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Bulgarians voting with economic reform in mind
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April 19, 1997
Web posted at: 11:17 a.m. EDT (1517 GMT)SOFIA, Bulgaria (CNN) -- Bulgarians, who went to the polls Saturday in parliamentary elections, were expected to deal a crushing defeat to the Bulgarian Socialist Party and provide a mandate for belated economic reforms -- a step taken years ago by most of the country's eastern European neighbors.
BULGARIA: At a Glance
The Socialist Party -- Bulgaria's former Communist Party -- was forced in February to call new elections after a month of street protests over the country's economic misery.
"We've never been in such total economic catastrophe, not only economic, but spiritual as well," said Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) spokesman Yevgeny Bakardijev. "People have lost all faith in everything, and they feel lost."
A total of 4,448 candidates representing 35 parties and coalitions are contending for seats, and they must capture at least four percent of the tally to enter parliament. Preliminary official results are expected early on Sunday.
The UDF led the protests in January and are favored in some public opinion polls to win an absolute majority in the election.
The party won elections in 1991, but lost power in a no-confidence vote the following year.
No reform was more painful in long run
The Socialists got their turn in 1994 by promising the voters less painful reform. But their plan turned out to be no reform at all, and the country is now on the brink of economic collapse.
According to factory owner Boris Gavrilov, the Socialists were more interested in personal profit than in making market reforms.
"The Socialists are a Red Mafia, and they want to possess everything that exists in Bulgaria," Gavrilov says. "They do not want privatization, and they want no foreign investment."
Socialist party leader Georgy Parvanov claims his party tried to implement reforms, but was misunderstood. "Although we tried to move forward with the reform, what we lacked was openness, direct contact with the people," he says. "Ultimately we were not understood, and for this our efforts failed."
His party is still expected to be the biggest opposition party, as it commands loyalty among older Bulgarians nostalgic for the communist era when food was cheap and crime rates were low. Bulgaria has 2.3 million pensioners in a population of 8.4 million.
Painful steps to recovery are expected
Bulgaria's next government faces a tremendous challenge. Painful reforms and belt-tightening are needed to get the devastated economy back on track.
Already, the devalued monetary system is such that a doctor's salary buys a few pounds (kilograms) of meat, and a pension even less. The average salary is $40 to $50 a month.
But the country now has no other choice than to carry out reforms. The International Monetary Fund and other lenders have agreed to lend Bulgaria $1.2 billion on the condition that reforms are carried out, including strict monetary controls and privatizing industry.
CNN's Ralitsa Vassileva contributed to this report.Related sites:
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