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MP in racism row

Budapest: A Bulgarian MP has been accused of racism and sexism after arguing that a Hungarian Roma politician was not young or beautiful enough to deserve an award from the European Parliament. Dimitar Stoyanov, an official Bulgarian observer at Parliament, said MEP Livia Jaroka (32) should not be named ``Best Parliamentarian 2006'' because he had ``seen some far more beautiful women''. ``In my country there are tens of thousands of Gypsy girls who are much more beautiful than this honourable one,'' Mr. Stoyanov wrote in an E-mail to colleagues. ``You can even buy yourself a loving wife aged 12 or 13 ... The best of them are very expensive — up to euro 5,000 each. Wow!" The comments prompted a hail of criticism from Roma activists, leading MEPs and Bulgaria's Prime Minister, Sergei Stanishev, who only last week celebrated news that his country would join the E.U. in January. —

© Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006

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