“The Tarnovo Constitution and the Constitution of the democratic changes after 1989 express the same deep aspiration of the Bulgarian people - to live in a free and just society, based on reasonable rules and fair justice, in a society in which no one is above the law, and in which the law protects the freedom and dignity of everyone“. This was stated by Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov in Veliko Tarnovo during the official celebration of the 147th anniversary of the adoption of the First Bulgarian Constitution and the 35th anniversary of the establishment of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Bulgaria.
“The path that Bulgaria has traveled since the Liberation and the restoration of its statehood was difficult and full of severe challenges. And we must probably honestly admit that we have not been able to fully achieve all the high goals that the Bulgarian Renaissance set and which found their expression in both the Tarnovo Constitution and the 1991 Constitution“, noted Gyurov. According to the Prime Minister, the clearest sign of this is that today, more than 35 years after the beginning of the democratic transition, the main problem of Bulgarian society continues to be the feeling of a lack of justice, that the law is not always applied objectively, that the ideal of a true rule of law has not yet been fully realized. “If anyone doubts this, it is enough to look back at the last 10-15 years of our country's development“, Gyurov pointed out and added – “I say this not to sound gloomy on a holiday, but because I believe that it is precisely on such days that we should be honest with ourselves“.
The Prime Minister expressed hope that when there are decisions that can be criticized, the Constitutional Court will continue to live up to its mission and responsibility. Gyurov was categorical that without such a guarantor, a country can easily take paths that have nothing to do with the ideals of the Bulgarian Renaissance or the hopes for freedom and democracy that marked the time after November 10, 1989. The Prime Minister recalled that the Tarnovo Constitution was one of the most progressive for its time and today's holiday is not only about marking historical dates and institutional facts. “This is a day when we realize something greater: our belonging to the European civilizational development, our choice to be a European democracy, our aspiration to be, in the words and testament of Vasil Levski - equal to other European nations“, noted Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov.
In his speech, the Prime Minister emphasized the importance of the legal profession for the rule of law and the place of the Constitution in the life of a free society. The Prime Minister also specifically addressed the young people who have chosen law as their professional and life path. “They have chosen a truly worthy profession, but at the same time they have accepted a huge challenge - to prove every day that the words that define law as an art for the good and the just still carry true meaning. "They will be among the people who can turn Bulgaria into that just, well-regulated and dignified state that we have been dreaming of since the Revival and until today," said Gyurov. To all young lawyers and to all those celebrating today, the Prime Minister wished that they would never stop giving meaning to the vocation of being a lawyer.