Bulgaria to tell the whole truth about communist secret archives

Bulgaria will promulgate communist secret services' archives within a month. They are ready to tell "the whole truth." But information in the former State Security files doesn’t make any harm former communist services' agents and any sanctions against them excluded.

Photo: Bulgaria to tell the whole truth about communist secret archives

"The idea is not to give any judgments on who's done what, but just to publish the names of the collaborators," Mingova said.

The State Security, which was disbanded after the 1989 collapse of the communist regime, included intelligence and counterintelligence offices, as well as political police, who led persecutions against dissidents and anti-Communists.

Political police informers people who spied on friends, colleagues and neighbors are particularly despised in Bulgaria , and many of those who have been exposed have faced public ridicule and pressure to resign from current jobs.

Interior Minister Rumen Petkov released several files in the past few weeks, after journalists asked him to check the possible former allegiances of certain journalists and politicians.

TV anchor Georgi Koritarov who was among several journalists and lawmakers exposed as former police informers has been urged by colleagues and public figures to quit his job, but has refused.

Public pressure has mounted for the files to be opened completely, instead of randomly or selectively screening individuals for past involvement. Late Monday, leaders of the three coalition parties agreed to open the secret service files.

"We should continue to open the dossiers to reveal the truth about the secret services' activity by 1990," said Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev, who previously had opposed the opening of the files.

"The governing coalition was not interested in supporting a selective approach to the archives' opening," he said, but added that there should be "exceptions from the rule because important public interests, such as national defense and foreign policy, should be protected" , reports the AP.

N.U.