Series:Center for the Study of Democracy - CSD Policy Briefs

CSD Policy Brief No. 01: Corruption in the Higher Education

Prompting public debate

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

In September 2003, the Corruption Monitoring System (CMS) of Coalition 2000 came into the media spotlight, exemplifying its impact on the policy debate about corruption. The presentation of the quarterly indexes of CMS on September 10 sparked a strong reaction by both critics of corruption in the universities and academic faculty and management. The specific reason was that compared to the previous quarterly data, the CMS registered a substantial increase in the bribery demands on citizens by university professors (21.5% in July 2003, up from 11.8% in May 2003). Overall, the level of corruption pressure for this group has been fairly high (10-14%); what focused the public attention this time was that they topped the rankings of corrupt officials. Coalition 2000’s media monitoring1 shows that university corruption has not received adequate press coverage. This has picked up in 2003, although the topic is treated generally (20% of the coverage deals with specific allegations). A notable development has been the increasing use of the internet for transparency pressure, including Coalition 2000’s own website where a number of whistleblowers have sent information about corruption in their universities.

CSD Policy Brief No. 02: Anti-Corruption Reforms in the Judiciary

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

In the first week of October 2003, the Center for the Study of Democracy published the Judicial Anti-Corruption Program (JACP), a policy paper developed with the support of the United Nations Development Programme. The JACP is the first document of its kind detailing a comprehensive agenda for reducing corruption within the judiciary and enhancing its efficiency in penalizing administrative and political corruption. The Program deals with the most significant constitutional, legislative and institutional aspects of anti-corruption measures in the judiciary and combines gap analysis with extensive policy recommendations. The development of the JACP involved more than 30 eminent Bulgarian legal professionals, including magistrates, and resulted from the combined efforts of influential non-governmental organizations, representatives of state institutions, and experts. This approach reflects CSD’s long standing capacity to bring together various reform constituencies and allows the Program to draw on most of the suggestions provided by government agencies, NGOs, professional associations and media. The analysis and the proposals made are supported by the survey Corruption and Anti-Corruption: the Magistrates' Viewpoint carried out by Coalition 2000 and Vitosha Research. The survey, carried out among 454 magistrates from the whole country in the period April-May, 2003, using the methodology of the Coalition 2000 Corruption Monitoring System, was the first ever survey on corruption issues conducted among magistrates.

CSD Policy Brief No. 03: The Long Way of the Emerging Ombudsman Institution in Bulgaria

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

Bulgaria continues to be among the few European countries without a national ombudsman institution, although the legislative framework is already in place. The election of the first Bulgarian parliamentary ombudsman, which took place at the National Assembly on May 14, 2004, failed as none of the nominated candidates succeeded in obtaining the required majority of more than half of the votes of the MPs participating in the voting. The main reason for the failure was the inability of political parties represented in Parliament to reach a consensus in the process of nominating candidates, which led to only partisan nominations being put forward.

CSD Policy Brief No. 04: The Outstanding Agenda for Political Party Reform in Bulgaria

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

A well controlled and transparent political parties system is crucial for the strengthening of democracy and the rule of law in any country. For Bulgaria, in particular, this is a field that has often been subject to reforms, which, however, have been inconsistent and far from effective. The present legal framework of political parties (the Law on Political Parties of 2001) reveals a number of gaps. At present, there is a new Draft Law on Political Parties, recently submitted to the Parliament for second reading, which offers solutions to the above as well as other shortcomings. However, the support of the civil society and the international community is needed to speed up the passing of the law and to streamline the reforms prior to the upcoming 2005 parliamentary elections.

CSD Policy Brief No. 05: The Long Way of the Emerging Ombudsman Institution in Bulgaria: Six Months Later

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

The present brief is aimed to examine the recent developments in establishing national and local ombudsmen in Bulgaria and is a follow up of Policy Brief No. 3 of May this year. The introduction of the ombudsman institution in Bulgaria on national and local level has progressed at different pace. On the one hand, the establishment of local public mediators (municipal ombudsmen) continued to gain speed and since May three more mediators have been elected. Thus, as of October 2004, public mediators are operating in seven municipalities, while in several others the election procedures are under way. Coalition 2000 through its Civil Society against Corruption Program continued to actively support and encourage the process. On the other hand, the establishment of the national parliamentary ombudsman is still pending at the National Assembly, which once again failed to elect an ombudsman. The second attempt did not succeed despite civil society pressure and its calls for a timely election of the national ombudsman through an open, transparent and nonpartisan procedure.

