site.btaMovement for Rights and Freedoms Wants Governance for Development of Bulgaria

Dzhevdet Chakarov, one of the two leaders of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF), said the party is not seeking a place in governance as an end in itself but as a means of developing Bulgaria. He attended a traditional gathering in the village of Krepcha commemorating demonstrations held in 1989 by Bulgarian ethnic Turks against what is known as "the regeneration process" - a campaign of Bulgaria's communist regime to force the Muslim minority to adopt Slavic names, limit their religious activity, and refrain from speaking Turkish in public.

On Saturday, the MRF's regional chapter in Targovishte launched its campaign. The candidates for the June 9 national parliament and European elections were presented.

Chakarov, who is the party's top MEP candidate and tops the lists for the national parliament in Razgrad and Silistra, both in Northeastern Bulgaria, said: "Bulgaria should start to develop. Many opportunities were missed in the last three years." He commented on the demographic crisis and the crises in education, health care and social policy.

Chakarov also talked about the importance of the European Parliament elections and referred to the MEPs present at the meeting - the Movement's incumbent MEPs Ilhan Kyuchyuk and Iskra Mihaylova and candidate Elena Yoncheva, now MEP of the Bulgarian Socialist Party - as a good example of European politicians.

The MRF's top candidate in Targovishte, Dzheyhan Ibryamov, called for returning the country back to normalcy and urged people to go to the polls on June 9.