentiments, but were orchestrated by forces that had reasons to fear future investigations by him.[111][112]
Although the election was a surprise for the public, later investigations by newspaper Capital made clear that the appointment was not as spontaneous as claimed by BSP. In fact, it was carefully orchestrated and prepared long before BSP was able to form a cabinet.[113] The appointment of Peevski caused widespread indignation. Even president Plevneliev spoke out against it and stated that the Cabinet of Prime Minister Oresharski has lost credibility.[114] On 14 June 2013, Plevneliev cancelled his intended visit to Vidin for the unveiling of the Danube Bridge 2 due to his disagreement with the Peevski nomination.[115] He has received praise for being the only governing politician to come out publicly in support of the protesters.[116] Political scientist Ivan Krastev commented that the Peevski appointment made sense only if the government had taken a decision for the country to leave the European Union.[117] In the early phase of the protest, center-right politician and poet Edvin Sugarev began a hunger strike, though he was persuaded to discontinue it by family members after 22 days, as his worsening health condition necessitated a hospitalization.[118]
Public anger was exacerbated by the fact that in the weeks and days leading up to Peevski's election, the parliament had approved major changes in the legal framework of DANS structures, which gave its head unprecedented powers - beyond purely analytical capabilities.[119] The changes included:[120]
- taking DANS out of the structure of the Interior Ministry and putting it under the direct auspices of the Cabinet
- taking the Anti-Organized Crime Directorate out of the Interior Ministry and placing it under the direct control of DANS
- taking away the President's right to nominate the head of DANS.
Although Peevski wrote on 15 June that he will be withdrawing from the post,[121] the protests stemmed from general discontent with the government as a whole.[122][123] The release of Peevski from his position as head of DANS was confirmed on 19 June and his status as a National Parliament deputy remained in limbo until 8 October.[124]
The demonstrations started on 28 May 2013,[68] but actual large-scale protests did not emerge until the controversial appointment of Delyan Peevski as head of the State Agency for National Security on 14 June.[69] The eruption of the demonstrations on 14 June caught the members of the cabinet by surprise, with only a small number of police officers deployed on the first day of the protests.[125] Despite the government's decision to reverse the appointment, protests continued, raising new demands, including Mr Oresharski's resignation[126] and putting an end to the "Peevski model" (referring to the issue of oligarchic control over the actions of the Bulgarian governments).[127] Demonstrations have been noted for their use of social networks[109] such as Facebook[128] and emphasis on digital slang,[129] with the social networking opportunities being recognized by some commentators as a contributing factor to the rejuvenating of the protests on a number of occasions.[130] It has also been suggested that the eruption of the 2013 demonstrations in Turkey played some part in energizing the anti-Oresharski protest movement.[131]
The protests were still ongoing weeks after the reversal of Peevski's appointment, attracting a steady number of 10,000 to 15,000 people without any signs of attenuation.[132] Because of the lack of response from the government, the demonstrators resorted to other means of expressing their anger over the presumed corruption of the government, including protesting every morning in front of the parliament, as part of the morning initiative to "drink coffee" with the politicians, and blockading different roads at random. Despite such demonstrations, the government largely ignored the protesters and dismissed their claims.[133] Although at first largely ignored by the world press, the demonstrations soon started to receive more significant worldwide attention both by the media and the general population via the use of social networks.[134][135][136] The anti-Peevski protesters were described as including people from various walks of life and political ideologies,[137] among them leftists, environmentalists, pro-Europeanists and nationalists,[138] with a visible presence of members of the intelligentsia[139] and people from information technology fields.[140] Bulgarian expatriates were also active in organizing protests abroad since 16 June 2013, with the first documented ones taking place in Brussels, Berlin and London.[141] The protest atmosphere in Bulgaria in the aftermath of Peevski's appointment has been compared to the one from the summer of 1990 when many Bulgarians had their first taste of democracy.[142]
On 13 July, a protester procession made a theatric reenactment of the Liberty Leading the People painting of Eugène Delacroix, with a half-naked female protester depicting an allegorical goddess-figure.[143][144]
Continuity and divergences between the February and June protests
