![]() ![]() “Vaccine hesitancy in Bulgaria is mainly due to the lack of a sustained state-supported campaign in favour of vaccination. It is precisely this wariness that has caused widespread vaccine hesitancy. The communist period, in particular, has led citizens to distrust an overreaching government presence in their lives - especially a government that does not seem to always be the most efficient or particularly interested in placing the well-being of its citizens before its personal interests, which continues to be the main complaint against Borissov. “This is a culture that was fuelled by the ten years of Borissov’s government, and president Radev and his caretaker government have been absolutely spoiled by this.” This is obvious from the fact that all the different policies in the past year and a half have been directed at appeasing people,” he said. “What I do know is that the attitude of Bulgarian authorities hasn’t helped people come to terms with what has been happening during this pandemic. Since May, the caretaker government appointed by Radev and led by Stefan Yanev, a former military officer and one-time minister of defence has been very careful not to ruffle anyone’s feathers in what Petrov describes as a “culture of appeasement.” This time, the Bulgarian voters will elect both the president and the parliament. The results in July echoed those from April, with the same six parties and coalitions crossing the mandatory electoral threshold.īut although the results meant that any of the six were possible contenders for a government coalition, almost none saw eye to eye, and the acting president Rumen Radev had to call another, third round. Prior to the upcoming election, Bulgaria held two votes in the span of three months. It is shocking to see this in a society which obsesses over the demographic crisis in the country – Bulgaria is the fastest-shrinking country in the world and has lost 10% of its population in the last 15 years since accession,” explains Smilova.īulgaria has had significant trouble deciding who should succeed former PM Borissov, who resigned in May. The current death spiral due to COVID will likely compound the issue. World’s fastest shrinking countryīulgaria has also been suffering significant demographic decline due to migration as well as low birth rates. Currently, the country is led by a caretaker government that has been reluctant to pass stricter measures for fear of public backlash. Since then parliamentary elections have been organised two times, in April and July, yet the winning parties were unable to form a ruling coalition. The country has been in the throes of a difficult political crisis, marked by a months-long protest movement that began last year calling for the resignation of the populist government led by Boyko Borissov and his “Gerb” or Coat of Arms party, that has been in power since 2009. ![]()
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