Rosen Plevneliev

Rosen Plevneliev, OSC
4th President of Bulgaria
In office
22 January 2012 – 22 January 2017
Prime Minister Boyko Borisov
Marin Raykov (Acting)
Plamen Oresharski
Georgi Bliznashki (Acting)
Boyko Borisov
Vice President Margarita Popova
Preceded by Georgi Parvanov
Succeeded by Rumen Radev
Minister of Regional Development and Public Works
In office
27 July 2009 – 9 September 2011
Prime Minister Boyko Borisov
Preceded by Asen Gagauzov
Succeeded by Lilyana Pavlova
Personal details
Born Rosen Asenov Plevleniev
(1964-05-14) 14 May 1964
Gotse Delchev, Bulgaria
Political party Communist Party (Before 1989)
Independent (1989–present)
Other political
affiliations		 GERB (Minister in the Government of GERB (2009-2011); GERB candidate for presidential election in 2011)
Spouse(s) Veronika Kavrakova (divorced)
Yuliyana Plevnelieva (2000–2017;divorced)
Desislava Banova (2018-present)
Children Phillip (died 2015), Asen, Pavel, Yoan
Alma mater Technical University, Sofia

Rosen Asenov Plevneliev (Bulgarian: Росен Асенов Плевнелиев; born 14 May 1964) is a Bulgarian politician who was the 4th President of Bulgaria from January 2012 to January 2017. He was the Minister of Regional Development and Public Works from July 2009 to September 2011 as part of the cabinet of Boyko Borisov.[1] In October 2011, Plevneliev was elected as President in a second round of voting; he was inaugurated on 18 January 2012.[2]

Biography

Rosen Plevneliev was born in Gotse Delchev. His mother, Slavka Plevnelieva, was a teacher, and his father, Asen Plevneliev, was an activist of the Communist Party.[3] He relocated to Blagoevgrad alongside his parents when he turned 10 years old.[4] His family descended from Bulgarian refugees from southern Macedonia who resettled from today's village of Petrousa in the municipality of Prosotsani in Drama regional unit, Greek Macedonia, in 1913. The Plevneliev family name refers to the Bulgarian name of the village Petroussa, Plevnya (Плевня, "barn").[5]

Plevneliev studied at Blagoevgrad Mathematical and Natural Sciences High School, from which he graduated in 1982. In 1989 he graduated from the Higher Mechanical-Electrotechnical Institute, Sofia, and in the same year become a fellow at the Institute for Microprocessing Technology, Pravets.[6] While studying in the university, he was a Komsomol member of the Bulgarian Communist Party.[7] After the political changes, in 1990, Plevneliev started a private building company in Bulgaria. Among other projects, the company built the Sofia Business Park.

He was married to the journalist Yuliyana Plevnelieva; they had three sons: Filip, Asen and Pavel. One of the sons, Filip, died in 2015 at the age of 14.[8] In addition to his native Bulgarian, he speaks English and German fluently.[9]

Political career

Then Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff greets Plevneliev upon his arrival to the Planalto Palace in Brasília, Brazil, 1 February 2016.
Official portrait of President Plevneliev.

Plevneliev became Minister of Regional Development and Public Works under Deputy Prime Minister Simeon Djankov on 27 July 2009. Minister Plevneliev was one of a handful of "reformers" in the government, together with Deputy Prime Minister Simeon Djankov, the Minister of Economy Traicho Traikov and the Minister of Environment Nona Karadzhova.

He was announced as GERB's candidate for President of Bulgaria on 4 September 2011.[10] He subsequently won the presidential election in a second round held on 30 October 2011, with a majority of 52.58% of the vote.[11] He defeated Ivaylo Kalfin from the Bulgarian Socialist Party in the second round. He took the presidential oath on 19 January 2012 and officially took over from his predecessor Georgi Parvanov on 22 January 2012. Among his priorities are administrative reforms, energy efficiency and energy independence and removing of ambassadors of Bulgaria in foreign countries who have served as secret agents during the Communist regime.