Since the early days of the protests, there was somewhat of a split between the participants in the protest marches that forced the resignation of the Borisov government and the majority of the anti-Oresharski demonstrators, with the former generally willing to give the government some time to prove itself (even if lacking enthusiasm for it, as the Oresharski cabinet was not regarded as truly reflecting the initial expectations that the government would consist of a relatively apolitical collection of experts that would satisfy the main demands of the February protesters)[145] rather than demanding immediate resignation.[146][147] Some organizers of the February 2013 protests took issue with what they deemed as the new protesters' inclination to characterize the participants in the anti-Borisov protest waves as uncouth and lacking intellectual sophistication.[148][149] The divide (which was not an absolute one) was also confirmed on the empirical level – according to research by the Sofia Open Society Institute encompassing the months of June and July 2013, circa 50% of the self-professed participants in the February demonstrations reported to have taken part in the anti-Oresharski protests, with 3.5% of all Bulgarians declaring to have participated in both.[11] Popular TV host Yavor Dachkov opined that the anti-Oresharski protests (unlike the February demonstrations) lacked the markings of a mass movement due to deriving their strength almost exclusively from the inhabitants of Sofia.[150] Analysts noted that Varna – which saw the most intense demonstrations against the Borisov cabinet – remained largely quiet and noncommittal during the anti-Oreshaski protests.[151] A number of commentators have blamed the anti-Oresharski protesters for keeping their distance from the February demonstrators by deliberately avoiding any socially and economically oriented demands,[152][153] while others have regarded the rift between the "poor and downtrodden" February activists and the "middle to upper class intellectual" summer protesters as largely an artificially created one[154] with the active complicity of the government and pro-government media in their attempt to present the governing coalition as a protector of the less affluent Bulgarians.[153] Garnizov suggests that the make-up of the February and June protester groups was quite similar, but the informal leaders and those who were able to put themselves on the media's radar turned out to be manifestly different, with some of the faces of the February protests such as Angel Slavchev never able to capitalize on their previous protest efforts and recreate their leadership role.[155]
A minority of pundits such as Evgeniy Mihaylov and Yuriy Aslanov have characterized the informal leaders of the February demonstrations as actively supportive of the Oresharski government (which was alleged to have been favourable to Russian interests in Bulgaria) and claimed that these figures were the main force behind the counter-protests by backing Oresharski and voicing grievances against Plevneliev.[156][157]
The anti-Oresharski protesters also continued bringing up the need for significant amendments to the electoral rules, which had been raised during the February protests. On 17 June 2013, protest activists were invited by then chairwoman of the National Parliament Maya Manolova to participate in the debates on this topic.[158]
Some protest figures such as Svetoslav Nikolov, who was behind the initiative of setting up tents on the western side of Parliament on 17 June 2013, declared themselves largely satisfied because of the Peevski resignation and the changes to the electoral rules implemented by the Oresharski cabinet.[159]
Siege of Parliament, 23–24 July
On the night of 23–24 July there was violence in the protesting.[160][161] By the end of July 2013, anti-government protesters were still out in force protesting peacefully in Sofia with Reuters recording 24 July 2013 as the 41st straight day of peaceful protests. The protesters were demanding the resignation of the Socialist-led government of Oresharski. More than 100 lawmakers, ministers, and journalists spent the night barricaded inside Parliament before police removed them. MPs attempted to leave Parliament by boarding a white coach bus and making their way through the crowd. There was violence as the police tried to unsuccessfully clear the way for the bus, and after slowly making its way around the Aleksandar Nevski cathedral, the bus returned to the back exit of Parliament after about an hour around midnight. Another police action at around 4 am forcefully cleared the remaining protesters, and the coach left, which led to further accusations of police violence in the ensuing days.[162][163][164][165] 8 protesters and 2 policemen suffered injuries.[166] A survey covering the attitudes of Bulgarians showed that 65% felt that the actions of the protesters on that day were out of line, while 53% also disapproved of the police response. 79% agreed that the provocateurs involved in the violence need to have charges levelled against them.[167] Sociologists expressed mixed views in relation to the events.[168] Volen Siderov drew comparisons with the siege and storming of the National Parliament on 10 January 1997, characterizing the actions of the demonstrators as dangerous and as part of an orchestrated scenario aiming to create the impression of an ongoing popular revolution.[169] One policeman has been charged for unlawful conduct with regard to his actions during the events of 23–24 July and is currently on trial for disproportionate use of force against protesters.[170]
Other developments (August–September)
The first day of the Parliamentary vacation (3 August 2013) saw a relatively low turnout of around a 1000 protesters.[171]
On 7 August 2013, on the 55th day of the demonstrations, some the main organizers of the protests held their first press conference, announcing that a "protest network" (Bulgarian: "протестна мрежа") had been formed to help them co-ordinate their activities.[172][173]
- August – Seaside protest
When parliamentarians took their annual break in August, many protesters followed them to their residences on the Black Sea coast.[174][175][176]
- September – Return to Sofia
