Bulgarian students lead wave of protest

Young people occupying institutions all over the country amid growing anger over corruption and unemployment

The Guardian, Kit Gillet in Sofia, Tuesday 26 November 2013

Student protests outside Bulgarian parliament

Opinion polls suggest that around two-thirds of Bulgaria’s 7.3 ­million people support the student protests. Photograph: Rex Features

Just after 1am inside Sofia University, a handful of young people are spray painting protest banners in a dimly lit corridor. Upstairs in a lecture hall, and dotted around nearby classrooms, fellow students are curled up on the floor asleep. Volunteers in yellow jackets are standing guard at the university gates.

It is the fourth week of an occupation. Hundreds of students in a dozen institutions across Bulgaria have taken over all or parts of their universities, padlocking the gates and adding a new dimension to a movement that has rapidly escalated into the biggest rolling wave of demonstrations since the collapse of communism 24 years ago.

Something has snapped in Bulgaria this year. Fury at corruption and nepotism, youth unemployment at 28.7%, low wages and limited job opportunities that force qualified Bulgarians to find work overseas, and a sense that those in power have for too long put their own interests above those of the country, have coalesced this year into one long pulse of anger.

Public opinion polls suggest that around two-thirds of Bulgaria's 7.3 million people support the movement. "We have to try to get morals back into our political system," said Mina Hristova, a 23-year-old cultural anthropology student. "We are here because we need to show our politicians that there are consequences to their actions."

The state has resorted to bussing in supporters to confront the semi-permanent street demonstrations that have choked Sofia this year. "We've gone through difficult times in the last 23 years, but we've always found a solution," the foreign minister, Kristian Vigenin, told the Guardian on a recent march.

The fury spilled out on to the streets in June when tens of thousands marched through the capital in outrage over the appointment of Delyan Peevski, a well-connected media mogul, as head of the State Agency for National Security. Peevski had lost an earlier position as deputy minister of disaster management after allegations of corruption.

For many in Bulgaria this was painful proof of the nepotistic nature of their political system, which, according to Transparency International, is the second most corrupt among the 28 EU member states, beaten only by Greece.

Peevski's resignation less than 24 hours after his appointment did nothing to quell the anger. Instead, protesters demanded the resignation of the centre-left government of the prime minister, Plamen Oresharski, which had been in office for just six weeks.

Oresharski told the people that it was too soon to judge him, but every day since, protesters have gathered outside parliament to shout slogans and demand real political change. In late July, protesters clashed with riot police after a crowd of 2,000 trapped government officials inside the parliament building for eight hours. It was one of the few nights that saw bloodshed in an otherwise peaceful protest movement.

After five months of protesting, in recent weeks it has been Bulgarian students who have taken the lead, occupying their universities and organising the daily protests outside parliament.

"Every one of us had the feeling that something was wrong from when we were children," said Ivaylo Dinev, a 24-year-old history student and the informal leader of the student protests. "We've seen the influence of the mafia in politics all of our lives, no matter which party is in power. What we need is real change. Before I was 18, I was a rebel without a cause. Now I have a cause."

Inside Sofia University, handmade banners and signs ask students to "talk big" and imagine what they would do if they were in political office. Sleeping bags hang from nearby coat pegs.On a raised platform at the front of the lecture hall, protest leaders discuss plans and strategies.

According to Borislav Gavrilov, a professor of modern history at Sofia University, members of the former communist secret police remain in positions of power across Bulgarian society, wielding unfair influence and stunting the development of the nation. "They are all through the government, the economy, the media – especially the media," he explained. "People are sick and tired of fake change. We had protests in 1997, 2009 – hopefully this is third time lucky."

"Trust in the government has now eroded to an unprecedented degree," said Daniel Smilov, a professor of political science at Sofia University, adding that protesters have lost their faith in all the political parties. "The government complains that the protesters don't want dialogue, but it is unclear what the dialogue should be about, since the protesters' main demand is new elections and the government refuse to consider that," he said.

Last Tuesday, students clashed with riot police as they tried to form human chains around the exits from parliament. Twenty-three protesters were arrested, and the following day a further 25 were rounded up in their homes in an early-morning operation. "We were just sitting on the ground in front of the police singing protest songs when they tried to pull us apart," said Nona Keranova, a 20-year-old law student, who was with some of the group who were arrested.

Keranova was not arrested, but she says she was dragged along the ground by a policeman and pushed up against a wall. It was unknown people later in the evening, she added, and not the students, who clashed with the police and threw bottles at them. "We are trying to change things peacefully," she said.

Not all the students are happy with the occupation, which has shut down many of the university's faculties, including law and languages. Every evening the students gather in one of the lecture halls to discuss the day's activities and vote on important measures.

Students who are not part of the occupation are invited to come to talk and debate. "We try to explain why this occupation is needed, that it is up to us to keep these protests going," said 19-year-old Teodora Shalvardjieva, who began her studies in international relations weeks before the occupation began. "We can't stop this until the government resigns."

Some are persuaded, but many others just want to get back to their studies, fearful that the whole academic year will be forfeit if the occupation continues for much longer. On Monday it was announced that classes would resume shortly, but that the student occupation would remain in place.

Rise of the far right

Almost 10,000 refugees have arrived in Bulgaria this year, most of them Syrians fleeing the civil war. The surge has fuelled xenophobic tensions and concerns over violent attacks and the growth of rightwing parties.

Last week the new Nationalist party was formed, combining football hooligans, ultranationalists and skinheads, while another faction announced the creation of vigilante groups.

Bulgaria is the poorest member of the EU and many say it cannot support a wave of refugees. In a recent poll, 15% said they approved of violence against foreigners, while 20% wanted the border with Turkey closed.

November has seen a spate of attacks and protests against asylum seekers, and Amnesty has warned that "recent government statements risk inflaming the situation".