Bulgarian students plan anti-corruption protest

Bulgarian students are to stage a protest to call for an end to political corruption, media reports say.

The demonstration dubbed “March for Justice” is planned to be held on Sunday, November 10, the day that marks 24th anniversary of the end of Communism in the East European country.

The event will begin from the main entrance of St Kliment Ohridski University and proceed to the National Assembly and the Cabinet office in Bulgaria’s capital city of Sofia.

The students issued a declaration on Friday, in which they demanded admission to government positions only for proven professionals, responsible public policy in the field of education, and an end to state-run media being used for the purpose of party propaganda.

On October 23, students interrupted a lecture by Dimitar Tokushev, chair of Bulgaria’s Constitutional Court and professor at the university.

They demanded Tokushev to explain the court’s recent decision to confirm the status of controversial media mogul Delyan Peevski as a member of the parliament.

Peevski’s parliamentary status had remained unclear since Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski withdrew his nomination as chief of Bulgaria’s National Security Agency (DANS) in June after protests erupted.

The appointment was controversial since Peevski runs one of the major media groups in the East European country and has no experience in national security.

Anti-government protests have since then been held daily calling for an overhaul of the political system in Bulgaria.

The current Bulgarian government came to power in May, two months after the previous government fell following massive protests over low living standards and high utility bills in the poorest member of the European Union.