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SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Thousands of flag-waving Bulgarians took
to the streets of the capital, Sofia, and other major cities on
Saturday to protest government plans to adopt the euro and to
demand a referendum on the new currency.
The protesters, led by civic groups and nationalist parties,
sang patriotic songs and shouted slogans like “Freedom for the
Bulgarian lev” and “The future belongs to sovereign states.” The
anti-euro rally came four days before the Balkan country is
expected to receive green light from Brussels to enter the
eurozone.
The demonstrators in Sofia carried flags of the pro-Russian
Vazrazhdane party and a huge banner that read “The battle for
the Bulgarian lev is the last battle for Bulgaria.”
An increased police presence kept the protest peaceful.
Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007 and remains of its
poorest members, plagued by years of instability that has fueled
euroscepticism among its 6.4 million citizens. Disinformation
campaigns from home and abroad have added fears of economic
changes that could bring more poverty.
President Rumen Radev encouraged the anti-euro voices by
proposing earlier this month a referendum on the currency,
citing public concerns over inflation and purchasing power.
The proposal was turned down by the pro-European majority in
parliament, which accused Radev of acting in favor of Moscow
with his last-minute attempt to sabotage the euro adoption,
aimed at deepening European integration amid growing
geopolitical tensions.
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