After parliament opened once again in September, the Sofia protests continued, but with a low turnout of a few dozen to a hundred people each day. This was on some days outnumbered by participants of the counter-protest, which now moved to the Presidency, also located in Independence square, with both protests metres away from one another.[177] One exception was the opening session of Parliament after the summer break (on 4 September) dubbed the "great welcoming" (Bulgarian: "голямото посрещане"), during which the protester numbers were in the thousands. Counter-protesters (in the hundreds) were also present within the internal perimeter of the National Parliament. A minority of anti-government demonstrators attempted to wrestle away and change the positioning of metal railings in front of the Parliament.[178][179] 11 people identified as provocateurs were subsequently charged for these activities and for disobeying police orders.[180]
On 5 September 2013, Samuil Petkanov, founder of satirical website nenovinite.com and a prominent member of "protest network", sent out an open letter to Boyko Borisov, in which he objected to what he saw as certain GERB sympathizers' attempts to hijack the demonstrations and add a more radical dimension to them (on that day some protesters had attempted to move a number of the barriers close to the official entrance of National Parliament building, but the fences were subsequently put back in place by the police).[181] Borisov responded to the letter, agreeing with Petkanov's points (emphasizing that the deputy leader of his party, Tsvetan Tsvetanov, had managed to calm down the situation) and reiterating his party's commitment to an exclusively peaceful protest.[182] Since the beginning of the protests, the majority of the demonstrators had warned against the infiltration by provocateurs, which had helped justify forceful government responses during protest actions in the past.[183]
On 16 September 2013, BTV journalist Genka Shikerova's personal automobile was found torched. The Bulgarian Helsinki Committee alleged that this may have been intended as a warning and intimidation. She had recently taken interviews with Sergei Stanishev and Lyutvi Mestan, during which she is perceived to have been critical towards her interviewees.[184]
On 27 September 2013, protesters blocked for a short while the traffic near Eagle's Bridge.[185] Eagle's Bridge has been regarded as a popular protest gathering spot in Bulgaria since 1989 and is invested with symbolism.[186]
October: Students' protests and university occupations after return of Peevski
On 8 October 2013, the Constitutional Court effectively allowed Delyan Peevski to return to Parliament after failing to reach a decision on whether to strip him of his MP status.[104] Several hundred people turned out for the 117th day of protests, a slightly higher number than in previous days. There were some violent episodes between protesters and police.[187][188] According to media reports, six people were detained for public order offences.[189]
On 22 October 2013, 171 deputies in the National Parliament (GERB, BSP and Ataka joined together) voted for the extension of the ban on the sale of Bulgarian land to foreigners until 2020. 38 were against and 12 did not exercise their right to vote.[190] Analysts considered the resulting legal implications to be negligible, though they also cautioned that the motion could be in violation of the conditions surrounding Bulgaria's entry in the EU and also encourage other EU states to apply job market restrictions when it comes to Bulgarian citizens.[191]
On 23 October 2013, students at Sofia University joined the anti-Oresharski Government protests and occupied the main lecture hall in protest against the "façade democracy" and asked for "accountability from their professors", mainly from their history of law professor Dimitar Tokushev, who is also chairman of the Constitutional Court and was blamed for voting in favor of Peevski continuing in his role as a deputy in the National Parliament.[192] The student protests and the occupation of university buildings injected new life into a persistent anti-government movement that was into its 140th day on 1 November.[193][194][195][196][197] Three of the initiators of the student occupation had held a meeting with Mihail Mikov a few days prior to its beginning, during which the then chairman of the National Parliament is believed to have been dismissive of and expressed a lack of understanding of the demonstrations.[198] The protest intensified over the next few days, and on 27 October counter-protesters, joined by a Bulgarian Socialist Party MPs, made their way into the university and clashed with students. Police arrived at the place, but left shortly thereafter. The video of the clash could be seen at the following link: [199][200] By the next day, several universities across the country were occupied by students, including NBU, NATFIZ, VTU and UNWE.[201][202] The occupation attempt of NBU was short-lived and not comparable in scale to the Sofia University one, as the students soon realized that the higher-ups within the university hierarchy were on their side (having actually participated in the protests), which would defeat the purpose of a prolonged standoff within the university buildings.[203][204]
In a statement read to the public on 25 October 2013, the occupying students explained that they were: "...angered by the systemic violations of constitutional order in the country by the current government led by Plamen Oresharski". Among their objectives was to force the resignation of Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski's government and see new general elections as soon as possible.[195] The occupation was backed by approximately 600 academics, though the occupiers did not constitute a majority among either the students or members of staff at Sofia University.[205]
November: March of Justice, second attempt to siege Parliament and reduced intensity of occupations
On 10 November 2013, March of Justice was organized on the 24th anniversary of 10 November 1989 events (resignation of the former communist head of state Todor Zhivkov), which led to the protests against the left-wing Oresharski cabinet gaining new momentum.[206]
