On May 28 a 30-year-old bus plowed into a crowd of celebrating people near Bulgaria's southern city of Yambol killing 16 on the spot. Another one died in the hospital three days later, bringing the dead toll total to 17.

The most important people in the country readjusted their busy pre-election schedules to travel to the accident's location. The Cabinet swiftly declared the following day a National Day of Mourning for the victims of the horrific tragedy.

The cancellations began pouring in: politicians abandoned their election campaigns for a day, kindergarten concerts, Music Idol appearances in Serbia, a French theater street performance dedicated to the International Children's Day and other similar events were postponed and are yet to be rescheduled.

We learned later that on the National Day of Mourning, Ventsislav Rangelov, Head of the Control of Dangerous Weapons and Substances Directorate at the Interior Ministry, held a lavish birthday party in a popular and expensive Sofia restaurant. Guests included many high ranking Interior Ministry employees, sports celebrities such as Bulgaria's football legend, Hristo Stoichkov, and wealthy businessmen.

The fallout began when the leader of the opposition "Order, Law and Justice" party, Yane Yanev, was notified that there was a party going on at the "Plaza". The never to miss a PR opportunity Yanev jumped in, gathered some supporters, went to the location and took pictures. He says the party was accompanied by loud Serbian "chalga" music, and heavy drinking. All guests, including Rangelov himself, deny the report and insist the party has been a quiet charity event, planned to collect donations for the support of children of Interior Ministry employees who were killed or died in the line of duty.

Two high-ranking heads rolled in the aftermath of the controversial festivities - a Deputy Interior Minister and the Director of Coordination, Control, Public Order and Safety Directorate at the Sofia Municipality were fired.

It became also clear that Interior Minister, Mihail Mikov, himself, attended, the very same evening of the tragedy, another high-profile birthday party in the State "Lozenents" residence. Some even went as far as to say that President Parvanov was also there. Mikov declines any comments; Parvanov calls it "black PR" and firmly denies taking part.

The scandal is raging; the ruling voice indignation over the "unfair accusations"; the Opposition are rubbing their hands while families and friends of the victims are grieving.

The tragedy, sadly to nobody's surprise, turned into a dog and pony show.

In the gloomy evening of May 28, I was going home from work and passed by Sofia's upscale "Sheraton" hotel. The prom that was taking place there was, obviously, not rescheduled. Along with the evening gowns and the tuxedos, there were colorful balloons, loud music, shouting, and glitzy cars with noisy honks, all out on the parking lot and all over downtown Sofia. In the mean time, one prom night got canceled. The State sponsored one, the one for Bulgaria's orphans. Should the Education Minister be fired over that as well?

It is one thing to cancel the kindergarten performances, the French theater show, and the celebration of the kids who otherwise do not have many reasons to party, but to inconvenience parents who shelled thousands for their off-spring graduation, not to speak of generals and sports stars, is another matter.

There were also fireworks that same night, at least, in my neighborhood, there were. Probably some Spas celebrating his name day; it was Spasovden (the Day of Spas) after all...

For 45 years the Communist regime ordered people in Bulgaria to celebrate - local and foreign revolutions, Labor days and Victory days - artificial festivities no one believed in. Bulgarians learned to live their own happy moments, to organize their own parties.

Now they are told to mourn by a cabinet's decision...

In a country where "everything goes," where everyone "knows best", where watching only over one's own interest is the norm, indifference rules and immorality is King, how do we set the boundaries of National Mourning? How do we mourn by order?

After all those years, it seems, we are hopelessly lost when we have to establish the limit. With leaders, practicing for 65 years the "do as I say not as I do," it just does not occur to us that when a neighbor has died, Bulgarians used to scale down on the fireworks, the honking, and the shouting, take the celebration inside and have a quiet drink. With our own difficult lives to live, own burials to face and scarce happy occasions to enjoy, we forgot to teach our children how to deal with somebody else's sorrow, how to be compassionate. But, somehow, we expect it from our ministers, generals, and celebrities...

How do we mourn others when National Mourning has become a common practice in Bulgaria?

I read somewhere that we are the country in Europe that has declared the most such days in the last years. Kids died suffocated in a night club and when a bus fell in a river during a school trip to Serbia, 18 people were killed in a bus accident near Ruse, and more burned trapped in a blazing train car. Each time the Cabinet declared National Mourning.

In the mean time, the European funds got frozen, the roads deteriorate, the vehicle park is obsolete.

Until the next National Day of Morning.

1 300 years Bulgaria, 130 kilometers of highways - jokes don't make us smile anymore and tragedies don't make us grieve.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!