Bulgaria MPs to Discuss Closure of Commission Looking for Ex-Security Agents

Bulgaria's Parliament on Friday is to hold a debate on a proposal from the socialist opposition to change the procedure used to disclose names of people who worked with the Soviet-era security apparatus.

In January, the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) submitted a bill that could tighten rules about the disclosure of Bulgarian citizens' affiliation to the security services and military intelligence.

Under the proposed rules, the archive of the so-called Committee for Disclosing the Documents and Announcing Affiliation of Bulgarian Citizens to the State Security, also known as the Files Committee, should be handed to a new institution, and the committee itself is to be abolished.

If approved, the change will remove the obligation to make a routine checkup in the Commission's archive for people holding certain public offices.

Instead, affiliation to State Security (DS) or the military intelligence will not be possible without the person's consent.

Socialists maintain the Files Committee, operating since 2007, instills hatred into society instead of shedding more light on files themselves.

The BSP's proposal has been criticized by some parties in the government, including junior coalition partner Reformist Bloc and some MPs with the biggest party GERB.