site.btaBTA Director General: “Europeans Should Not Forget European Values Rest on Clear Distinction between Good and Evil

Addressing a forum dedicated to the fight against corruption and crime, organized by the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) in the north-central town of Lovech on Thursday, BTA Director General Kiril Valchev said: “Europeans should not forget that European values rest on the clear distinction between good and evil.” The event is part of BTA's Bulgarian Voices for Europe Initiative, held with the European Parliament's support.

Valchev said the subject of the forum was extremely important to every European as the focus was what the response to crime in general and organized crime in particular should be. “It should obviously be well organized too,” he said. “Europe, too, spent a decade in search of the more comprehensive answer to what Union it should build, whether it should be more closely connected with common institutions, with profound common legislation even to the point of a common Criminal Code and a common Criminal Procedure Code to apply identical procedures and punishments on criminals.”

“When speaking of crime and the quest for punishment, we should not forget that precisely countries like Bulgaria – and Lovech in this case, are an example with their history that mistakes can be made,” added Valchev, referring to a local priest who is generally stigmatized as the one who turned in Bulgarian freedom fighter and national hero Vassil Levski to the Ottoman authorities, in spite of repeated evidence found to the contrary later.

Valchev underscored that attention should be paid to upbringing “for no one is born a criminal, but becomes one if one grows up in a world where ‘everything is allowed’ and can more easily turn up on the side of what society has clearly defined as evil.”

The discussion was held in hybrid format and was streamed live on BTA's Facebook page.

Lovech Mayor Kornelia Marinova said close interaction between institutions is very important when speaking of the fight against crime and corruption, between all institutions involved at local, regional, national and European level. Respect for the rules can be formed in the process of working with children, in the family and in school. Prevention will achieve much better results, she added.

Lovech Regional Governov Viktor Stoichev said not only institutions, but also the people should not tolerate corruption. When they join efforts, results will come soon, he added. No one has achieved zero corruption in the world and Bulgaria will not achieve that either, but it can achieve zero tolerance for that.

Ruse Border Police Director Commissioner Dimiter Chorbadjiev said crime is an indication that order is lacking in society. Commenting on the current situation with the war in Ukraine, he said there were new dangers which should be attended. People are trying to profit under the cover of good intentions, including illegally paid transport of Ukrainian refugees to Bulgaria. These people, mainly women and children, are vulnerable and could become subject to labour and sexual exploitation. It is the job of the police to counter any such threat, he added. The public should also take part in the process of prevention by providing the information those people need relevant to registration, accommodation or something else, Chorbadjiev said.

Interior Ministry Lovech Regional Division head Zlatin Mihailov said the fight with crime and ensuring public security require a lot of funds and human resources, long hours and sleepless nights. Local police have registered a decline of crime in the past year, not the least because of the pandemic but also because more people cooperate and alert the police. 

Tsvetomir Tsankov, head of Lovech Municipality’s Control and Security Department, said the administration had provided the police with premises to serve the public directly, both in town and in the surrounding villages. CCTV has also been provided, as well as a team of officials to assist in their work. 

Transparency without Borders Association Programme Director Vanya Kashukeeva-Nusheva said political will to deal with the problem of corruption is lacking. In an interview for BTA aired at the conference, she added that well-organised institutions are also called for, applying the law and effectively enforcing the authority vested in them. Bulgaria has over 130 institutions with control authority, each in its own specific field. These cannot serve as the first barrier against inefficient governance, as a number of studies show, she added.