EU Commissioner Kuneva Reduced to Tears by Ataka's Leader Siderov

Politics » DOMESTIC | June 2, 2009, Tuesday // 17:58
Bulgaria: EU Commissioner Kuneva Reduced to Tears by Ataka's Leader Siderov

The official guests at Tuesday's remembrance events honoring the Bulgarian revolutionary hero Hristo Botev have expressed their deep resentment of the actions of Volen Siderov, leader of the far-right Ataka party.

Bulgaria's EU Commissioner, Meglena Kuneva, was reduced to tears while watching how the leaders and supporters of the far-right and extreme nationalist Ataka party ruined the remembrance ceremony by shouting out racial slurs and homophobic insults at the official guests including Prime Minister Stanishev, MEP Vigenin, and GERB party Chair Tzvetanov.

"This event cannot be treated as a party rally", Bulgaria's PM Stanishev said regarding Siderov's actions. He accused Siderov and his supporters of caring only about their party interests and of being the only Bulgarians who did not really remember and understand the sacrifice of Hristo Botev and the other Bulgarian liberation struggle heroes.

Despite the actions of the far-right supporters who clearly did not pay respect to the remembrance ceremony, the official part of the events was able to go ahead as planned with the speeches by Stanishev and the other official guests.

"I apologize to all Bulgarians for these actions on part of Ataka. Botev cannot belong to this or that party. Such actions are ugly and deplorable, and will cause many voters to turn away from Ataka... We are obliged to preserve the Bulgarian model of ethnic tolerance, and to resist any attempts to divide the Bulgarian nation", Stanishev said as quoted by BGNES.

The GERB party leader, Tsvetan Tsvetanov, who was also targeted by the Ataka supporters with insults, declared that Siderov's actions were absolutely unacceptable, and that there was no way the young Bulgarian kids could be taught patriotism and love for Bulgaria in that way.

 

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Photo Story of Tuesday's Remembrance of Hristo Botev Ataka's Clashes with the Police VIEW HERE

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Tags: Hristo Botev, revolutionary, poet, April Uprising, Ottoman Empire, Ottoman Turkey, 1876, Ataka, Volen Siderov, far right, Sergey Stanishev, Kristian Vigenin, BSP, GERB, Tsvetan Tsvetanov, reenactment, Meglena Kuneva, EU Commissioner

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