Bulgarian Politician Demands 'Outing' of Gay MPs

Bulgarian MP Vesselin Mareshki has caused outrage for demanding that MPs reveal their sexual orientation - as a potential form of conflict of interest - together with whether they have alcohol or drug issues.

In an interview for NOVA TV on Friday the populist leader said gay people in power were hiding their sexual orientation, which potentially makes them "dependent on people who have secret recordings of their activities.

"I do not understand why homosexuals in power hide. Maybe they consider this something shameful," the MP said, noting that "as free people they march on the squares" and "want to be seen".

The MP mused that, by being open to blackmail, it could even "lead us to war with Russia".

Mareshki, who owns chains of low-cost pharmacies and petrol stations, entered parliament for the first time at the snap election in March.

He and his populist party, Volya, which has 12 MPs in parliament but is not part of the governing coalition, have gained a certain amount of international fame after Mareshki described himself as the Bulgarian Donald Trump.

Angered by Socialist MP Kristian Vigenin, who criticised his joining a presidential delegation to the Vatican on May 24, Mareshki attacked his colleague on Wednesday as a homosexual.

Together with declaring their economic interests, he then also said MPs should be forced to reveal also their "homosexual conflicts of interest" and "conflicts of interest based on alcoholic and drug dependencies".

Following condemnation from LGBTI rights groups - and silence from all parties in parliament -  Mareshki on Friday said he had been misinterpreted by "fake news".

Radoslav Stoyanov, one of the organisers of the forthcoming Sofia Pride on June 10, said the unwillingness...