Key developments
Besides a few minor campaigns by both factions of BNU, aimed at attracting attention on the main streets of Bulgaria’s biggest cities, December was relatively quiet. Concerned with the “pensioners and the underprivileged” (probably influenced by the Third Reich’s Winterhilfswerk), Boyan Rasate’s cronies from BNU-New Democracy distributed “hot teas and treats” on the Sofia and Plovdiv’s main pedestrian walkways from 17th till 24th of December, spreading also flyers and stickers, attracting new members. They also organized the “renovation of the inscription of the monument of Stefan Stambolov”, located in the centre of another big city, namely Plovdiv, on the 21st same month. Stambolov is a seriously romanticized political figure of the late 19th century. He was one of the first Prime Ministers of the country. However, this is arguably the first time we witness fascists’ street campaign focused on him, which suggests the possibility of his future presence in their calendar, at least in Plovdiv where the so-called “Kubrat’s Youth” and Rasate’s BNU associates are extremely active lately.
The other faction of the organization, BNU-Edelweiss, had their annual event celebrating the “personality and feat of the national pillar of excellence”, Capt. Dimitar Spisarevsky — a pilot who “defended Bulgaria’s sky” during World War II. BNU has been responsible for the organization and implementation of the event for almost twenty years now, happening on 20th of December. The event passed in the usual way — with lots of torchlights and pompous words, as evidenced by the dossier: “We should not break the testament of all our ancestors of the First, Second and Third Bulgarian Kingdom, who all fought against slavery. Their cultural and educational activity is our contemporary struggle, through which we will rebel against corruption, sloth and hatred towards Bulgarians.”
On December 20, in the largest conference hall of the largest university in the country, was held an event where the guest speaker was the most ardent fascist figure from the last coalition government and leader of IMRO — Krasimir Karakachanov. As a “specialist” on the so-called “Macedonian question”, Karakachanov was invited by the “Political Science Student Club”, as well as “Polity NGO”, to deliver a lecture on “Problems and prospects of relations between Bulgaria and North Macedonia”. Unfortunately, no one from the anti-fascist resistance in the capital was able to attend the event.
However, around the middle of the month Vazrazhdane (Revival), i.e. the only official far-right party in the new parliament, announced their nationwide protest against the so-called ‘green certificates’ that was expected to happen in mid-January. There were rumours that Vazrazhdane would pay for buses to transport not only their supporters but also any ” discontented citizens” to the capital in order to invade, eventually, the building of the National Assembly. The attack by Trump supporters at the Capitol came to the aid of the party’s leader, Kostadin Kostadinov, in clarifying his goals. The rebellion of the thirteen deputies from Revival in the parliament against the vaccines and the measures did not stop throughout the whole month, as they went from studio to studio to proclaim the need for a “return to normality”, advertising their upcoming event. The climax of the revivalist discourse came on the night of New Year’s Eve. In the festive square, an ex-military sympathizer together with his wife, a party member, threatened with (training, as it later turned out) hand grenades the people in the crowd who were following the anti-pandemic measures, i.e. — they were wearing masks. Other weapons were later found in his car and home.
In addition to the event that Revival organizes, January is traditionally the month that the BNU begins preparations for its annual “Lukov Marsh” — the largest neo-Nazi event in the country. The fifth wave is already on the rampage, so the situation here is yet to escalate.