On 12 November 2013, the anti-government protesters on the 152nd day of anti-government protests attempted to siege Parliament for a second time (the first time being 23–24 July).[207] Pro-protest sources alleged that close to 7000 police employees had been deployed in order to stifle the protests that were joined by the occupying students.[208] On that date, the police received signals of provocateur infiltrations and possible arson threats against the Parliament.[55] Tension also developed between protesters and police officers after a demonstrator jumped on a deputy's car close to National Assembly Square.[209] In the assessment of student protest leader Ivaylo Dinev, a much higher citizen turnout as well as better coordination and unity between protester groups (some were entirely committed to peaceful demonstrations, while others were more radically minded) could have brought down the government on that date.[210] One of the most iconic images of the protests was also captured on 12 November - a photo of a tearful teenage girl hugging a sympathetic police officer in full riot gear.[211]
On 13 November, the occupation of Plovdiv University came to an end, with the students vowing to redirect their activities to Sofia.[212] On the same date, the occupying students in Sofia wrote an official note in which they explicitly distanced themselves from Boyko Borisov and denied having sought any support from GERB.[213]
In addition to the protests that took place every day, a massive protest was organized by GERB on 16 November in Plovdiv,[214] with the number of participants estimated as close to 15,000 by the Bulgarian Ministry of Internal Affairs,[215] and by the labor unions on 20 November in Sofia.[216]
On 18 November, the student occupation of Sofia University was partially lifted, with the Aula Magna room becoming the only exclusive domain of the occupiers and restrictions on access to the university premises remaining in place.[217][218]
On 20 November, the students protested together with the taxi drivers and some of the syndicates (though the participation of the latter two was regarded as half-hearted) in the vicinity of the National Assembly. The student participants were unsuccessful in laying siege to the National Parliament due to the heavy concentration of police officers in the area and engaged in "performance demonstrations".[219]
December: Holiday protests with emigrant involvement
On 2 December 2013, the protests started with a demonstration by leading Bulgarian actors who made a symbolic funeral of the Parliament.[220] One of them, Filip Avramov, made an emotional appeal for resignation of the government in front of a reporter of the Bulgarian National Television. The general turnout continued to be low, with the protests attracting between 200 and 300 participants.[221]
December was a month of Christian holidays which was feted with protests on Christmas.[222] On 26 December 2013, approximately 3000 protesters (including many emigrants who had returned for the holidays) held a rally in front of the Parliament.[67]
Analysis conducted by Gallup Research noted that December had seen somewhat of a reduction in intra-societal tensions compared to November, though the conclusion was reached that the potential for further protests was still very much in the picture.[223]
January 2014: End of first occupation wave, Siderov scandal and new short-lived university occupation
On 10 January 2014, the protesters against the cabinet of Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski blocked for a while the traffic in front of the Council of Ministers.[224] While the protest turnout remained low, the central parts of the city near the main government buildings saw a heavy police presence due to tip-offs suggesting that illegal disruption activities of a radical nature were being planned and the date coinciding with the 17-year anniversary of the 1997 siege and storming of the Parliament.[225][226]
In the late evening hours of 13 January 2014, the occupying students held a general meeting and subsequently decided to fully lift the occupation of Sofia University, thus vacating the Aula Magna room. One of the participants commented that the students recognized the need to break the cycle of predictability and from now on would concentrate their activities in the areas of the city close to the National Parliament. The students from the South-West University in Blagoevgrad followed suit by declaring the occupation of their institution of higher education to be over.[227][228]
On 15 January 2014, the protests continued during the opening session of the National Parliament for the new year (though the number of participants remained in the hundreds), with the added demand that the MEPs vote for the revocation of Volen Siderov's parliamentary immunity – the Ataka party leader had earlier in the month been involved in a confrontation with the French cultural attaché for Bulgaria, Stéphanie Dumortier, a Bulgarian airplane passenger and Varna-based police officers.[229] Siderov also had on numerous occasions criticized the protesters, dismissing their demands as illegitimate and anti-patriotic.[230] Besides that, he had voiced disapproval at the police's leniency towards the anti-Oresharski crowd, perceiving the demonstrators as a threat to the normal functioning of the Bulgarian government institutions,[231] and suggested "citizen's arrests" for certain demonstrators.[232] During the demonstrations, Biser Milanov and fellow members of the National Liberty movement (Bulgarian: Национално движение "Свобода"), who were identified by some of the protesters as having affiliations with Nikolay Barekov's party "Bulgaria without Censorship" (Bulgarian: "България без цензура") and being driven by an interest in discrediting the protests,[233][234] were arrested by a specialized squad of the Bulgarian police on the insistence of the prosecutor-general due to a criminal charge filed against Milanov (unrelated to his immediate presence at the protests).