A month ago, the European Commission published a critical annual report on the state and problems in Bulgaria's justice and home affairs. Once again it pointed a finger at the authorities in Sofia for not implementing urgent reforms and tolerating an ineffective and unreliable judicial system, for being a corrupt country and for that the rule of law is mere window-dressing and in reality the rules of the underground take an upper hand.

This time it is the turn of the Bulgarian economy to come under Brussels' fire. In the annual analysis of economic and social challenges in EU member countries drawn up by the Commission, there is not even a single good word for Bulgaria. On the contrary: all sorts of sins and shortcomings have been attributed to its economy and social sphere. It turns out that according to Brussels Bulgaria is a kind of a black hole in the Bloc, a hole where everything is non-transparent, sinister, miserable, depressing and threatening.

Let us quote some of the key words in the social-economic report: corruption, insufficient investments, delayed reform, high indebtedness of the private sector, weaknesses in public procurement, deflation. Against this dismal background, there is prominent logic in the unoptimistic predictions for worsening of social problems in healthcare and education and for a slowdown of economic growth. To sum up: there is nothing good for Bulgaria and Bulgarians in the foreseeable future.

It is an acknowledged fact that Bulgaria is the poorest and most backward country in the European Union in terms of social-economic development. However, it is also an indisputable truth that not everything is pitch dark about this country. Here it is relevant to recall the anecdote about the pessimist and the optimist and a glass of water. According to the former the glass is half-empty, according to the latter it is half-full. Both are right, but the question is in the point of view.

And where economy is concerned, things are not going that poorly, and there are facts to support this view. Bulgaria has posted one of the highest GDP growths across Europe, its foreign debt is not big, wages are low, but they grow fast - faster than in many parts of the continent. Unemployment unlike in many European countries, keeps up quite a decent level and continues to decrease. Bulgaria is an exceptionally beautiful and hospitable country and the hospitality industry has been booming in spite of international conflicts and tensions. Foreign investments have recovered to pre-crisis levels of 2008-2009, etc.

And something very important, especially in the light of a troublesome reality: Bulgaria both in social and political terms is a very quiet place where people live modestly, but without big threats to either their lives or property. 
 
It is true that to criticize a small, peripheral and not very influential country is much easier than to notice and praise small and gradual steps on its way ahead. But it is them after all that are ultimately important for the average citizens because the big truth is in the small details of their everyday lives.

English Daniela Konstantinova