site.btaMedia Review: July 26

POLITICS

Duma’s front-page article reads that the Left wing will be united at the traditional gathering on Mount Bouzloudzha on July 27. The new leadership of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) has chosen the path to a large Left front, and its formation will become a reality on Friday, on the eve of the 133rd anniversary of the socialist movement. The Left party, Rise Up, Bulgaria! and all current partners of the BSP are expected to discuss and sign a manifest for joint work of the entire Left wing. The daily has eight pages about the BSP’s future and its efforts to restore voters’ trust.

On Bulgarian National Television’s morning show, Rise Up, Bulgaria! leader Maya Manolova commented that there is an obvious need of Left unity. In her words, the divided Left wing has given an opportunity to pseudo-Right liberal formations to take the lead because of their experiments. 

On Bulgarian National Radio, Georgi Kadiev, former MP of BSP and leader of the Normal State party, commented that if a unification of the Left is done, it must be qualitatively new. In his words, former BSP leader Kornelia Ninova imagined the Left as the Warsaw Pact - the BSP in the role of the Soviet Union and small satellite parties that perform, and if they do not, they get tanks sent to them. "If we are going to do something new and different, it has to resemble the European Union," he argued. "It is true: in France they did it in four days because they united against Marine Le Pen, and not for the Left. We saw the result: they began fighting three days after the elections," Kadiev said. Now the Left should be like the BSP was 15 years ago - with many leaders, not with one who bangs on the table, commented Kadiev. In his words, the most important thing for the future union is how the decisions will be made in it. "Timid attempts were made to invite us [Normal State] through third parties, through members of the parliamentary group. It sounded frivolous to me", he commented about the upcoming gathering on Friday which will make a first step towards a Left union. 

Segabg.com has an analysis ridiculing the BSP’s idea for a “large Left union” as something that has been tried before and failed. BSP acting leader Atanas Zafirov may claim that the Left is once again modern and working, as seen at the recent snap elections in France, but Bulgaria is not France. The leaders of the formations to enter the new union have been well-known to the Bulgarian public for years, do not offer new ideas to attract young voters, and cannot inspire the Left-wing supporters to vote on a large scale and make a political sensation, as was the case in France, the analysis reads.

On bTV’s morning show, BSP acting leader Atanas Zafirov commented that a unification of the Left wing has been tried before but never with every single Left formation, as will be done now. That is why the idea will work this time. Zafirov also commented on the possible formation of a regular government under the third exploratory mandate. Whoever receives this mandate should hold negotiations with other parliamentary formations because it is the moral thing to do, he argued. There are things that unite the formations, such as the need of legislative changes to fight corruption, and statesmanship should be in the forefront, not party interests. 

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Capital Weekly writes that the network of websites linked to Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) Chairman Delyan Peevski has turned against MRF Honorary Chairman Ahmed Dogan and his supporters in the party. Peevski officially sold his empire of newspapers, radio stations, and TV channels four years ago but continues to have a ring of publications he influences, and in the last years he has been using them to discredit his opponents in other political formations. Now that there is a split in the MRF, the network of yellow websites is attacking key party figures who have accused Peevski of authoritarian rule and demand his resignation, such as MRF co-leader Dzhevdet Chakarov, MPs Ramadan Atalay and Dzheyhan Ibryamov, former Kardzhali mayor Hasan Azis, and MEP Ilhan Kyuchyuk. An example of how the well-used scheme works: a smearing article, usually without an author, is published on one website or in one newspaper and is then multiplied by the other publications in Peevki’s ring. For example, an “investigation” into Chakarov and his son’s energy business was published without an author simultaneously in the Weekend weekly and on the Trud daily’s website under the title, “Dzhevdet Chakarov: Shadow Energy Oligarch”; the article was then published word by word on kliuki.bg, razkritia.com, epicenter.bg, and 23rodopi.com. An attack against Kyuchyuk related to his personal life began again from the Weekend weekly and was multiplied by kliuki.bg and crimesbg.com.

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Trud has an interview with MEP Ilia Lazarov (GERB-UDF/EPP) about his first impressions from the European Parliament, priorities and expected clashes between parliamentary groups.  He argues that Europe needs common security services and defence policy. "A balance has to be found between national security and national defence with the European one. There has to be a common foreign policy for Europe if we want to weigh in a world where we have the strong position of China, the US and Russia, whether we like it or not," he tells the daily.

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Capital Weekly is dedicated to the upcoming presidential elections in the United States. Titled, “Trump vs Harris: What’s Next for the USA and the World”, Friday’s issue of the weekly offers five articles that present Kamala Harris, the possible effects of Harris’ ideas on the economy, the possible alternatives to Harris in the Democratic Party, the expected global effects of Donald Trump’s trade policy, and an interview about the elections with Robert Sharipo, Professor of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. According to the weekly, Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw from the elections gives the Democrats a second chance to win; a new mandate for Trump could have serious consequences for the global economy, including in Europe; the opinions of sociologists and political experts about Harris’ chances to win are conflicting.

