Sofia, Bulgaria (AP) – Thousands of Bulgarians protested on the streets of the capital, Sofia and other major cities on Saturday against the government's plan to adopt the euro and demanded a referendum on the new currency.
The protesters sang patriotic songs under the leadership of civic groups and nationalist parties and shouted slogans such as “Bulgarian Lev's freedom” and “The future belongs to the sovereign state.” The anti-European rally came four days before the Balkan states expected to get a green light from Brussels into the euro zone.
Sofia protesters raised the flag of the pro-Russian Ozrazdan Party, as well as a huge flag that read “The battle for Bulgaria is the last battle in Bulgaria.”
The presence of police keeps the protests peaceful.
Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007 and left its poorest members behind, plagued by years of instability that has fueled the 6.4 million European skeptics citizens. Disinformation movements at home and abroad have increased concerns about economic changes that could lead to more poverty.
President Rumen Radev made a referendum on currency earlier this month to encourage anti-European voices with public concerns about inflation and purchasing power.
The proposal was rejected by the European majority parliament, which accused Radev of last-minute attempts to undermine the euro adoption, aimed at deepening European integration, and deepening European integration amid growing geopolitical tensions.
