Standart News

Francois Frison-Roche

Political Analyst
France

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Georgi Parvanov has notched a nice victory - there were no surprises but it's a really good victory. The question that suggests itself now is how it will be put to use. Let me open a bracket here - the low turnout rate was a signal from the electorate. And even if we prefer a different runoff that would have drawn more voters, this by no means makes Parvanov's victory less significant. This is his victory as much as it is the victory of the principles of the transition. This is the victory of the consensus in Bulgaria over the major issues of the recent decade. This is a clear signal that Bulgaria has taken its final turn to Europe. At the same time, these results ask for a close analysis, because both at the first and the second round many Bulgarians have signaled that there are serious problems in the country. For the second time after the general election of 2005 the Bulgarians gave a sign that a large number of painful problems have to be resolved. It is time to go further than simplistic analyses of the vote in favor of Volen Siderov. What will Bulgaria's re-elected President do from now on?
As a humble outside observer I can say that he had five years to choose whether to enter the Bulgarian history books as a statesman and a personality who shoulders the responsibility the time demands or to keep to a strictly political level. Whether President Parvanov will manage to steer Bulgaria along the European course or will he be forced to keep to the traditional political dabbling, which could precipitate early general elections and new disputes despite the fact that successful European integration is Bulgaria's unquestionable priority.
January 1 is just the beginning you have to preserve your current momentum. In order to do this Bulgaria needs at least three years of stability. The Bulgarian government has to give answers to the questions raised by the EU and give solutions to the problems that are pointed out in the latest reports of the European Commission. The President has to reassure all Bulgarians who feel uneasy about the role of the predominantly Turkish Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) in the governance of the country. I am convinced that the majority of the Bulgarians who live in regions with ethnically mixed population have nothing against the Turkish minority. However, the MRF should not be regarded as a Turkish party that interferes in the Bulgarian affairs. This is one contradiction that President Parvanov has to resolve. In addition, the President finally has to cope with the problems of the integration of the Roma minority. Parvanov has five years to succeed or fail. It all depends on his position towards the minorities and towards the government. It is important that Bulgarian right-wing political parties learn their lesson from the elections. They have to try to find the reasons why they lost the support of their electorate and analyze what has happened. We had similar problems in France - these are natural processes that we have to live through. The Bulgarian nation has to prove that it is not crippled and will not progress with a limp. On the other hand, the President should not try to stop the recovery of the right-wing parties.