Elena Yoncheva: Authoritarianism is being established in Bulgaria and gaining control over the judicial system and the media.

Is the end of the current monitoring for Bulgaria and Romania near?

“Whatever the initial idea was, it has long been clear that the CVM is not effective,” said Head of the Delegation of Bulgarian Socialists to the EP Peter Vitanov at the hearing of Frans Timmermans, first Vice-President of the European Commission, before the LIBE Committee at the European Parliament. The main topic of discussion was strengthening the rule of law in the EU.

“What will be the ramifications of a possible annual review of the rule of law across the EU on the CVM reports for Bulgaria and Romania? Is the end of the current monitoring for Bulgaria and Romania near?” asked Vitanov. Timmermans said that the CVM was a special instrument, set up with the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the EU, to help these countries fulfill certain criteria that they had not implemented at that time. “These are objective criteria and the CVM will be lifted only after they have been fulfilled,” he added. The Vice-President said that no country should think itself exempt from such monitoring and that his personal wish was that the reports for Bulgaria and Romania were included in the future annual review of the rule of law covering all the 27 member states.

Vitanov’s question came after the European Commission’s communication from July 2019 which proposed that the Commission should draft annual reports on the rule of law across all member states. Back then Mr Vitanov asked this question to Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality Vera Jourova. She confirmed the official position of the EC that the goal was to lift the CVM by the end of this Commission’s mandate, provided that the recommendations were implemented.

Elena Yoncheva, member of the S&D group at the EP, reminded Commissioner Frans Timmermans that the power of the European Union was measured by its ability to deal with the issues of the poorest and most disadvantaged member states. “Bulgaria is ranked last in the EU on media freedom and this negative trend is deepening year after year. You said that there could not be independent media, if the rule of law was not observed,” said Mrs Yoncheva.

The MEP also said that the European Commission had more than once found that the Bulgarian judicial system was ineffective and that there was high-level corruption. “While the Commission is making its findings, problems in Bulgaria are intensifying. Authoritarianism is being established and gaining control over the judicial system and the media. Despite the recommendations of the EC and the Venice Commission, we are yet to see independent oversight of the Prosecutor’s Office,” said Elena Yoncheva.