[235] Milanov is currently on trial for allegedly uttering threats against a female protester on 6 July 2013, inciting racial hatred against dark-skinned refugees on 2 November 2013 and behaving in a threatening manner during a TV broadcast.[236][237] He spent time in prison between January and August 2014.[238] In an interview with journalist and TV host Martin Karbovski, the chairman of the National Liberty movement, Yordan Bonev, claimed to have attended a meeting with Boyko Borisov in mid January 2014 (alongside Biser Milanov), during which the possibility of organizing a massive anti-government demonstration had been discussed.[239] While Barekov has corroborated this (though he has downplayed his own association with Milanov),[240] Borisov has denied any knowledge of such a gathering having taken place.[237][241] Yordan Bonev had also been implicated as a provocateur during the February 2013 demonstrations against the Borisov cabinet.[242]
On 25 January 2014, the protest in the Sofia University started again, with a new occupation.[243] The stated demands included the resignation of the government, a dissolution of the National Parliament and the stepping down of university dean Ivan Ilchev.[244] In addition, alleged provocations on the part of university staff members during the previous strike action as well the conclusions of the European Commission's most recent report on Bulgaria have been cited among the trigger factors for the university students' decision to renew the occupation.[245] The leading figures behind the new occupation were profiled as belonging to a "radical wing" of the previous occupying students (who had been against their colleagues' decision – that was taken in mid January – to restore full access to the university facilities for the staff and non-occupying students)[246] and did not receive the full backing of all the previous participants in the occupation,[247] some of whom adopted the stance that the timing of the occupation was not well-chosen and had caused them to postpone the public debate in the form of round table discussions, which was supposed to begin on that date and was envisioned as a new phase of the protest.[248] It has also been suggested that the new student protesters did not shun the politicization of their activities, as they were seeking a "decapsulation" and unlike the other occupiers were open to cooperating with political parties and civil society organizations that are in opposition to the Oresharski government,[249] as well as with football fan clubs.[250] There were discussions regarding the possibility of starting a second occupation at Plovdiv University as well, but the idea was eventually discarded by the students.[251]
On 27 January 2014, counter-occupiers attempted to enter the university grounds and demanded that the occupation come to an end; police eventually arrived on the scene to prevent any arguments from arising between the occupiers and their opponents.[252]
On 28 January 2014, the new occupiers voluntarily lifted the occupation after intensive negotiations with administrative personnel, university staff and fellow students (including some key figures behind the first occupation), though some of them stated that they had faced undue pressure to come to such a decision[253][254] and also expressed disappointment that they did not receive sufficient support from the wider society.[255] The likelihood of a forceful eviction by the police was also cited as a contributing factor to the limited duration of the second university-based protest.[256] Opinion polls confirmed that the second occupation did not garner the same approval as the first one, with less than 50% of Bulgarian citizens expressing encouragement for the actions of the occupiers.[257][258] In the aftermath, the possibility of a third occupation was not ruled out.[259][260]
February 2014: Multifaceted issues and continued subsiding of protest activities
On 1 February 2014, Justin Tomms, Miriana Zaharieva and other informal protest leaders officially registered the non-governmental organization "Movement for European Unity and Solidarity" (Bulgarian: Движение за европейско обединение и солидарност), which was expected to soon become a new political party, though it was not able to take part in the European elections. The members of DEOS do not envision themselves as a "protest party", but a regular liberal-leaning faction.[261]
On 6 February 2014, student and other protesters demonstrated by carrying banners against the mafia, expressing outrage and opposition to the deputies' decision to raise their personal work salaries after months of constant protests.[262]
On 7 February 2014, student and other protesters showed their anti-government stances by carrying and throwing around computer mice in front of the Parliament building, criticizing what they view as the government's reluctance to implement a system of electronic voting.[263]
On 9 February 2014, some of the participants in the 2013 Bulgarian protests against the Borisov cabinet rallied on the streets of Sofia and Plovdiv in commemoration of the events that took place in February 2013. While they did not call for a resignation of the Oresharski cabinet, the protesters expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of action taken by Oresharski (and Sofia mayor Yordanka Fandakova) against the monopoly companies, lamenting the lack of significant transformations in the economic realm in the 12 months since the end of the Borisov cabinet's tenure.[264] The newly formed party Bulgaria without Censorship was among the main organizers of the citizen gatherings.[265]
In late February 2014, mostly with the consent of the demonstrators, the protest tent cities in the area of the National Parliament were taken down in preparation for the Bulgarian national holiday celebrations held on 3 March.[159][266]
