site.btaPM Borissov Declares Support for Expatriate Bulgarians' Objections to Controversial Revisions to Election Code

PM Borissov Declares Support for Expatriate Bulgarians' Objections to Controversial Revisions to Election Code

Sofia, May 5 (BTA) - Following a meeting between Prime Minister Boyko Borissov and disgruntled expatriate Bulgarians who complain that recent revisions to the Election Code curtail their voting rights, it transpired that more meetings will be held with representatives of the parties in the ruling coalition. The meeting between the Prime Minister and GERB leader, and a delegation of Bulgarians living in the four corners of the world, took place thanks to the mediation of Ombudsman Maya Manolova and lasted over one-and-a-half hours.

Manolova told the press that the protesting expatriates have the Prime Minister's full understanding and he finds their demands just. "As the decisions in Parliament are made by a complex coalition, we promised to arrange a meeting with Patriotic Front co-leader Valeri Simeonov and, if necessary, with the leaders of the other parties which support the government," said Manolova.

Earlier in April the legislature adopted changes to the Election Code making voting mandatory, legislating against the creation of an "Abroad" constituency in parliamentary elections and limiting overseas voting only to embassies and consulates, among other changes. Some of these were undone or softened only a week later amid the objections of some parties and growing discontent among Bulgarian voters at home and abroad.

It turned out that most of these changes were pushed through by the Patriotic Front.

The revisions triggered an outcry among expatriate Bulgarians and thousands have joined a petition protesting the refusal of the legislators to create an "Abroad" constituency and the restrictions concerning the location of the voting stations.

The National Ombudsman said expatriate Bulgarians have all reason to make these demands because the Election Code revisions take away rights that were given to them previously, such as the automatic opening of voting sections abroad which allowed more people to exercise their voting right and perfectly made sense in the light of the new rule saying that voting is mandatory.

Manolova said that these arguments are fully understood by the GERB leadership and expressed hope that the leaders of the Patriotic Front will show as much understnding.

Dimiter Dimitrov, who has been living long years in the UK, said the most logical thing to do is to go to the negotiating table, with the mediation of the Ombudsman, to discuss the differences and try to find converging points.