Bulgaria: 2,400 prisoners pardoned since 1990

Since the beginning of Bulgaria's democratic transition in 1990, approximately 2,400 individuals have received pardons. While the legal authority to grant pardons rests with the head of state, Bulgarian presidents have traditionally delegated this power to their vice presidents through official decrees.

A significant portion of these pardons occurred during the first decade of the transition. This period was characterized by institutional and legal vacuums, as well as overcrowded prisons, which necessitated extraordinary state measures to reduce the inmate population.

Historical records regarding the specific actions of the first vice president, General Atanas Semerdzhiev (who served from August 1990 to January 1992 under President Zhelyu Zhelev), remain incomplete. It is important to distinguish between individual presidential pardons and mass political or criminal amnesties passed by the Grand National Assembly, as the latter contributed significantly to the high number of releases during the early transition years.