Plug Has Come A Long Way

The Bash Street Kids

Growing up in Surrey during the sixties with two brothers, and a sister, meant that on a Saturday there were always plenty of comics about. One that everyone will probably remember was The Beano. One comic strip really sticks in my mind and that was The Bash Street Kids. One character has been brought to light in view of recent world events. That is the character of Plug. Who would have thought that all of those years ago he would rise to infamy, Teacher must have failed that bit on his Ofsted report. maybe when he was filling out Plug's school report he shouldn't have put "Must try harder". Some will have worked out Plug's alter-ego, whereas others might still be scratching their heads. Some might also be wondering what on earth this all has to do with Bulgaria, but please read on and all will be made clear. He said hopefully.

OK so plug's hidden identity is none other than that of Bashar al- Assad, also known as the President of Syria. If you look closely I am sure that you can see the identity of Plug shining through, a shame that he doesn't demonstrate Plug's sense of fair play. It's amazing what a small amount of plastic surgery can achieve.

Bashar al-Assad

So at the moment there is a team from the UN investigating the possible use of chemical weapons by the Syrian military against a civilian target in a Damascus suburb. Whether it actually happened or not is the main question that everyone wants, the UN team is being hampered by sniper fire. Even before the conclusive proof is in one way or another there are already nations sabre rattling and threatening military action. There are also various naval assets nearly in position, so these are now being edged even closer into potential strike positions. As you might expect the US are one of these nations, other nations who are potentially beng dragged into all of this includes the UK. Finally the Prime Minister cut short his holiday and recalled Parliament for an emergency session.

David Cameron

So far there has been no agreement for the UK to become embroiled, and the US has stated that it is willing to go it alone. They might even have French support. Extra Typhoons have been deployed to the RAF base in Cyprus, although the Defence Secretary, Philip Hammond, states that in their configuration they are purely for air defence. Once the debate had been voted on in Parliament, and the vote was returned as one against UK military action there were further upheavals in the house. The Education Secretary, Michael Gove, called those who voted against, 'a disgrace'. Well Mr Gove how about you signing up and drawing your tin lid and going out to do your bit. If you are lucky they might even have enough body armour for you.

Syria

There have been various rebel groups attempting to overthrow al-Assad's regime since 2011. In that time President al-Assad's regime has not covered itself in glory as they have continued to commit atrocities against their fellow citizens. They have been shot, bombed, tortured and raped as the world has largely stood idly by. Various attempts to broker peace deals have largely been stymied by Russia, who are one of Assad's major allies. This has led to many Syrians seeking asylum in other countries such as Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Turkey. Some of these asylum seekers have continued through Turkey and are now crossing the border into Bulgaria, many of them doing so illegally.

Europe and North Africa

Measures have been taken to strengthen the border patrols, especially near to the Turkish and Greek borders. Only last year the numbers of refugees applying for asylum in Bulgaria were about 1000, so far this year there have been 2320 applications. It has been reported that in the last couple of days nearly 80 illegal immigrants have been detained. Of these three quarters were Syrians. My understanding of the asylum rules were that asylum was to be sought in the first safe country that the individual came to. So looking at the map Syrians have had to cross a lot of Turkey to apply for asylum in Bulgaria. At the moment the Bulgarian government says that it can cope with up to 3000 asylum seekers. At the moment they are being housed in state hostels and low cost hotels in Sofia, but there are also reports that there are still plenty of Syrians down in the border areas. There are growing concerns about the situation in Syria and the potential influx of refugees. A special operations unit has been created, one half of which will remain in Sofia, with the other half operating in the Haskovo and Elhovo municipalities. If they are granted asylum, will they have to jump through the same hoops that we as immigrants have to jump through. I can just imagine the first asylum seekers turning up at the KAT office in Veliko Tarnovo and being confronted by Mrs Helpful.

Meanwhile Germany is facing an influx of immigrants too. Although these are not for Syria, these are mainly from the former Eastern European countries. They are seeking economic stability, and guess what the vast majority are Roma. I am wondering if the Germans will try to integrate the Roma into German society, or will they do as the French did under Sarkozy and 'pay' them to return to their homeland. Already there have been many more reports of thefts, intimidation, noise and littering. I am not suggesting that all Roma are trouble makers, far from it. As with any element of society there are both good and bad aspects, but it is always the bad that has the focus placed upon it.

So by this time tomorrow the blog will have passed through 20000 hits, and we are now heading into the second hundred of blogs. A very big thank you from us to all of you who have taken the time to read these blogs.
 

