Thousands of Bulgarians living abroad are in solidarity with the demands of protesting citizens in Bulgaria. Proof of this are the ongoing peaceful demonstrations being organized in different corners on the globe, an expression of disagreement with what is happening on the political scene in Bulgaria.

"The price we pay on a daily basis cannot be compared to the possible consequences of destabilizing the country in the event of early elections," says Iva Borisova, a Bulgarian living in New Zealand.

"I came here fully aware of the fact that I will return to Bulgaria regardless of the situation in which the country finds itself. That is why today I am hopeful that the awakening of young people and the protests against the acts of abuse of crimes committed at the national level is a sign that the time has come for us to change something without being divided on the basis of affiliation to a certain political party or other principles and looking to the past,”, Iva explains in an interview with the Bulgarian National Radio’s Horizont channel.

Education in Germany attracted another young Bulgarian girl, Dilyana Velichkova, who later settled there. Today she is among the organizers of the protests of the Bulgarians in Berlin.

"We have not yet given up on returning home, we are just waiting for better times and conditions to come so that we can peacefully raise our children in Bulgaria," Dilyana told Radio Bulgaria.

If we look at the civil discontent from a demographic perspective, we will see that there are many young people protesting in the streets, many of whom returned to Bulgaria because of the Covid-19 pandemic. For this reason, voices are heard that the protesters are a non-representative sample of Bulgarian society, that they do not have a clear assessment of what has been done and are not competent to express an opinion on who should govern and what the priorities of the currently legally elected government should be. In the opinion of Angel Angelov, organizer of the protest held on July 16^th in Barcelona, this is a very wrong argument:

"We all feel hurt when we observe the injustices that are happening in Bulgaria. But unlike the protests from February 2013 which were motivated by material reasons related to high electricity bills, today’s protests are related to something far more abstract - the perception of the rule of law. When this is accepted as a cause by a large part of Bulgarian society, I am sure that sooner or later these protests will be successful."

Bulgarians living in Manchester, England, will gather today, July 24^th, for the second time at the fountains of Piccadilly Gardens. With their actions they call for on a normal life in Bulgaria. "We want our grandparents to have a decent life in their old age and adequate pensions. We want salaries that match the prices of goods and services. We want a change in the healthcare, judiciary, education and social systems. We want a bright future and a real European Bulgaria", we read in their appeals on Facebook.

Dissatisfaction with the current political situation in Bulgaria is expressed also by Bulgarians living in one of the capitals of the European Union - Brussels. They say that they cannot afford to remain indifferent to what is happening in Bulgaria. One of the co-organizers of the protest there - Yoana Vasileva, is adamant that Bulgarians living abroad will not give up their demands - a change that will allow democracy to develop to its true potential, with the help of responsible people to work for turning Bulgaria into a state governed by the rule of law. According to Yoana, the goal can be achieved with early elections, but not with the replacement of one or another cabinet minister or prime minister. Today (July 24^th) is the next protest of Bulgarians in Brussels which will be held in the European Quarter near the European institutions.

"Our protests in the heart of Europe carry a very strong message, not only to those in power, but also to all European leaders and institutions," she said in an interview for BNR-Horizont, adding:

"We call on citizens to hold our rulers accountable for the lack of the rule of law, which is one of the EU's core values. Also, we demand accountability for the dependent and inefficient national justice system and for the corrupt practices in the spending of European funds. "

English Rossitsa Petcova