|
|
|
|
|
|
A Special International Report Prepared by
The Washington Times Advertising Department - Published on March 26, 1999
[Home Page]
Advertisers (1) Sheraton Sofia Hotel Balkan
|
|
Bulgaria breathes new national revival
Some historians suggest the vûzrazhdane began with people who urged change, but had no real vision for its form. Real change was wrought from activists who emerged from the profound social, political and economic change that marked the decline of the Ottoman Empire. One could argue that history is repeating itself in Bulgaria today. After some 50 years of communist rule, and an ensuing seven years of vague democratic reform, an activist political party called the Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) has led Bulgaria into a new vûzrazhdane. The UDF began in 1989, when 14 anticommunist political groups joined forces and formed one party. In 1997, the party campaigned on a platform of change that emphasized membership in NATO and the European Union. As the Bulgarian people themselves sought strong western ties, the UDF won the presidency, the speaker of the parliament post and the prime minister’s office. Leading the UDF reform effort are Prime Minister Ivan Kostov, President Petar Stoyanov and Speaker of the Parliament Yordan Sokolov. While the UDF-led government inherited an economic collapse and chaotic political reform, its rapid vision and political discipline have instilled confidence in the Bulgarian people and impressed Western leaders. Cementing a parliamentary coalition of like-minded parties, the UDF now has full control of parliament and has attacked all of Bulgaria’s nagging problems. “I have been very encouraged by what this government has achieved in such a short period of time,” says Avis T. Bohlen, U.S. ambassador to Bulgaria. “Bulgaria has a smart core of leaders who are turning around what was a very difficult situation. So far, their progress has been remarkable.”
With great approval from the International Monetary Fund, the UDF stabilized the economy through a currency control board that has imposed strict monetary policies and financial transparency. It also has sped the sluggish privatization of state-owned assets, and ousted organized crime from illicit oil, gas and arms trafficking, and the manufacturing of counterfeit CDs. Ironically, Bulgarian officials note, the government’s strict adherence to western-led embargoes enabled the rise of organized crime, as Russian-led mobsters enriched themselves by smuggling fuel and arms through Bulgaria to the former Republic of Yugoslavia. To grow the economy, the UDF has launched land, tax, financial and judicial reform efforts that have created a privatization environment wide open to foreign investments. Ambitious energy and transportation infrastructure improvements—a necessity from years of communist neglect—are underway, and the government sees itself as a future regional hub of commerce and energy exports. In the area of defense, Bulgaria has emerged as one of NATO’s most impressive participants in Partnership for Peace joint forces exercises, and is now working hand-in-hand with the Pentagon on a top-to-bottom military reform program. Bulgaria has also been active in the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council. All told, Bulgaria is fast becoming one of the great success stories of the world’s emerging markets, and a leading candidate for the next round of NATO expansion. The question is, do Americans know about it? Despite Bulgaria’s great progress, the country still seems to be dogged by a misunderstanding of Bulgaria’s past, and a lack of awareness about how far the country has progressed since Bulgaria’s communist regime fell without bloodshed in 1989. “I think Bulgaria is prejudiced and drowned out by the noise with Kosovo and other larger disputes, making it difficult to focus American opinion on,” says Bruce Jackson, president of the U.S. Committee on NATO. “But it also involves a weakness in American politics—we have not been receptive enough. Not enough senators, congressmen and NGOs [non-governmental organizations] have come out here and learned about the Bulgarian success story.” Ghosts of Past Bulgarian officials maintain that a misunderstanding of Bulgaria’s 20th century history also clouds its current success. They feel many westerners still believe that Bulgaria was the most loyal of the Soviet satellite nations, and that Bulgarians willfully chose communism at the end of World War II. In fact, Bulgaria paid a great toll during the communist imposition: In a country that then comprised just 7 million people, 184,00 Bulgarians were interned in concentration camps, as the Soviets sought to root out western influence. Bulgaria’s Washington Ambassador, Philip Dimitrov, himself a former prime minister, wants to rid the West of the “myth” that Bulgarians have a natural love of Russia. He wants the West to know that Bulgaria has spent much of its history “trying to get out of the suffocating grip of Russian imperialism,” and that this suffocation has ceased. Offering perspective to its communist past, Stoyanov recalls that in its long history, Bulgaria has faced “many more difficult challenges than communism,” and overcame them successfully. “We Bulgarians, being pragmatic and realistically minded, realize that today the country faces absolutely new situations, international relations and challenges,” Stoyanov says. “This is why we are eager to put the ghosts of the past behind us.” And continue Bulgaria’s new vûzrazhdane. |
|
Table of Contents (1) Bulgaria breathes new national revival |
In a country whose history spans some 1,200 years, Bulgarians take particular pride in the “vuzrazhdane,” or national revival, when during the late 18th and 19th centuries, the Bulgarian people’s national spirit and awareness reemerged. This period culminated in 1878, with liberation from the Ottoman Empire, and the birth of the Bulgarian state.
Also remarkable is the support this government has attracted from the West. A visitor to Bulgaria’s capital, Sofia, will find the place buzzing with public- and private-sector westerners—particularly Americans—who are helping the country rewrite laws, redevelop infrastructure, and establish new businesses.