Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev said that the EU should not treat Bulgarians as 'second class' people by postponing the country's EU entry by a year.
During a meeting with a group of foreign journalists Stanishev said that an accession delay might be taken as 'rejection' of the country. Bulgarian National Radio quoted him saying the postponement would be a mistake as Bulgarians are not 'second class' citizens.
The statement was made days before the European Commission issues its final recommendation on Bulgaria's EU accession date. According to the accession treaty, the country will join the union on January 1 2007, but the EC might still delay the entry by a year.
In his speech Stanishev said Bulgaria has executed many 'painful' reforms and Bulgarians would be greatly discouraged if the country does not join the union next year. Membership delay might also encourage the political parties and organisations rejecting Europeans standards, the prime minister added. On-time accession, on the other hand, would help the government continue with the reforms, Stanishev said.
Prosecutor-General Boris Velchev said that although cases of corruption among magistrates existed, this did not necessarily mean the whole system was corrupted. Organised crime and corruption were serious problems, but the government was successfully fighting against them, he added.
During a meeting with a group of foreign journalists Stanishev said that an accession delay might be taken as 'rejection' of the country. Bulgarian National Radio quoted him saying the postponement would be a mistake as Bulgarians are not 'second class' citizens.
The statement was made days before the European Commission issues its final recommendation on Bulgaria's EU accession date. According to the accession treaty, the country will join the union on January 1 2007, but the EC might still delay the entry by a year.
In his speech Stanishev said Bulgaria has executed many 'painful' reforms and Bulgarians would be greatly discouraged if the country does not join the union next year. Membership delay might also encourage the political parties and organisations rejecting Europeans standards, the prime minister added. On-time accession, on the other hand, would help the government continue with the reforms, Stanishev said.
Prosecutor-General Boris Velchev said that although cases of corruption among magistrates existed, this did not necessarily mean the whole system was corrupted. Organised crime and corruption were serious problems, but the government was successfully fighting against them, he added.
