site.btaMRF Factions Trade Accusations of Sowing Ethnic Hatred and Harassing Opponents

MPs who have left the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) parliamentary group, and members of the group around MRF co-leader Delyan Peevski Friday traded accusations of sowing ethnic hatred.

Valentin Tonchev MP, one of those who left the MRF group, said that MRF ranking member and Parliament deputy chair Yordan Tsonev (a Delyan Peevski loyal) is instilling discord among the party members, supporters and the Bulgarian society. 

MP Hamid Hamid, one of Peevski’s group, said that Bulgarian citizens of Muslim origin, or ethnic Turks, have been harassed “very aggressively” by several former MPs of the MRF by instilling ethnic hatred.

Having said that, Hamid called for “togetherness within the MRF and for acceptance of those who different as we have done it for so many years”.

On bTV, Yordan Tsonev was bitter that he heard being referred to as “the Bulgarian boy” by some of those loyal to Dogan.

MRF is widely seen as standing up for the interests of ethnic Turks in Bulgaria and built its base in areas with large communities of ethnic Turks and Pomaks.

Tsonev also said Friday that he remains with Peevski. Asked if they plan to set up a party of their own, he said it is up to Peevski to decide.

MRF deputy leader Stanislav Atanassov also vowed allegiance to co-leader Delyan Peevski in the rift with Honorary Chair Dogan. Speaking on bTV, he was asked if he would heed Dogan's call to resign along with Peevski and four others, he said he would "stay on to work for the people who trusted us".

Like the others, Atanassov blamed the other MRF co-leader, Dzhevdet Chakarov, as well as Dzheyhan Ibryamov and Ramadan Atalai for the rift. He accused those loyal to Dogan of using "the ethnic trump card". More specifically, he said, "First, they mumbled under their nose that 'Bulgarians and Pomaks are taking the party' away from them. I heard it when Chakarov, Ibryamov and Atalay decided that somebody wants to take away 'their own party'."

Meanwhile two more MPs left the MRF group: Ibrahim Zaydenov and Myumyun Myumyun. That left the group of those loyal to Peevski outnumbered by those siding with MRF Honorary Chair Ahmed Dogan. These add up to four walking out in the past four days – plus the 17 that were expelled by the group around Delyan Peevski.

Declarations of loyalty to Ahmed Dogan continued coming in on Friday from the local MRF chapters: from Silistra, Gabrovo, Lovech, Ruse and Pleven. The Haskovo chapter called for “unity and togetherness” and left it unclear which side they were taking.

No local chapter has vowed allegiance to Delyan Peevski, except maybe the one in Haskovo but they mostly called for “unity and togetherness” and declared standing up with their MPs, Stanislav Anastassov and Myumyun Myumyun, which are in different camps.

Political pressure

In a related development, the parliamentary group of Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria said it had sent an alert to the Prosecutor General, the Prosecutor's College of the Supreme Judicial Council and the Sofia City Prosecutor's Office in connection with a statement of MRF honorary chairman Ahmed Dogan of political pressure and mafia-style actions by those who remained in the MRF parliamentary group.

The rift

The rift in the MRF between those loyal to Honorary Chair Ahmed Dogan and the others gravitating around one of the two co-leaders, Delyan Peevski, became visible earlier in July when Peevski started removing some long-serving ranking MRF members. Among them was MP Ramadan Atalai, who was expelled from the MRF group. The dividing line appeared to be the attitude to the GERB-UDF proposal for a government who had been mandated by the President to form a Cabinet in their capacity as the largest group in the new Parliament. Peevski vowed support for the Cabinet proposal while Dogan (in the words of Atalay) instructed those loyal to him to vote against. The result was that the GERB proposal failed to get enough voted to get through.

In the wake of the vote, those who voted “against” were expelled from the MRF group. 

The MRF Honorary Chair Dogan emerged from the shadows and put out a statement in which he urged Peevski to resign from his leadership positions in the party and accused him of a strong-arm approach to the party and political pressure against opponents.

Peevski defied his former mentor and said he would not come down and would not betray voters’ trust.