site.btaBulgarian Citizenship Act Supplementing Bill Was Submitted to Public Consultation without Clearance with Justice Minister

Bulgarian Citizenship Act Supplementing Bill Was Submitted to Public Consultation without Clearance with Justice Minister

Sofia, April 7 (BTA) - The Bill to Supplement the Bulgarian Citizenship Act was posted on the Justice Ministry's Internet site by the Director of the Council on Legislation Directorate Lyubomir Talev without clearance with the Minister of Justice and in violation of an effective order, Deputy Justice Minister Denitsa Mitrova told a news briefing on Friday.

The draft legislation in question gave rise to a heated controversy as it proposed, by amending the Election Code, the introduction of three-month residence qualifications for voting in parliamentary and presidential elections, practically disenfranchising about a million and a half expat Bulgarians. On April 5 the bill was withdrawn and Talev was dismissed.

Mitrova said on Friday that, contrary to her order, the provisions on voting rights were not edited in the version of the bill that was uploaded. The Deputy Minister said that Talev's actions damaged the prestige of the institution.