Initial phase In late January 2013, protests occurred in
Blagoevgrad after consumers received electricity bills that were two times higher than those for the previous month. Protesters symbolically burned their bills. A protester explained that her bill amounted to 310 leva, of which only 128 leva were for electricity consumption and the remainder were various tariffs and taxes. Some of the earliest protests also took place in
Sandanski. On 10 February, demonstrations occurred in
Sofia,
Plovdiv,
Varna,
Burgas,
Ruse,
Veliko Tarnovo,
Shumen,
Blagoevgrad,
Sandanski,
Silistra,
Yambol,
Gotse Delchev,
Belene,
Montana,
Pazardjik,
Dobrich and
Kardzhali. The same day, two EVN utility vehicles were set ablaze in Plovdiv. Demonstrators in Sofia gathered in front of the
Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism and threw snowballs at minister
Delyan Dobrev. One protester was stabbed in Varna on 13 February 2013. The authorities of
Kranevo also voiced discontent at the electricity prices, after communal services costs almost doubled in comparison to the same period of the previous year. The mayor of Kranevo said that his village was not an exception, and most localities in the municipality had the same issues. By mid-February tens of thousands of people were on the streets, demanding
nationalisation of the private regional monopolies, removal of subcontractors, assigning traffic and distribution to
NEK EAD (the state-owned power distribution company), declassifying all contracts between the state and energy companies and more liberal
combined heat and power usage laws, among others. On 17 February, a fictitious declaration supposedly written by the three foreign power companies and dismissing the protester demands while calling on them to accept their own responsibility for the situation that had transpired, was circulated in the social media and caused further anger against the energy providers. According to analysts, in the initial phase of the demonstrations, more than 50% of the discontent was fuelled by the supposed abuses of the monopol companies, with only 15% traceable to anti-government feelings.
Anti-government movement On 17 February, a national demonstration against monopolies gathered 10,000 people in Plovdiv, 8,000 (up to 30,000 by other estimates) in Varna and a smaller number in other cities. In total, 100,000 people protested all over the country in 35 cities and towns. People chanted "mafia" and "resignation", and carried slogans such as "This is not a protest, it's a process - the struggle for a new Bulgaria", "Down with GERB" and "
Janissaries, the end is coming". They gave the government one more week to respond to their demands. Clashes occurred near ČEZ's headquarters in Sofia. Some media sources and protesters have used the term "Bulgarian Spring" as a moniker for the demonstrations. On 18 February mass demonstrations continued all over the country. In Sofia, they escalated into civil resistance and protesters attempted to attack the National Assembly. The crowds were pushed back to
Eagles' Bridge (the starting point of the protest), and after their demands to begin immediate talks with government representatives remained unanswered, they moved towards the
National Palace of Culture. Clashes with police and Gendarmerie units on Hristo Botev boulevard left two police officers injured and six patrol vehicles were damaged. Eleven people were arrested. The same day Boyko Borisov dismissed finance minister
Simeon Dyankov, although this did not reduce public tensions. Dyankov was unpopular among the population because of his abrupt manners and strong insistence on austerity. According to some commentators, football fans gradually started to dominate the demonstrations and contributed to their escalation by steering them in a chaotic and violent direction. On the same date, around 30 people led by members of the "No to the EU" coalition (Bulgarian: Коалиция "Не на ЕС") gathered in
Sofia and burned a
European Union flag, protesting against the EU's supposed discriminatory treatment of Bulgarians and its "toleration of the
ethnic minorities in the country", expressing the sentiment that the country needs to exit the economic and political union. On 19 February, which marked 140 years of national hero
Vasil Levski's execution, violent clashes between protesters and police occurred in Sofia. Seven people, including two Gendarmerie officers, were injured during a police charge on protesters at Eagles' Bridge. 25 people were arrested, with the four minors among them quickly released. According to eyewitness accounts, a group of around 20 hooded provocateurs inflamed the situation by throwing firecrackers and rocks at police officers. In the ensuing commotion, the police is alleged to have retaliated against peaceful protest participants. The number of demonstrators in Varna was around 8,000. On 20 February, on the 11th day of the protests, Boyko Borisov announced that his cabinet would resign, expressing shock due to the violent scenes between protesters and police that he had witnessed and stating that he would never feel comfortable remaining in charge when there is such tension between regular citizens and police. The resignation was put to a vote in Parliament on the next morning, with 209 MPs voting "for" and 5 "against". A rally gathered in front of the Parliament building in support of Borisov and his government during the debates. Information surfaced in the media that the rally was staged, although GERB's press centre denied the allegations. Borisov expressed gratitude to his sympathizers, but also requested them to discontinue further demonstrations, so that social harmony is not compromised. According to analysis conducted by the information agency BGNES, Borisov is the first Bulgarian prime minister (since