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On Bulgarian National Television’s morning show, political experts commented on the upcoming decision of the Constitutional Court on the constitutionality of last year’s amendments to the Constitution. Maraya Tsvetkova commented that the Court’s decision will tip the scales not only during the election campaign but also during the next cabinet-formation negotiations. “This is a political decision. The very fact that it is not known what the decision is until the last minute means that there is division between the 12 members of the Constitutional Court and there most probably is political influence, not just legal argumentation,” she commented. The decision will determine whether or not a regular government will be formed. Atanas Radev commented that the Constitutional Court’s decision will be a blow to certain political players ahead of the forthcoming election campaign. Ivaylo Iliev recalled that the majority of the Court members are political appointments. 

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On Nova TV’s morning show, political experts commented on whether early general elections would solve the political crisis in Bulgaria. According to Hristo Panchougov, the parliamentary represented parties are already implementing election campaign strategies in the National Assembly. In his words, the lack of a real alternative clogs the way out of the timelessness in politics. "Democracy and the transformation of the system implies surprises in elections - the Velichie party is an example. There are groups in society that do not yet have representation, and this creates the possibility of a new dynamic in the next parliament, but also of a lot of radicalisation. After the processes in the MRF, the idea of confrontation between different groups will become a significant part of the next election campaign, Panchougov said. According to Georgi Kiryakov, the third cabinet-forming mandate will not be fulfilled due to the internal fragmentation in the parliamentary parties. GERB leader Boyko Borissov gave an important indication that there will be a change of tone in case of new elections. The influence in Peevski's administration will weaken and a redistribution of power resources will be sought, Kiryakov added.

HOME AFFAIRS

All TV morning shows focus on the efforts to put out a fire at a fireworks depot in Elin Pelin (near Sofia) and the possible reasons for the incident, such as arson, human error, or a ball lightning. The fire erupted on Thursday evening and has already taken one life; at least two people are believed to be inside the depot, which consists of six warehouses. There have been explosions at the depot for over 12 hours now.

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24 Chasa has an interview with lawyer Alexander Kashumov, who says that there is a risk of legal entities (companies and ministries) obtaining the right to sue journalists for having caused them pain. At present, legal entities can sue for material damage only, but attempts are being made to change that by politicians and institutions. There are at least 5 to 8 legal cases where companies linked to politicians are demanding compensation from a media for non-material damage despite knowing the legal practice does not allow it. With over half a million firms and 560 institutions in Bulgaria, there may be a huge number of cases against media if this becomes the legal practice, he warns.

Mediapool.bg reports that share holders in the Historical Park theme park, the activity of which is being investigated by a parliamentary ad hoc committee, Thursday threatened to sue journalists and media for “slander and false statements” that have led to losses exceeding BGN 100 million. The share holders are many, so there could be hundreds of cases unless the media publish an apology and rebuttals for every single article in question. The share holders will also sue separate MPs and possibly the State as a whole, it transpired at a news news conference on Thursday. [The ad hoc committee is looking into Historical Park because of Ivelin Mihaylov, the person behind the Velichie party and mastermind of the Historical Park project.]

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Trud’s front-page article presents Interior Ministry statistics about drowning victims in Bulgaria last year: 111 persons, 90% of them men aged between 55 and 60. Lifeguards are calling for measures against beach-goers who refuse to follow their advice and to take the red flag seriously.

Telegraf writes on its front page that eight beaches along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast are closed to the public with barriers.

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24 Chasa’s front-page story reads that the air conditioning causes coughing fits in children. The cooled air keeps bacteria and viruses alive for longer.

ECONOMY

Capital Weekly writes that the wondering of analysts, traders, and businesses continues about the reasons for the high exchange price of electricity despite the large production for two weeks now. According to the weekly, the increase in July by 40% from June and by 75% from May only in this part of Europe is the result not only of the increased consumption due to the heatwave and the large-scale regional export to Ukraine but also of the countries in the region themselves. Namely, Romania and Hungary who are using more electricity than what is typical of this period of the year. Hungary imports the same amount of electricity as Ukraine (when the total consumption is at least two- to three-fold lower) and Romania imposts two-fold more electricity than Ukraine, all the while players that are external for the region, such as Austria, fail to fill this gap.

CULTURE

Telegraf has an interview with archaeologist Prof Lyudmil Vagalinski, the head of the team that recently unearthed a statue at the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica near Petrich (Southwestern Bulgaria). According to him, the marble statue depicts a high-ranking statesman.