Trud Daily

"Trud" highlights an item headlined "Unrest in Ribnovo over Mayor's Arrest." The residents of the village of Ribnovo, Gurmen Municipality (Southwestern Bulgaria), revolted on Sunday when officers of the State Agency for National Security (SANS) arrested their Mayor Ahmed Bashev and Mourat Boshnak, a teacher in the local school, on charges of forcible Islamization. Reportedly, schoolgirls were made to wear Arab clothing and headscarves. A few days ago Order, Lawfulness and Justice leader Yane Yanev petitioned the prosecuting authorities about "radical Islamization" in Ribnovo. "The SANS and the prosecuting authorities take credit for taking courageously action against radical Islamism and those who are eroding the statehood. This is a sign that things in Bulgaria have been changing in a pro-European direction," Yanev is quoted as saying.

Over 6,000 police officers joined a march in Sofia demanding a 50 per cent pay rise and better working conditions and protesting against the planned layoffs at the Interior Ministry.  "Trud" runs an interview with Ivan Pavlov, President of the Policemen's Trade Union, who says that Interior Minister MihailMikov "resents policemen." Pavlov says he has been working at the Interior Ministry for 16 years and has seen a lot of ministers, all of them "figures of  temporary value". "Only the tendency towards exacerbation of the problems of the law enforcement authorities appear to be constant," he says. "None of the ministers has resolved them, they all shut their eyes to the problems egocentrically but the decline has been particularly steep since 2003."

Former interior ministers comment on the situation at the Interior Ministry in "Troud." According to Yordan Sokolov of the Union of Democratic Forces (UDF), 1991-1992, part of the budget surplus can be used to improve the remuneration of policemen. Viktor Mihailov of the Lyuben Berov cabinet, 1992-1993, expresses the view that the organization of the entire system needs to be improved and that talks should be held with the protesters. Emanouil Yordanov of the UDF, 1999-2001, suggests that negotiations should be held to agree a timeframe for meeting the demands of the protesters; in his view, "these people should know that somebody cares for them.

 A national representative survey conducted by the Mediana agency and commissioned by "Trud" shows that in addition to the economic crisis, there will be a political crisis in Bulgaria as well. Commenting on the survey results, Kolyo Kolev says that Ataka is increasingly becoming a factor that should be reckoned with. No coalition around GERB or the BSP will be able to command a majority in Parliament. Therefore the possible scenarios are two: a government of GERB supported openly or secretly by Ataka, or a government of the BSP supported openly or secretly by Ataka. In both cases the government will be short-lived and this country will be plunged into a political crisis. And all this because the only reasonable option - a BSP-GERB coalition is impossible because of oaths and sharp-toned statements and insults the two parties have been exchanging.

"Trud" reports that on Monday PM Stanishev familiarized the ambassadors of the EU countries with the idea to appoint, on a competition basis, independent experts from the EU to key administrative positions in Bulgaria, first of all in the system of justice and the interior, the departments concerned with combatting corruption and the management of EU funds. "They will apply for positions at different levels of the administration as advisers or experts," Stanishev is quoted as saying.

"Bulgarians Get Wealthier in Time of Crisis," "Troud" notes in a headline. The latest data on household budgets in January 2009 released by the National Statistical Institute show that the average Bulgarian is not debt-ridden and even has money to put aside despite the collapse of a number of economic sectors. Incomes increased by nearly 13 per cent compared with January 2008m while household expenditures rose by about 10 per cent. The per-person household income averaged 276 leva in January, and per-person expenditures stood at 256 leva.

24 Chasa Daily

"Interior Ministry Secretary General Pavlin Dimitrov says in"24 Chassa" that the police officers who threw their shoulderstraps during the protest action on Sunday "obviously are not prepared and have no motivation to work at the Interior Ministry" and calls on them to leave the system.  "The Interior Ministry is not dead. It is immoral and unprofessional to burry the Ministry," he says distancing himself from the police officers who threw their shoulderstraps in a coffin. Everyone who are trying to use the situation for political ends should know they engage in "a very dangerous and irresponsible game," Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev is quoted as warning the political parties not to interfere in the policemen's protests.

"If in an economically stable situation a society can afford to experiment and, unsatisfied with the status quo, look for something new, for instance GERB, in a crisis, due to their lack of experience, unpredictability and abrupt and populist manoeuvres, the boat we are all in can suffer a wreck," PM Stanishev says in "24 Chassa." "That is why it is important that the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) succeeds in convincing people that we know what to do in these hard times and that we will do it well."

 Standart Daily

Interviewed for "Standart News," Deputy Interior Minister Sonya Yankoulova says that there is no head at the Interior Ministry who could afford massive downsizing, especially in such a serious criminogenic situation. Mathematically, to increase the pay of policemen by 50 per cent, half of them should be laid off.  And this could happen only when certain activities assigned to the Interior Ministry by law are abolished and certain units within the system are restructured, Yankoulova says.

Sega Daily

"Sega" front-pages an item which says that despite the complaints of the Interior Ministry that the use of special surveillance means (SSM) is limited, in 2008 the courts met 11 requests for their use every day. It becomes clear from the annual report of the Sofia City Court that of a total of 4,086 requests for using SSM, only 30 were refused. However, it is observed that this did not produce any significant results in curbing crime. A recent check conducted by the prosecuting authorities showed that the SSM use is inefficient and involves a number of violations.

"Sega" writes that the US takes seriously Solomon Passy's candidature for NATO Secretary General. The talks Passy, who chairs the National Assembly Foreign Policy Committee, had with prominent politicians and top bras during his latest visit to Washington made him optimistic. In Passy's words, even if he fails, the trail will be blazed for other Bulgarian candidates for the position of NATO SG in future.    "Sega" writes that it will be a mistake not to elect Passy as NATO Secretary General. Just now the Alliance needs a nonstandard person like him because it is faced by a nonstandard situation - losing its first war since its establishment 60 years ago. Now that US President Barack Obama has acknowledged that it is not possible to win the war in Afghanistan, an urgent withdrawal should be planned. And Passy could offer a simple decision - to leave the Afghans sort themselves out as best as they can. Though very cautiously, the new administration in the White House has developed a similar thesis - "to Afghanize" the war. And Passy could accelerate the process, "Sega" says.

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