Does The World Know Or Care About What Is Happening In Bulgaria?

Today I was asked to repost a blog, I have tried but for some reason it doesn't seem to like going onto Blogger. So the next best thing is to copy and paste it in its entirity. The initial words are not mine but from another blogger, please take the time to read and forward it on. Thank you

ahatfullofskys:

PLEASE READ!!

This isn’t a news post. This isn’t a post written by some journalist. This is a post written by a blogger, by a fangirl, by a supporter, by a citizen, by a human. And we need your help. Take a few moments to read this, you can help a nation.

Okay for now the protests in Bulgaria are unlike the others going on around the world. And the only difference is that our protests are still peaceful. And that’s thanks to the police, who showed solidarity. In that moment the citizens showed the police love. We take care of them by bringing them water, some even share hugs or get flowers. But for how long?

The problem is that noone is listening to the people. There isn’t any change after almost 10 days of protests. Nothing. And the world is still silent about all of this. All the big news channels or sites share only a little articles about what’s happening. Until Sofia’s in blood and fire like Taksim. Is that what the world wants?

The protests managed to keep it creative and peaceful for now. Actually it’s like a big party on the streets of Sofia. There are kids and parents and grandparents. There is love. There is creativity. There is tolerance. We want to keep it that way, but we need to be heard, we need change. Help us spread the word. Help us show the world that #BuglariaExists

What can you do? Reblog this. Share it with your friends on Twitter and Facebook. Tell your family what’s going on. Just tell someone. You can help us. Oh and use the #ДАНСwithme hashtag. You have no idea how much we need to be heard and you can make that happen. Just take a moment and help a nation.

Even today there have been more protests held in the centre of Sofia. Thousands have gathered to protest against the new Prime Minister, Plamen Oresharski, and his new cabinet. All of this in foul weather. Prince Edward and his wife, Sophie the Countess of Wessex, are also in Sofia today at the invitation of the President, Rosen Plevneliev. Do you think that the powers that be will let a tenth day of protest overshadow this visit. As it has hardly been reported outside of the country I am guessing that the Royals know little about the situation. I would imagine that it does pose some problems for their security detail though.

Many people are puzzled by some of the appointments to positions of power, that the new Prime Minister has made. One appointment has since been overturned. This was the appointment of Delyan Peevski  as Chair of the State's Agency for National Security. By all accounts he is a bit of a dodgy media mogul, so nothing that hasn't happened in other countries. Even Parliament's decision to overturn this appointment hasn't appeased the protestors, and they are still calling for the resignation of the new Prime Minister, and that of the whole government. He was only appointed into power on May 29th, so he has wasted no time in distancing himself from the man on the street. This is Bulgaria's 42nd elected Parliament, although how long it will last is anybody's guess. 

Many are now critical of Bulgaria's election system, claiming that it is long due for an overhaul. Hopefully in time a future government will be more in tune with what the people actually want. I am guessing that the dumped completed ballot papers being found without them having been counted will not have helped matters. At the moment after the last elections there are representatives of just four parties holding seats in the new Parliament. The protestors are also pointing their fingers at percieved shady goings on between politicians, large corporate businesses and those who aren't averse at bending, if not breaking the law. There is one problem looming should the people get their wishes and the government resigns, and that is who will take over? 

Even the Prime Minister's first trip to Brussels couldn't keep him out of the sights of the protestors. They were there in Brussels to 'welcome' him. Slowly the protests have been gathering momentum, and these are no longer confined to just Bulgarian cities. Even the EU Commission President, Jose Manuel Barroso has expressed concerns  about the goings on in Bulgaria. What many politicians seem to be forgetting is that the EU has been closely monitoring Bulgaria's performance in certain areas. The Commission President is also quoted as saying, "Some of the recent developments in Bulgaria were not good, and they raised concerns not only in Bulgarian society but among the European partners of Bulgaria. The candidates chosen should be based on merit, and they should have the highest standards of integrity."  I am guessing that the final sentence is in reference to the appointment of Delyan Peevski.

So does this mean that the cat is out of the bag, and that the protests, although peaceful, will be considered newsworthy. Or will people still be focussing on the likes of Nigel Farage and his jingoistic posturing. take a look Mr Farage, the average Bulgarian does not want to go to the UK and sponge off of the social security system. They are a proud nation of people who want what is best for their country. So please do not mistake honest hardworking Bulgarians for the gypsies with Bulgarian passports