"FOREIGNERS" are deemed to be any person not a Bulgarian citizen according to a new amendment to the Foreigners Act, currently having passed its first reading. The proposed amendment requires proof of Bulgarian language proficiency for anyone seeking permanent residence in this country.

These requirements do not apply to aliens of Bulgarian nationality applying for permanent residence permits, as well as in cases when another provision has been reached in an international agreement in force for Bulgaria.

The "foreigners" that were asked to comment by The Echo appear to be split and expressed two extreme positions on the requirement for a language knowledge certificate to prove their proficiency in Bulgarian.

Gautam Vir, CEO of Hebros Bank, fully agrees with such regulations for citizenship, but says the requirements should be more flexible and that "it discourages people from taking permanent residence. Bulgaria could lose qualified people who want to live here but who need time to acquire the language".

Tim Buisseret, general manager of Mobikom, sees no need for legislative intervention in this area. He knows many expats, himself included, who speak reasonable Bulgarian without formal qualifications. He also knows others who hardly speak Bulgarian at all. "It's more difficult for them to communicate effectively and to fit in, but I think it's a question of personal choice," he said.

Austrian Uwe Kunz, working at the Hilton Hotel as operations manager, expressed a similar view. He said that people who are applying for a Bulgarian passport should complete a Bulgarian language course before being awarded citizenship. Kunz finds it an unnecessary requirement for a permanent residence permit. "Would that conform with EU regulations?" Kunz asked. He said he knows quite a lot of EU citizens who are living and working in Vienna without knowing a single German word and strictly refusing to learn the language and nobody seems to be bothered.

Such a practice might create opportunities for fake certificates and corruption, said Matt Willis from the UK. He considers that this proposed amendment to the law will create an avenue for corruption by opening up a grey market for fake certificates. When Willis studied at the Institute for Foreign Students, his teacher offered him the chance to purchase a certificate proving that he was proficient in Bulgarian. He said that the negotiable price was about 1000 leva, and his teacher promised that it would help him find work in Bulgaria despite the fact that his Bulgarian was limited to 'ayde bay' (come on bye).

For UK expat Sebastian Kinsman, dealing with real estate, making learning Bulgarian a legal requirement for permanent residence is xenophobic. "There is little intrinsic value in doing so, either on practical or aesthetic grounds," he said. He took an intensive course at Sofia University, which seemed to be old-fashioned and unimaginative since they were made to learn from children's textbooks and learned by rote and he said "the whole experience was a miserable one".

Syrian Alex Bachir, believes if anyone wants to stay in any country for a long period of time they should learn the language to avoid misunderstanding basic things. "They should have an understanding of any situation that could arise, to know their rights and fully participate in this society without the handicap of the language," Bachir said.

Slovenian expat Maria Novak thinks that anyone applying for permanent residence should at least be able to communicate and have a normal conversation. "It is difficult to be completely fluent," she said. She thinks the only ones that should be required to be fluent in Bulgarian are those who would need the language in their professional work, such as teachers, and journalists. However, Novak's husband does not agree with her statement saying that if he lives in Bulgaria for long time and pays all the taxes he should be entitled to permanent residence without additional conditions.

Others have expressed a belief that a foreigner demonstrates their commitment to the country in an obvious way, by proving that they at least tried to learn the language of the country where they plan to live, when apply for permanent residence. "By encouraging foreigners to learn the Bulgarian language, the government is giving them a better chance to integrate in Bulgaria in the long term and to really appreciate the culture and the opportunities afforded to all in this country," said Anne-Monique Souyris from the UNDP. She is personally glad that she took Bulgarian language classes during her first year of stay in Bulgaria. It made living and working in Sofia easier and she was able to "make new friends that did not speak French, German or English and helped to understand Bulgarian people".

Dutch expat Marlies Bos-Buurman is relieved she will not be staying in Bulgaria on the basis of a permanent residence permit, because she would have a problem if it became law. Bos-Buurman describes her Bulgarian as very poor and says that her communication skills are limited to basics. She had planned to attend Bulgarian language training classes but has not done so yet due to a serious lack of time and says she can see the policy sense behind the proposed rule.

