All those who take part in the work of an open restaurant against the measures bear personal criminal responsibility for non-compliance with the provisions for limiting the pandemic. This was announced by the Bulgarian Association of Restaurants and the Society of Restaurants in Bulgaria after legal consultations. They specify that the customers, as well as the working managers, waiters, all staff, even if they work on the orders of the manager or owner, are personally responsible.
„We are ready to bear the administrative fines imposed on our staff, but we cannot allow them to be prosecuted. Most of them have been with us for years, we have been suffering together since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis and now we have no moral right to ask them to be subject to the Penal Code.“, the two organizations commented.
The Bulgarian Association of Restaurants and the Society of Restaurants in Bulgaria note in their position that despite their conviction that the protest opening of the restaurants on February 1 is the right decision, they are forced to abandon it.
„The decision is supported by 87.4% of our members, who after a survey are of the opinion that in these circumstances there should be no risk of protesting the opening of establishments and putting our staff at risk. By this decision, we once again prove that the members of our organizations are responsible for the imposed measures and currently protect their rights only by law.„
The organizations remind that they have sent a letter to the Prime Minister, informing him that from the two options he has publicly provided for the opening of the establishments, they have chosen – February 1, 2021. They expect an official response and express readiness to negotiate the way to open the last closed sector in Bulgaria.
„We note that from February 1, restaurants outside hotels and nightclubs remain the only closed sector in the country as a measure to prevent the spread of COVID-19. There is no medical explanation for why this happens in the presence of less than 100 per 100,000 infected people for weeks. Why restaurants in hotels are safe and restaurants outside are not. Why aren’t the big queues in the shops and the big crowds on the ski slopes dangerous?”
The two organizations insist that the National Operational Headquarters and the Minister of Health take personal responsibility for the upcoming bankruptcies in the industry, as well as for the people who will lose their jobs, because according to them there are no medical arguments for the decisions taken.
Additional information provided by the Bulgarian Association of Restaurants and the Society of Restaurants:
The sanctions that you and your employees would be subjected to if you opened the establishments on February 1 as a sign of civil protest are:
- Administrative and criminal liability:
For individuals – a fine of BGN 300 to 1000, and in case of repetition the fine is from BGN 1000 to 2000.
For sole traders and legal entities – a property sanction of 500 BGN to 2000 BGN, with recurrence from 2000 to 5000 BGN.
- Criminal liability (the same is solely the case for individuals):
Imprisonment for up to five years and a fine of BGN 10 to 50,000.