CSD Policy Brief No. 06: First steps of the Bulgarian Ombudsman

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

Although with a considerable delay, the election of the first Bulgarian ombudsman in April 2005 completed an important part of the process of introducing the ombudsman institution in the country. A civil society driven effort from the very beginning, the establishment of the ombudsman is a result of the effective public-private partnership between governmental institutions and non-governmental organizations. The continuation of this partnership is now among the key preconditions for the successful development and operation of the newly established institution.

CSD Policy Brief No. 07: Development of the Second National Anti-Corruption Strategy for Bulgaria

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

On January 12, 2006, the Council of Ministers adopted a National Strategy for Good Governance, Prevention and Counteraction of Corruption 2006-2008. The document was part of the commitments made by Bulgaria in the field of anti-corruption in the context of its EU accession. The strategy was expected to be adopted and presented to the European Commission by the end of 2005. In the beginning of 2006 an inter-ministerial task force submitted a draft version of the strategy to the government but it revealed so many flaws that the government postponed its adoption. As a result, the task force invited the Center for the Study of Democracy to redraft the strategy.

CSD Policy Brief No. 08: THE COMPETITIVENESS OF THE BULGARIAN ECONOMY 2006

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

Bulgaria’s position in the world oldest and most comprehensive annual report on the competitiveness the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2006 of IMD (International Institute for Management Development) was presented several days before the European Commission report on Bulgaria’s readiness for accession. With the partnership of the Center for the Study of Democracy this year Bulgaria was included for the first time in the report, issued since 1989. The report ranks and analyzes how 61 selected economies create and sustains the competitiveness of their enterprises. It stands out among reputed international ratings with the predominance of more reliable statistical data over the qualitative (survey) data. The rating uses 312 indicators covering a broad spectrum of competitiveness, classified in four major groups: economic performance, business efficiency, infrastructure and government efficiency.

CSD Policy Brief No. 08: Конкурентоспособност на българската икономика 2006

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): Bulgarian

Bulgaria’s position in the world oldest and most comprehensive annual report on the competitiveness the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2006 of IMD (International Institute for Management Development) was presented several days before the European Commission report on Bulgaria’s readiness for accession. With the partnership of the Center for the Study of Democracy this year Bulgaria was included for the first time in the report, issued since 1989. The report ranks and analyzes how 61 selected economies creates and sustain the competitiveness of their enterprises. It stands out among reputed international ratings with the predominance of more reliable statistical data over the qualitative (survey) data. The rating uses 312 indicators covering a broad spectrum of competitiveness, classified in four major groups: economic performance, business efficiency, infrastructure and government efficiency. The policy brief makes an overview of the report's main findings and recommendations with focus on the Bulgarian economic performance.

CSD Policy Brief No. 09: The Introduction of a Specialized Anti-Corruption Service back on the Anti-Corruption Agenda

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

On the eve of Bulgaria’s EU accession significant results in prosecution and punishment of high level political corruption are still outstanding. In this context, the idea for creating an independent specialized anti-corruption service again became a topic in the anti-corruption agenda.

CSD Policy Brief No. 10: A Painful Shift in Bulgarian Anti-Corruption Policies and Practice

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

In its March 2006 annual corruption assessment report On the Eve of EU Accession: Anti-Corruption Reforms in Bulgaria the Center for the Study of Democracy emphasized that “corruption, particularly in the high echelons of power, is one of the most critical problems faced by Bulgaria on the eve of its accession” as the Bulgarian “public tolerates less corruption and is increasingly concerned by it.” Bulgaria needs to present clear evidence of results in its fight against corruption, in particular on high political level.

CSD Policy Brief No. 11: The Future of Corruption Benchmarking in the EU

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

Reducing corruption has been among the priorities of most international institutions over a number of years now. In particular, corruption was a major preoccupation during the 2004 and 2007 enlargements of the European Union and continues to dominate the agenda of the initial period of Bulgaria and Romania’s membership. Not being in the core of EU’s acquis, anti-corruption was a relatively new matter to tackle and, in contrast to other areas of EU competence, it had little specific guidelines to offer applicant countries. Still, the significance of transparent and accountable government for the functioning of the EU internal market and the delivery of its core policies required that anticorruption be made one of the key requirements for membership. In this process, the European Commission advanced its capacity to evaluate anti-corruption progress. Following an initial focus on adherence to international standards and acceding to major conventions, attention later shifted to meeting specific good governance targets. Member states have also contributed to understanding corruption and recommending action through the mechanism of peer reviews.

