Bulgaria President Reiterates GMO Referendum Warnings

Domestic | March 12, 2010, Friday // 17:05|  views

Bulgaria's President, Georgi Parvanov, says he insists on a country free from GMO. Photo by BGNES

Bulgaria's President, Georgi Parvanov, strongly criticized the amendments of the Bulgarian Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) Act.

During a special press conference Friday, dedicated to the economic crisis and the crisis between the Bulgarian institutions, Parvanov pointed out that he insists on a country free from GMO.

The President announced that if the Act is passed the way it has been proposed, he would veto it. In case the veto is not approved by the Parliament, Parvanov reiterated his earlier warnings that he would call a referendum on it.

On Monday, the President stated that the amendments to the GMO Act should include strict safeguards to protect Bulgaria from contamination, adding he may use his right to call on the Bulgarian Parliament to hold a national referendum on the issue for or against retention of the prohibitions on release into the environment of GMOs.

On Friday, the Parliament fell into an interesting predicament when the GMO Act was discussed almost simultaneously by the MPs from the Bulgaria Parliamentary Environment Committee and in plenary hall.

Deputy Environment Minister, Evdokia Maneva, reported that the Committee's MPs had unanimously endorsed the proposal made by the MP from the ruling Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) party, Kostadin Yazov, to prohibit the release of GMOs into the environment and also to add that all NATURA 2000 areas will be protected from GMOs.

In plenary hall, the second reading of the Act stalled over the failure to reach consensus and was postponed.

Petar Kurumbashev, MP from the left-wing Coalition for Bulgaria, which includes the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) as its main formation, said that there is an obvious Parliament lobby for GMO and the GERB majority approves it. He was backed by his fellow party member, Georgi Bozhinov, who pointed out that the GMO Act is the cause of big businesses that have invested billions in GMO.

Meanwhile, NGOs and civic organizations informed they are planning a large protest rally against GMO Saturday.

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Tags: GMOs, GMO Act, Georgi Parvanov, Evdokia Maneva, GM crops, Petar Kurumbashev

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