March 2014: Preparing the ground for a referendum and Karadere controversy
The major activity of the March protesters was the collection of signatures for the holding of a referendum on electoral rules. Thus they applied pressure on the government for the referendum to take place together with the European elections.[267] A number of pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian protests took place near the Russian embassy in Sofia during that month, with alleged provocateurs who had previously attempted to create discord during the anti-Oresharski demonstrations, participating in the pro-Russian rallies.[268]
After it became known that the government had given green light to construction works in the Karadere area, massive protests on 23 March 2014 were held in the cities of Sofia, Plovdiv and Varna; and a counter-protest in Byala.[269] The protesters expressed their view that the few environmentally well-preserved areas in the country should not be turned into concrete landscapes. Allegations have surfaced that architect Georgiy Stanishev, brother of Sergei Stanishev, had been behind this project, but he has denied any involvement.[270]
April 2014: Renewed attention on Peevski and anticipation of the European elections
A new wave of protests occurred in April after rumour spread in the media that Delyan Peevski would be included in the elections list of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) for the upcoming European Parliament election that are going to take place in late May.[271] A group called "Делян Европеевски" (English: Delyan Europeevski) had already been created in Facebook with the motto 'We did not allow the mummy's boy to be appointed in DANS, let us not allow him to be elected in the European Parliament'. As of 10 April 2014, the group reached more than 700 followers. On 9 April 2014, a protest took place in front of the building of the Council of Ministers.[272] The protesters organized themselves using the social network.
May 2014: Low profile of protest gatherings and European elections campaigning
On 12 May 2014, hundreds of demonstrators gathered in front of the Council of Ministers to mark the 333rd day of protests (as well as one year since the 2013 Parliamentary elections that were held ahead of schedule). The protesters took a detour from their usual route towards the National Parliament and Eagles' Bridge, marching in the direction of the MRF and BSP party headquarters. Members of "protest network" also extended an invitation to Peevski to discuss with them his European Parliament campaign as well as his positions on the main EU-related debates.[273] A small protest and counter-protest were held on 28 May, during the first Parliament session in the aftermath of the European Parliament election, which saw an unsatisfactory performance of the main governing electoral alliance Coalition for Bulgaria[274] and were interpreted by experts as being likely to strengthen the protest potential (with a more prominent political involvement in the demonstrations) due to the continued decline of the legitimacy of the government.[275] Shortly after the EP elections, Peevski decided against becoming a member of the European Parliament, explaining that his motivation to participate in the election process had stemmed from a desire to simply restore his reputation.[276]
June 2014: Political developments sideline protests
On 5 June 2014, MRF leader Lyutvi Mestan held a press conference, announcing that the results of the recent European Parliament election make it impossible for the Oresharski cabinet to fulfill its full mandate. He sketched out three different early election scenarios, expressing a preference for them to be held at the end of 2014. The MRF party's statements were widely regarded as an indication that the junior coalition party has withdrawn its support from the government, making its prospects to continue to be in charge of decision-making quite slim.[277] Mestan has downplayed the role of the protests or the configurations in Parliament as a reason for his declaration.[278] Disagreements between the MRF and BSP regarding the possible implementation of the South Stream energy project have been identified as one additional factor behind the change in the coalition dynamics.[75][279] The nationalist Attack also joined the calls for a resignation of the government, stating that it was no longer in a position to support it, criticizing the lack of sufficient social policies implemented by the cabinet and the "bowing down to American pressure" due to Oresharski's decision to put a stop to South Stream.[78] The Prime Minister's choice of action regarding the energy project was not reflective of a consensus within the ranks of the BSP party and some prominent socialist politicians were taken aback and expressed disapproval.[280]
In the aftermath of Mestan's announcement, Stanishev voiced support for compulsory voting and on 10 June insisted that the early elections be held by the end of July.[281] Stanishev was overruled by his party colleagues regarding his idea for prompt July elections and BSP confirmed that it will be entering talks with the other main parties and the president of the country Rosen Plevneliev, so that an exact date for the early elections could be agreed upon.[282] A jubilee protest took place on 14 June in Sofia and a few other major cities, with a number of the protest leaders holding a press conference in the area close to the people's library in the capital.[283] Estimates suggested a turnout in the high thousands.[284] On 17 June, following a meeting in the presidency that saw the presence of Rosen Plevneliev, Plamen Oresharski and the leaders of all the parties represented in the National Parliament, a consensus was reached that the early elections will be scheduled at some point between 28 September and 12 October.[285] During the negotiations, anti-government demonstrators, Ataka sympathizers[286] and affiliates of the citizen movement "Today" (Bulgarian: Гражданско движение "ДНЕС") (who set up a symbolic round table with the photos of all the main politicians to emphasize their message of national unity) held various protests simultaneously.[287] On 27 June, after another meeting of the heads of all the major parties (Attack was the only one not represented, as Volen Siderov did not attend, but Nikolay Barekov participated in the negotiations despite his party then holding no seats in the National Parliament), the date of 5 October 2014 was fixed for the next election.[36] The 42nd National Assembly was set to dissolve itself on 6 August 2014.[288] The protests are believed to have helped mobilize the Bulgarian electorate to vote in the 2014 European Parliament elections.[289]