Zhan Videnov in 1997) to step down due to hunger fuelled discontent and protests related to the general state of the economy. The assessments of political scientists and sociologists regarding Borisov's choice to relinquish power have been mixed. Evgeniy Daynov was critical, maintaining that the timing and the way in which Borisov went about his decision were ill-chosen, creating the impression of a weak and indecisive leader in addition to allowing him to refrain from addressing potentially valid demands. Others such as Kantcho Stoychev characterized it as the only correct and wise move given the difficult circumstances and were optimistic regarding Borisov's chances to retain his influence in politics and continue to work for the betterment of the country. Boriana Dimitrova and other analysts emphasized that Borisov's resignation was reflective of a good intuitive reading of the situation and caught analysts, political parties and even the protesters themselves by surprise, with the forces in opposition suffering from their own legitimacy issues which would make them ill-equipped to provide quick solutions to the systemic crisis. In Nikolov's contention, the stepping down of Borisov essentially turned the social crisis into a political one. Klisarov has ascribed more cynical motives to Borisov's quick resignation, viewing it largely as a matter of preserving GERB's power base and the particized status quo. Throughout the crisis Borisov retained the support of the
European People's Party and he was endorsed by them for the
2013 parliamentary elections.
Post-resignation actions Initiative committees by citizens form around the country. On 23 February coordinators of demonstrations gathered in
Sliven to discuss further actions after the resignation of the government. Several members of different political parties who were present at the gathering were expelled. Demands for a change of the political system, a ban on all political parties in power, abolishment of
value added tax on electricity production and state ownership of natural resources and strategic sectors were added to the original calls for nationalisation of the power companies. TIM, a semi-legal company, was reported to have organised a crackdown on an initiative committee gathering in Varna. Protesters holding banners against TIM are alleged to have been beaten, with the police choosing not to intervene. The "Rakovski Legion", an organisation of military officers and supporters of the
Bulgarian Army, have joined the protests. International demonstrations occurred 24 February in all major Bulgarian cities, as well as in
Vienna,
Munich,
Paris,
London,
Barcelona,
Düsseldorf,
Frankfurt,
Athens,
Berlin,
Madrid,
Dublin and many other major cities all over the world, where the
Bulgarian diaspora gathered in front of the Bulgarian embassies and consulates.
IMRO leaders organized a march in the capital on that day and joined the demonstrations. President
Rosen Plevneliev met with some of the protesters in
Sofia and was presented with a list of demands. Non-mainstream nationalist organizations such as the Bulgarian National Front (Bulgarian: Български Национален Фронт) and Bulgarian National Union (Bulgarian: Български национален съюз) have also been supportive of the demonstrations, while sharply distancing themselves from what they view as anti-patriotic entities such as the Open Institute and the
Bulgarian Helsinki Committee. The protest wave subsequently continued, albeit with a lower intensity. Gatherings of citizen committees were scheduled to move to
Plovdiv in response to Interior Minister in resignation
Tsvetan Tsvetanov's accusations that protest leaders belong to organised crime and drug smuggling circles. Yanko Petrov, a protest coordinator, explained in an interview that members of the committees expect to be framed for drug distribution by the authorities. Borisov also revealed that the protests against his government may have been a factor in the postponement of Bulgaria's entry into the
Schengen Area. In late February 2013, doctors and medical personnel also voiced dissatisfaction, demanding an urgent meeting with
Rosen Plevneliev, due to the limits on their freedom to practice their occupation and see patients that had been imposed by the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). In March 2013,
Sergei Stanishev accused the Borisov government of monitoring the e-mail accounts and text messages of the protest leaders. On 4 March, a protest tent city was erected in front of the National Parliament by some of the Eagles' Bridge protesters. The early elections did not bring about political stability or increased trust in the political institutions of the country. By the end of July 2013,
anti-government protesters but this time against the new government of
Plamen Oresharski were still out in force, protesting peacefully in
Sofia, with
Reuters recording the 24 July 2013 as the 41st straight day of peaceful protests. The protesters were demanding the resignation of the
Socialist-led government of Oresharski and more than 100 lawmakers, ministers and journalists spent the night besieged inside parliament before police evacuated them. Boyko Borisov returned to power as Prime Minister in November 2014 after his party won the
2014 Bulgarian parliamentary election, forming a coalition government. ==Public reactions to the protests==