Marco Bosman, Regional Manager of Southeast Europe Internet Securities Inc., trading as ISI Emerging Markets, believes this procedure is more or less in line with what other European countries have implemented. It seems fair to him that Bulgaria treats foreigners who apply for permanent residence in the same way Bulgarians would be treated in other European states when applying for residence. Bosman's personal opinion is that it will be counterproductive and Bulgaria would be better advised to invest in its own educational system and make sure every young Bulgarian learns English. His experience is that Bulgarians without university or college degrees, or work experience abroad, have a poor command of foreign languages, and that most other Central and Eastern European nations do far better in this regard.

American expat Gail Sprinkle, a peace corps volunteer based in Pleven, thinks the proposed amendment to the Foreigners Act might be counter-productive because it might discourage highly qualified people from coming or staying in Bulgaria who could contribute to its economic growth. She says many Bulgarians speak excellent English and there is no shortage of interpreters or translators. She knows many Americans who although have studied Bulgarian, conduct business through interpreters. "I believe their work benefits Bulgaria," she said. She hopes they reconsider this amendment.

Chuck Hedges' comment on the proposed legislation concerning a language requirement for expats who apply for permanent residence is that it is generally a good idea. However, he suggested two exceptions, for expats who are married to Bulgarian citizens; and expats who are over 60 years old because they are probably retirees. Both of these exceptions apply in his case. "Those applicants should not need to meet the above requirements and should be granted permanent visas if they were willing to pay a penalty, for example $200 during 2005 and $500 after 2005," Hedges said.

James Hughes, investor and owner of Hotel Avalon in Bansko, said that what they have found in England is that the mixing of culture can be a positive benefit as opposed to a threat to dilute ethnic or national identity. "We wouldn't have the Notting Hill carnival, one of the largest street carnivals in Europe, were it not for the Afro Caribbeans, and curry has become England's national dish thanks to Indian and Pakistani immigrants," he said. "Even our language and culture has developed and benefited from adopting Asian and European words and habits, change is nothing to be afraid of but an opportunity to move forward," Hughes said. "I can understand the Bulgarian government adopting regulations that England, the US and France already have in place, but the reasons these countries have these laws are to combat problems that Bulgaria just doesn't have," he said. There are no queues outside Bulgarian embassies overseas with hundreds of people a day trying to emigrate here. For Hughes there are no worries, as his Banski (the dialect in Bansko) is coming along fine, even if the grammar is proving a little mind-boggling.





'Let us not chase the foreigners from Bulgaria'

(This is the editorial comment published by Standart newspaper on May 14, 2004, on the question of foreigners being required to prove their proficiency in Bulgarian if they want to become permanent residents in Bulgaria).

A PERSON from a country Y wants to live and set up a small business in Bulgaria.

This person looks serious, and has a certain amount in a Bulgarian bank. But he explains all this in...English!

It is not clear at all how he is going to make his way through the debris of the Bulgarian bureaucracy. From this point of view, the requirement envisaged by the lawmakers for an, at least, minimum grasp of Bulgarian language by every foreigner who wants to settle down in Bulgaria for a longer period is correct and logical. This requirement is, most of all, in the favour of the foreigner - so that he can get orientated to the laws and the characteristics of Bulgaria and be able to protect himself from becoming a victim of all sorts of fraud and racketeering. In the US, there are special language courses for immigrants who do not speak the language. Such a requirement is in the interest both of the state and the public. It is no longer acceptable that unscrupulous or shady business people do whatever they like, hide their intentions behind smilingly saying: "I don't speak and understand Bulgarian". Especially now, when Bulgaria is a potential target of global terrorism. In the long run, if someone has indeed decided to stay longer in Bulgaria, they should make some effort to learn at least a little bit of the language in this country. But there is another side to the coin. If the law is enforced blindly and literally, it may chase away the thousands of pensioners from Western Europe who have recently been buying a large amount of real estate in Bulgaria so that they can spend their summer holidays here. We cannot insist that these seniors be able to fluently recite the poem "I am a Bulgarian". It is quite enough that they have invested their savings in Bulgaria. And that they will spend their big, by Bulgarian standards, pensions here in Bulgaria. The other aspect is simple - a foreign citizen in Bulgaria is a foreigner only until he has his first Shopska salad and rakia.