NEWS

 

 

 

The Head of State addresses the Summit for Democracy at the invitation of US President Joe Biden

 

Events in Bulgaria over the past year have proved that democracy is deeply rooted in Bulgarian society. It is vibrant and strong enough to resist corruption and authoritarianism, and the people are ready to stand up for their civil rights. Our institutions have shown their capability to hold free and fair elections. This is what Head of State Rumen Radev said at the Summit for Democracy, hosted by US President Joe Biden. 

 

The various panels of the international forum, which is being held online on 9 and 10 December, bring together heads of state and government from around the world, representatives of non-governmental organisations and journalists with a contribution to strengthening democratic values and institutions. The Summit focuses on the challenges facing democratic societies, as well as on common efforts to ensure political freedoms, transparent and accountable governance, civil society empowerment, freedom of expression and media independence. 

 

Addressing the conferees, the Bulgarian President highlighted the challenges this country had faced since the beginning of the transition to a democratic society 32 years ago. 'The transition from a centrally planned to a market economy may lead to deep social disruptions. In this country, it failed to eradicate poverty and gave rise to emigration and large-scale corruption,' Rumen Radev stressed. The Head of State defined the unpunished corrupt practices, the concentration of media ownership and the growing public apathy over the past years as specific manifestations of the transition, which also create preconditions for the rise of a new type of authoritarian rule. 

 

According to the President, the energy of the civil society generated during the protests of the summer of 2020 led to the rejection of the compromised model of governance and to the emergence of new political parties, which won over the public's trust. Rumen Radev hailed the active debate, in which the fight against corruption was identified as a top priority along with the strengthening of the independence of the judiciary, the greater accountability of the prosecutor's office and a qualitative legislative process. 

 

The Head of State said that individual countries could hardly achieve success in their endeavour for democracy if they act on their own and highlighted the fundamental values and moral trends of social advancement contained in the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as Bulgaria's access to financial and technical assistance provided by its European and international partners. 

 

Corruption harms both the countries that are directly plundered and those that provide a safe haven for the ill-gotten wealth, Rumen Radev stressed and called for even more active joint international actions to stamp out corruption. As an example in this regard, the Head of State mentioned the support for Bulgarian citizens expressed by the European Parliament's 2020 Resolution on the rule of law in Bulgaria, the sanctions imposed by the US administration under the Magnitsky Act, and the trust that the democratic community in Bulgaria places in the professionalism of the European Public Prosecutor's Office in investigating corruption and fraud with European funds. 

 

The President also pointed out that Bulgaria will spare no effort on its democratic path to effectively prosecute corruption, build an accountable administration, guarantee media freedom and strengthen citizens' trust in the institutions. 'No achievement based on the rule of law should be taken for granted,' Head of State Rumen Radev concluded in his address at the Summit for Democracy.