Video Shows 'Bulgarian Jan Palach' Speaking Out against TIM Group

A video clip from the anti-government protests in Bulgaria's Black Sea city of Varna posted on YouTube shows Plamen Goranov – already known as the Bulgarian Jan Palach for setting himself on fire in protest – speaking out against the Varna security and business group TIM.

The video of Goranov – who perished of his wounds on Monday in hospital after agonizing for 11 days – was posted on YouTube by Bulgarian investigative journalism site Bivol.bg.

The video shows Goranov speaking briefly before a protesting crowd in Varna the day before the incident in which he burned before the Varna Municipality – and urging the protesters to should slogans "Down with TIM".

TIM is a major security and business group which is said to control tightly the politics and economy in Varna, and according to US diplomatic cables leaked on WikiLeaks is rooted in the 1990s organized crime. Its group of companies includes the Central Cooperative Bank, Chimimport, Bulgaria Air, among many others.