April 28, Wednesday

 JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS
The most dangerous Mafia-style criminals and corrupt senior
officials will be sentenced by special court panels within 12
months according to a bill setting up anti-Mafia courts, "24
Chassa" says, quoting Deputy Prime Minister and Interior
Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov. "This move has been prompted by
criticisms about lengthy trials, poor effectiveness and
inadequate administration of justice," he says. The special
court will consist of about 100 judges and prosecutors from
panels which deal with the worst gangs even now.

"Telegraph" says that in six months 1,300 persons have been
remanded in custody and the facilities are becoming crowded,
especially in Varna, Plovdiv and Shoumen.

The Constitutional Court has turned down President Purvanov's
challenge of Parliament's decision to charge 20 per cent VAT on
lawyers' services, "Troud" says. The Court was unanimous and its
judgement will be announced on Thursday.

"Monitor" reports that an agency will be set up to track down
users downloading pirated music and films. A senior source at
the Interior Ministry said the agency will target petty piracy
and will impose fines on people who download unlicensed
products. After two warnings they will be fined.

Serbian composer Goran Jeknic, partner of former defence
minister Nikolai Tsonev, went away with equipment worth 300,000
leva shortly before Tsonev was arrested, "24 Chassa" says.
Tsonev supported the setting up of a studio and a production
company. He was invited to the Eurovision contest three years
ago and met Jeknic there.

HOME SCENE

"Sega" leads with a story that to apply the latest amendment to
the Labour Code and avoid a backlog of leave, every company
should have a mandatory schedule of paid leave drawn up at the
beginning of the year. Almost all parties in Parliament and the
trade unions are against GERB's suggestion to cancel unused
leave time.

"24 Chassa" comments that everyone should take leave at once if
the government approves the much debated amendments to the
Labour Code and the Civil Servants Act on Wednesday, under which
any arrears of leave should be taken until the end of 2010.
This would run counter to an agreement with the trade unions and
employers that the deadline should be the end of 2011. Some
people have a backlog of 200 or 300 days, including tax
officers, the social partners argue.

In "24 Chassa" Finance Minister Simeon Djankov says that Germany
and the Netherlands have limited the leave time carried over
from the previous year to 10 or 12 days. This will be introduced
in Bulgaria in 2011, he says.

***

"Troud" quotes a resident of Razgrad (Northeastern Bulgaria),
who says electricity distribution company E.ON billed him 14,548
leva for 80,000 kWh of electricity in three hours and he nearly
had a heart attack. He attributed the mistake to a short
circuit which changed the date and time on the electricity
meter. Normally, he pays 10 leva a month.

"Klassa" and "Dnevnik" quote Prime Minister Boyko Borissov as
saying that unless the electricity distribution companies get
their act together, they will be replaced. On April 7 he said
the state energy and water regulator, helped by the State Agency
for National Security and the tax authorities, would audit the
energy system.

***

In "Troud", Delcho Kambourov, President of the Bulgarian
Association of the Amusement and Gambling Industry, says
gambling posted a 50 per cent drop. As a way to increase budget
revenues he suggests a crack-down on illegal gambling and on
illegal Internet operators. Bulgaria loses up to 170 million
leva in taxes on 1,500 million leva flowing out of the country.
He also suggests that phone and text message games should be
designated gambling games.

***

Quoting experts from Ecoglasnost, "Monitor" and "Telegraph"
write that businessman Ivo Prokopiev did not declare over 20
million leva in revenues from Kaolin and did not pay over 1
million leva in royalty fees.

In a "Troud" interview, Dimiter Topalov, regional leader of the
Democrats for Strong Bulgaria in the southern town of Kurdjali,
talks about possible forestry-related violations by GERB
representatives.

***

"Troud" says that Iliana Yotova MEP and Socialist Party
Spokesperson Kornelia Ninova have been tipped as possible
candidates for leaders of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP).
Sergei Stanishev's leadership may also be contested by Anton
Koutev, Angel Naidenov, Georgi Kadiev and Yanaki Stoilov. It has
again been proposed to make the President honorary chairman of
the BSP. The idea of holding an extraordinary congress to change
the leader is afloat in the BSP branches, the story says.

***

"24 Chassa" quotes the Medical Audit Agency as saying that a
second complaint has been filed against Varna's St Marina
Hospital. After the death of a two-year-old boy from sepsis, the
agency has now been informed about the death of a young woman
from a heart attack. The bereaved family complained about the
organization of treatment.
BTA