CSD Policy Brief No. 11: Българският опит и измерването на корупцията в Европейския съюз

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): Bulgarian

In recent years, curbing corruption is a top priority of most international institutions. The European Union attaches paramount importance to the problem of corruption in the two successive waves of accession in 2004 and 2007. The pre-accession process has prompted the European Commission to develop its own mechanism to assess the progress of anti-corruption reforms. Like many other key areas for the functioning of the internal European market, the development of EU anti-corruption policy has logically led to the creation of a single European methodology for defining standards for measuring corruption.

CSD Policy Brief No. 12: Competitiveness of the Bulgarian Economy 2007

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

With the partnership of CSD this year Bulgaria was included for the second time in the world’s oldest and most comprehensive annual report on competitiveness, the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2007 – published without interruption since 1989 by IMD (International Institute for Management Development). Bulgaria’s competitiveness was covered and ranked together with 54 other leading world economies. The annual rankings are a respected source of information for large international investors, but they also provide highlights to the public and policy-makers on the strengths and the weaknesses of the Bulgarian economy by focusing on four main factors: economic performance; government efficiency; business efficiency; and infrastructure—in science and technology, human capital, health, and education.

CSD Policy Brief No. 12: Конкурентоспособност на българската икономика 2007

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): Bulgarian

With the partnership of CSD this year Bulgaria was included for the second time in the World's oldest and most comprehensive annual report on competitiveness, the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2007. It has been published without interruption since 1989 by IMD (International Institute for Management Development). Bulgaria’s competitiveness was covered and ranked together with 54 other leading world economies. This year Bulgaria came 41st on the scoreboard, surpassing Italy, Romania, Ukraine, Turkey, Poland, and Croatia among others. The position is an achievement in its own right, considering that the country is measured up against the champion nations setting the trends in the world economic competition. In 2007 Bulgaria has largely kept its position compared to the previous year, but its business efficiency has declined. Meanwhile, the country’s overall economic performance has improved.

CSD Policy Brief No. 13: Effective Policies Targeting the Corruption – Organized Crime Nexus in Bulgaria: Closing down Duty-Free Outlets

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

Duty-free trade-related smuggling of excise goods has been one of the most potent and sustainable sources of political corruption in Bulgaria for the last fifteen years. The operation of land border area outlets has been a major channel for flooding the Bulgarian market with tons of illegal cigarettes and alcohol and the sale of millions of gallons of excise-free petrol. The resulting profit, running into hundreds of millions each year, has been funding many a Bulgarian party and has become the foundation of untouchable political oligarchies. While the fortune of other illegal markets has ebbed and flowed, duty-free shops and petrol stations have enjoyed the protection of all governments since the beginning of the 1990s. Several attempts to close them down have come against the significant state-capture power of the duty-free operators. Not only have their operation not been curtailed following Bulgaria’s EU membership – as members of the Bulgarian government have insisted and pledged to do – but a law was passed granting duty-free operators the right to offset closures of their units along Bulgaria’s EU external land borders' entry routes with new ones at the EU external borders’ exit routes with Turkey, Serbia and Macedonia.

CSD Policy Brief No. 13: Ефективни политики за противодействие на корупцията и организираната престъпност в България: закриване на безмитната търговия

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): Bulgarian

Duty-free trade-related smuggling of excise goods has been one of the most potent and sustainable sources of political corruption in Bulgaria for the last fifteen years. The operation of land border area outlets has been a major channel for flooding the Bulgarian market with tons of illegal cigarettes and alcohol and the sale of millions of gallons of excise-free petrol. The resulting profit, running into hundreds of millions each year, has been funding many a Bulgarian party and has become the foundation of untouchable political oligarchies. The policy brief examines duty-free trade in Bulgaria in regard to turnover and tax revenue losses from the operation of the duty-free outlets. It also analyses the regulation of duty-free trade in Bulgaria which bears all the marks of a state capture. The brief presents possible courses of action towards reducing the negative effects of duty-free trade.