July 2014: Government resignation and end of protest activities
On 17 July 2014, Mihail Mikov announced that the government would likely resign on 23 July and the National Parliament was prepared to subject the matter to a vote on that date.[290] At 17:59 (Bulgarian time) on 23 July, Oresharski submitted his resignation.[34] On that date, protests had occurred in order to put pressure on the government to keep its promise to resign and a "Protest of joy" (Bulgarian: "Протест на радостта") took place in the aftermath of Oresharski's depositing of his resignation.[291][292] The resignation was accepted in the National Parliament on the next day, with 180 MPs voting "for", 8 "against" and 8 abstaining.[293] A caretaker government was then expected to assume power to prepare the ground for the October elections after the major parties declined to form a new cabinet.[294]
August 2014: Caretaker government takes power
Georgi Bliznashki's government was announced on 5 August and began its two-month mandate on the next day.[35] On 6 August, in accordance with the previously made agreement among the main parties, Rosen Plevneliev officially disbanded the National Parliament.[295] On 10 August, in an open letter to the media, Krasimira Medarova stated that she had requested from the president to step down from her position as minister in charge of the preparation for the early elections in order not to impede the work of the caretaker government after her appointment faced criticism from citizen organizations, protest network and the Reformist Bloc due to a presumed conflict of interest because of her previous affiliations with GERB.[296] Medarova's case also sparked discussions regarding the viability of a separate ministerial post for the organization of the electoral processes and caused some controversy due to creating the impression that protest network was applying undue pressure on the provisional government.[297][298] BSP has publicly criticized the composition of the caretaker cabinet, viewing it as almost exclusively consisting of figures affiliated with GERB, the Reformist Bloc and protest network. The issue has been the cause of media cross-fires between the two main political parties in Bulgaria.[299][300] Volen Siderov has also suggested that protest network plays a prominent role in the caretaker government.[301]
Counter-protests
Main activities and societal feedback
The first counter-protest was held on 23 June, in the vicinity of the National Palace of Culture.[302][303] Counter-protests were said to be paid[304](see protests and counter protests in Ukraine – Euromaidan), a practice that had started earlier with the paid protesters of extreme right-wing party Ataka, which was documented by National Television of Bulgaria. The practice of paid counter protesting started almost as soon as the large protests against Oresharski occurred (early August 2013[305]) and had its peak with the massive counter-protest that was organized by the BSP and DPS with priorly scheduled trains for the paid protesters on 16 November in Sofia[306] and even against Plevneliev who showed democratic sympathies and as seen by some on the side of the anti-Oresharski protesters, with the number of participants estimated as close to 50,000 by the Bulgarian Ministry of Internal Affairs.[215] During the 16 November counter-protest, there were some concerns mainly expressed by pro-protest activists that the government sympathizers (especially those from the MRF, many of whom have Turkish heritage) could come into close proximity with the Levski Sofia and CSKA Sofia football fans who were expected to attend The Eternal Derby (first leg of a Round 2 Bulgarian Cup match), which could spark a confrontation, but the day passed by without any serious incidents.[307] The amicable hug between Lyutvi Mestan and Sergei Stanishev at Eagle's Bridge came to be widely interpreted as a symbolic gesture of forgiveness on the part of MRF, bearing in mind the BSP predecessor party's role in the orchestration of the Process of Rebirth in the 1980s. For this and other reasons, former vice-chairman of the MRF and Ahmed Dogan right-hand man Osman Oktay has been highly critical of the nature of the BSP-MRF relationship dynamics.[308]
On 22 July, around 30 pro-government protesters demonstrated in front of the French embassy in Sofia, frowning upon what they saw as the French ambassador Philippe Autié's interference in Bulgaria's internal affairs due to his support for the anti-Oresharski rallies.[309][310]
Since August 2013, the main leaders of the counter-protest movement also started organizing tours around the country, visiting different cities in order to speak in front of the local inhabitants.[311][312] Around mid August, the counter-protests began to take place concurrently with the anti-government protests.[313]
As of late August 2013, the counter-demonstrators claimed to have collected 384,000 signatures in support of the government.[314] The pro-government citizens also accused the president of abandoning his duty as a national unifier and signed petitions calling for his removal from office.[315][316] They instead extended support to vice-president Margarita Popova.[317][318]
