Bulgarian anti-government protesters rallied peacefully in Sofia for the 41th straight day on Wednesday after more than 100 lawmakers, ministers and journalists spent the night besieged inside parliament before police evacuated them.
A political crisis that began over utility price rises and spread to accusations that private interests control state institutions has caused months of protests in the ex-communist Black Sea nation, which joined the European Union in 2007 but has struggled to live up to its governance standards.
The protesters, mostly young and well-educated, are demanding the resignation of the Socialist-led government, which has been in power only since late May, saying it represents a corrupt and discredited political elite, not the nation.
At least 4,000 people joined Wednesday evening's rally, chanting "Mafia!" and "Resign!". Many beat drums and blew whistles. They blamed the police for violent scuffles that broke out during the overnight siege of parliament.
"We do not agree with this government that is poised to rob the country and appoints people without any morals or reputation to high government posts," said 36-year-old Anna Yovkova. "I am tired. I want to go the seaside, but this is more important."
The bitterly divided parliament was closed for business on Wednesday, barricaded and under heavy police guard, but work at the chamber is expected to resume on Thursday in spite of growing pressure on the government to resign.
Lawmakers were escorted out of the building in police vans at around 3 a.m. on Wednesday, more than eight hours after they were trapped inside by protesters who tore up paving stones and piled up garbage bins as makeshift barricades.
Some 20 protesters were treated for head injuries, a hospital official said. Two police officers were also wounded.
Bulgaria's largest trade union, CITUB, called on President Rosen Plevneliev to convene the consultative National Security Council and set a date for early elections before year-end.
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