Corruption and media freedom are the biggest problems in Bulgaria
Corruption and freedom of the media are extremely important issues for us, which we put in the first place after our visit to Bulgaria and the meetings we held. These are not only problems in Bulgaria, but it seems to us that there is too much impunity here for the cases of corruption. It is a poison that eats away at society. “
The delegation met with Chief Prosecutor Ivan Geshev, but was disappointed.
“I don’t think we got all the answers we were looking for. Most of the questions we asked were about momentum and lack of activity in relation to ongoing investigations,” the MEP from Renew Europe said.
Asked about the “infamous photos of the former Bulgarian prime minister”, the chief prosecutor said he was not aware of the case.
MEPs visited the country for two days as part of an ongoing monitoring of the situation across the EU. The delegation consisted of a total of 23 people.
It includes 7 MEPs – one from each political group in the European Parliament. All of them are members of the Monitoring Group of the EP Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE), which has debated the issue more than once. The other 16 people are experts, also from the European Parliament.
The other MEPs are: Elena Yoncheva (S&D, Bulgaria), Claire Daly (Left, Ireland), Vladimir Bilchik (EPP, Slovakia), Analiza Tardino (ID, Italy), Patrick Jaki (EKR, Poland), Sergei Lagodinski (Greens / ESA). , Germany).
“Apart from our monitoring work, we thought it was very important to send a message to the Bulgarian people – the European Parliament is here, watching, listening and supporting you. Sometimes people are left with the feeling that the EU is absent or just criticizing, but it is not. We we are here, “said the head of the delegation.
Sofia in’t Veld clarified that this visit is not a one-time act, the EP’s interest will not be limited to one-off meetings and a single visit.
“We have a long-term commitment and we are following the events in Bulgaria closely,” said Sofia Int Veld.
We had an incredibly large number of requests from the choir and organizations to meet, to talk about certain topics. I want to assure everyone that we will continue the dialogue, said the Dutch woman.
“I believe in Reporters Without Borders’ critical assessment.” Over the past two days, several people have tried to convince me that it is not credible.
It is true that this is not an accurate mathematical estimate, but it shows a tendency. The report identifies concerns. This should not be taken as an external criticism. It is in everyone’s interest to have a healthy media environment, “said Sofia in’t Veld.
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