CSD Policy Brief No. 14: Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement along Bulgaria's Borders: the Impact of EU Accession

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

Enhanced criminal justice and improved cross-border cooperation between judicial and law enforcement authorities are essential for the EU and its Member States in order to effectively respond to the increasing threat of cross-border criminality. The last two EU enlargements resulted in significant changes in the Union’s external borders. Some of the countries that used to have such borders (like Germany and Austria) are now neighbors to other EU Member States. Their responsibilities regarding the security at the external borders are gradually transferred to new Member States which have become the outermost countries of the Union. The duties of these countries on protecting the external borders are yet to increase substantially. Further to Bulgaria's accession to the European Union, the country's frontiers with Turkey, Macedonia and Serbia, as well as its Black Sea border, have become external borders of the EU. Hence, border crossing-related criminal offences and customs violations no longer represent a problem of Bulgarian national security alone: they have turned into a problem of EU security. Many crimes and customs violations involve organized criminal groups and breed genuine corruption threats to customs authorities, border police, investigative police officers, and magistrates. Such acts fall within the jurisdiction of courts and prosecution offices at different levels and are inquired into by investigative police officers whose capacity still fails to match their wider responsibilities.

CSD Policy Brief No. 14: Правосъдие и правоприлагане по границите на България след присъединяването към ЕС

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): Bulgarian

Enhanced criminal justice and improved cross-border cooperation between judicial and law enforcement authorities are essential for the EU and its Member States in order to effectively respond to the increasing threat of cross-border criminality. The last two EU enlargements resulted in significant changes in the Union’s external borders. Some of the countries that used to have such borders are now neighbors to other EU Member States. Their responsibilities regarding the security at the external borders are gradually transferred to new Member States which have become the outermost countries of the Union. The duties of these countries on protecting the external borders are yet to increase substantially. Further to Bulgaria's accession to the European Union, the country's frontiers with Turkey, Macedonia and Serbia, as well as its Black Sea border, have become external borders of the EU. Hence, border crossing-related criminal offences and customs violations no longer represent a problem of Bulgarian national security alone: they have turned into a problem of EU security. This policy brief is a follow up to the 2007 CSD report Reinforcing Criminal Justice in Border Districts and examines the attitude of and measures undertaken by the relevant stakeholders as regards the policy recommendations formulated by the report.

CSD Policy Brief No. 15: LEVELLING THE PLAYING FIELD IN BULGARIA

How Public and Private Institutions Can Partner for Effective Policies Targeting Grey Economy and Corruption

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

This paper outlines the result of the consultations, which the Center for the Study of Democracy held with representatives of business and government on the feasibility of public-private partnerships in promoting a level paying field in Bulgaria. Its findings seek to inform further discussions with Bulgarian and international stakeholders on the modalities of possible future initiatives in this area on the example of public policy on the grey economy; If the efforts of the Bulgarian government and the business community to reduce the adverse impact of grey economy on the nation’s welfare are to succeed they need to bring on board the experience from successful coalition building for good governance from the non-government sector, based on best international practices. International experience has revealed that there are no easy fixes to pervasive grey economy and corruption. This brief proposes an overview of measures undertaken thus far to tackle the grey economy in Bulgaria and outlines a possible platform for engagement of the business, NGO and government sectors for long-term partnership for leveling the paying field in the country. This platform should combine the power of the government, the efficiency of the business and the know-how and experience of the civil society in the presence of a strong outside anchor and committed partner – the European Union. Its structure should allow for a combination of broad policy guidelines with focus on specific tangible actions. It should focus on strengthening enforcement, improving public resource management and enhancing business integrity. The platform needs to start with a narrow high impact issue e.g. the use of PPPs and EU funds in infrastructure, tourism or energy. The grey economy is one of the main constraints to investment and growth in Bulgaria. Different estimates put the size of the grey economy in the country between 20 and 35% of GDP, with some sectors, reporting less than 50% of the actual value of transactions. These hidden revenues create a self-perpetuating pool of corruption payments used to secure anything from tax “breaks” to state capture. Lower tax and social security rates and increased control intensity introduced by the Bulgarian government since 2003 and continued credit-and FDI-based economic growth have reduced the share of the grey economy by some 30% between 2002 and 2008. As these measures are likely to have one-off, limited impact on the grey economy and related corruption, priority must be given to strengthening enforcement, in particular for severing grey business monopolies’ corrupt access to high-level administration and political officials.