Freedom House: Corruption is still the Main Issue in Bulgaria

Bulgaria is classified as a "free" country in the latest Freedom House report on democracy and freedoms around the world.

Bulgaria has 79 points out of 100, one point more than last year (78). According to the rating for political rights, Bulgaria has 33 points out of 40 possible, and according to the rating for civil liberties - 40 out of 60 possible.

Freedom House assesses people's access to political rights and civil liberties through its annual Freedom of the World report. Individual freedoms - from the right to vote to freedom of expression and equality before the law - can be affected by state or non-state actors. "Freedom in the World" consists of numerical assessments and descriptive texts for each country and selected group of territories. The 2022 edition covers events in 195 countries and 15 territories from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2021.

According to the report, our country continues to fight political corruption and organized crime.

"Although the media sector remains pluralistic, the media are facing increasing pressure to provide government-friendly coverage. Journalists sometimes face threats or violence at work. Ethnic minorities, especially the Roma, are discriminated against. Despite the lack of funds and other obstacles, civil society groups are active and influential," is said in the document. "Following the November elections, the newly formed coalition government of the four 'protest parties' announced a common platform focused on fighting corruption and judicial reform."

In general, according to the report, Bulgarians are free to make independent political choices. However, limited public funding and unrestricted private funding of political parties...