The counter-protests generally saw a lesser turnout compared to the anti-government protests and according to an Alpha Research survey (taking into account the period between 19 and 27 August) were backed by approximately one third of Bulgarian citizens.[319] While endorsing the right of any national to peacefully protest, president Rosen Plevneliev has depicted the counter-protests as a Bulgarian innovation and also expressed a concern that they could cause further alienation between citizens of disparate ideological persuasions.[320] The counter-protests have been derisively labeled as "manifestations" by pro-protest activists such as Asen Genov due to supposedly lacking the organic nature of the anti-government ones and not being representative of civil society.[321] According to Anna Krasteva, the year 2013 "professionalized" the counter-protest, making it an integral and recurring feature of protests in Bulgaria.[322]
In early January 2014, Radoslav Gochev, one of the main organizers of the counter-protests, stated that they will be discontinuing any further events or demonstrations due to their belief that the government has now consolidated its position at the helm of the country. However, he also warned that the pro-government demonstrators remain fully prepared to hit the streets once again if the need arises.[303]
Around 50 counter-protesters gathered close to the official entrance of the National Assembly on 15 January while the first session for the new year was being held in response to the presence of two groups of anti-government demonstrators on the other sides of the building.[323]
Conspiracy theories about the protests
A number of the supporters of the counter-protests have voiced suspicions regarding the purported involvement (including the alleged offering of remuneration) of influential US-based activists and think tanks in providing impetus for the demonstrations,[324][325] though this remains a fringe view among scholars.[326] Similar conspiracy theories have been espoused by figures like Biser Milanov (who did not self-identify as a counter-protester, but was believed to fit this description by protest activists),[327] who made a statement at the Council of Ministers in August 2013, in which he affirmed that his "National Liberty" movement would only support the government if it took adequate measures against "paid protesters", entailing granting them permission to create "volunteer patrols" who would operate together with police officers and apprehend "all protest organizers who are driven by a desire to promote George Soros' interests in Bulgaria".[328] Rapper Mihail Mihaylov, who was described in the media as "one of the faces of the counter-protests",[329] in a similar fashion expressed dismay at the alleged meddling of outside agents in Bulgarian affairs and in addition to that criticized the Borisov Government for its supposed authoritarian tendencies, thus subscribing to the argument that GERB was bound to be the beneficiary of any anti-government protests.[330][331] According to research conducted by the Sofia Open Society Institute covering the months of June and July, only 7.4% of respondents cited the concern that GERB could return to the helm of the country as being among their reasons for refusing to participate in a protest.[11] Journalist Petar Volgin, who was noted for his anti-protest philosophy in contrast to other media anchors,[332] even though he participated in the early phase of the demonstrations,[333] echoed some of the sentiments of the conspiracy theorists, maintaining that the spontaneity of the protests only persisted until about their fifth day, after which they were taken over by a collection of interested "political engineers" – right-wing activists, GERB affiliates and "tipping point" circles with close connections to selected oligarchs.[334] Columnists associated with the Ataka party compared the protests to the Otpor! movement, from whose activists the "early rising students" are alleged (in other sources) to have drawn inspiration and received guidance,[335] as well as the various colour revolutions that are also purported to have been sponsored by pro-US activists and NGOs that are claimed to promote undesirable political correctness norms in Eastern European countries.[336] Thus, foreign agents were deemed capable of exerting an influence of the momentum and intensity of the protests, with one of the speculations being that the government's decision to implicitly give the green light regarding the construction of a 7th unit of the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant (to be commissioned to American company Westinghouse), placated the pro-American NGOs in Bulgaria and brought about a dwindling in the protest waves.[337][338] During the protests and following their cessation, Volen Siderov has referred to them as "an attempt to pull off a Bulgarian Maidan".[339][340] He has also alleged that Oresharski had a pang of conscience and decided to resign after refusing to accede to American demands (with the insistence to abandon South Stream being the only one to be made public) put forth during a meeting with John McCain in June 2014, which included (amongst others) providing the United States with a carte blanche to use Bulgarian military airports for the purpose of military and logistical actions in light of the Ukrainian crisis as well as sending Bulgarian troops to fight against the pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine.[341] It has been alleged that parties such as BSP encouraged their supporters to flood Internet forums with anti-protest messages (attempting to divert discussions in the direction of conspiracy theories).[342]
Government response to the protests
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