As a result of the 2013 Bulgarian protests against monopoly and high electricity prices, the conservative government of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov tendered its resignation on 20 February 2013. President Plevneliev, acting in accordance with the constitution, offered a mandate to form a new government within the term of the current Parliament to GERB, BSP and DPS but after each of them declined, Plevneliev appointed a caretaker government on 13 March 2013, with Marin Raykov, the Bulgarian ambassador in Paris as Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.[12]

In 2013, due to the prolonged protests against the involvement of oligarchy in politics and the government, Plevneliev organised the 'Dialogue with citizens' initiative, which involved three debates, focused on market economy, the judicial system and media freedom.[13]

Plevneliev advocates for closer relations between Bulgaria and the People's Republic of China.[14][15]

Plevneliev has frequently criticized the immigration policy in the UK set by the former Prime Minister, David Cameron.[16]

By appointing the Bliznashki Government on 6 August 2014, Plevneliev has become the first President of Bulgaria to appoint more than one caretaker government.

Controversies

In January 2014 the tax authorities launched an investigation on President Rosen Plevneliev and his relatives. This action was perceived as politically motivated assault by the Oresharski Government.[17] Other reformist members of the Boyko Borisov government were also subject to such investigations.

Honours

Foreign honours

References

  1. ↑ "Biography of Rosen Plevneliev (Bulgarian)". Novinite.com (Sofia News Agency). Retrieved 2011-12-02.
  2. ↑ "Plevneliev Sworn In as President of Bulgaria". novinite.com. Retrieved 2012-01-19.
  3. ↑ Anton Todorov (11 November 2012). "Rosen Plevnelien in the Upper Class of the Kingdom of Communism" (in Bulgarian).
  4. ↑ Lilov 2013, p. 189.
  5. ↑ "Росен Плевналиев в "Нека говорят" с Росен Петров, bTV, 6.11.2011 г." (in Bulgarian). bTV. Archived from the original on 9 October 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  6. ↑ Lilov 2013, p. 190.
  7. ↑ Todorov, Anton (15 September 2014). "The Ironhead Communists Bliznashki and Plevneliev in 1987" (in Bulgarian). Frognews Agency.
  8. ↑ "Rosen Plevneliev (Bulgarian)". 24 Chasa newspaper. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
  9. ↑ "Presidential Biography". President of Bulgaria. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
  10. ↑ Reuters. "Bulgaria's GERB puts up popular minister for president". trust.org. Thomson Reuters Foundation. Retrieved 9 August 2014.
  11. ↑ Bulgaria: Plevneliev is Bulgaria's New President, noinvite.com, 30. October 2011
  12. ↑ "Президентът назначи служебното правителство и насрочи изборите" (in Bulgarian). dir.bg. 13 March 2013. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
  13. ↑ Lyubenova, Maria (2013). "Предизвикателствата пред новите ПР и медийни комуникации в перспективата на европейските реалности (p. 272)" (PDF) (in Bulgarian). Проблеми на постмодерността/Postmodernism problems, Volume 3, Number 3. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
  14. ↑ "Bulgarian President-elect courts China". Novinite. 23 November 2011. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
  15. ↑ "China, Bulgaria pledge to deepen cooperation". Xinhua News Agency. 12 September 2012. Archived from the original on 8 December 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
  16. ↑ Politicians are judged by what they do and not by what they say
  17. ↑ The President Doubts the Impartiality of Tax Inspections
  18. ↑ http://www.president.bg/news3244/rosen-plevneliev-the-southeast-european-countries-should-pool-efforts-to-defend-the-european-values.html
  19. ↑ Ministério das Relações Exteriores - Decreto de 1º de Fevereiro de 2016. Published by Imprensa Nacional in Section 1 of Diário Oficial da União of February 2, 2016. ISSN 1677-7042.
  20. ↑ http://www.dnevnik.bg/bulgaria/2016/06/22/2781050_plevneliev_i_germanskiiat_mu_kolega_ioahim_gauk_shte/
  21. ↑ http://www.president.bg/news3368/prezidentat-rosen-plevneliev-beshe-udostoen-s-nay-visokoto-darzhavno-otlichie-na-italianskata-republika.html
  22. ↑ https://www.president.bg/news3457/head-of-state-rosen-plevneliev-received-the-companion-of-honour-of-maltas-national-order-of-merit.html
Bibliography

Lilov, Grigor (2013). Най-богатите българи (1st ed.). Sofia: "Кайлас" ЕООД. ISBN 978-954-92098-9-1.
Political offices
Preceded by
Asen Gagauzov		 Minister of Regional Development and Public Works
2009–2011		 Succeeded by
Lilyana Pavlova
Preceded by
Georgi Parvanov		 President of Bulgaria
2012–2017		 Succeeded by
Rumen Radev
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