The Implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities: Bulgaria

• policy The above provisions of the Penal Code have not been enforced since 1990. Very few criminal proceedings have been instigated since then for other crimes committed against people from ethnic and religious minorities where there is evidence of discriminatory motives. A number of offenses, including heavy crimes perpetrated by officials against members of ethnic and religious minorities were covered up by police and the prosecutors which created an atmosphere of impunity.

No administrative sanctions were imposed by the National Council for Radio and Television despite the fact that a number of radio and TV operators were instigating, some systematically, ethnic and religious hatred.

• factual In providing information under this heading, please also provide statistics of reported cases and the success-rate in prosecution of acts of discrimination, hostility or violence as a result of persons' ethnic, cultural, linguistic or religious identity.

Roma are often subject to physical violence by both law enforcement officials and mobs. The first well-documented pogrom after 1989 took place in June 1992 when the Roma neighborhood of Pazardzhik was raided by policemen in an action of revenge, many people, including women and sick people were beaten up, houses and property were seriously damaged. The actions of the police were not properly investigated and nobody was brought to justice. Since then raids by police in Roma neighborhoods have taken place as often as twice or three times a year and were basically covered up by police and prosecutors in the rare cases when they undertook investigations. This almost model case was recently reproduced on March 12 when the Pleven Military Prosecutor’s Office terminated the investigation into the recent case of July 1998 police raid in the Roma neighborhood in Mechka when more than 80 policemen entered the neighborhood and beat up people when looking for stolen property. The cited reasons were impossibility to identify the perpetrators. Similar raids by police in Roma neighborhoods have taken place during the recent years in Haskovo, Sofia, Septemvri, Krivodol and Filipovtsi. Roma neighborhoods have been targets of mob violence, which too was condoned by authorities. Racist mob raids in Roma neighborhoods took place during recent years in Pleven, Dupnitsa, Cherganovo, Dolno Belotintsi, Morozovo, and Hadzhi Dimitrovo.

Religious minorities too have become targets of both official and unofficial violence. Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, Moonies, Members of Hare Krishna and neo-Protestant evangelicals were beaten up by police and hate gangs, had their houses and places of worship raided and their peaceful gatherings disturbed. Since 1993 they were constantly and repeatedly facing hate speech in the media and by public officials. In 1997 even the Patriarch of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church branded them as “traitors of faith and nation”. Cases of police and mob brutality against religious minorities were registered in most places where they have a significant presence, including Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, Kiustendil, Russe, Blagoevgrad, Petrich, Assenovgrad, Veliko Turnovo and Rila. All these actions remained unchallenged by authorities.

Both mainstream electronic media and the press often instigate ethnic and religious hatred. Several nationalistic newspapers representing both the right and the left fringes of the political spectrum regularly publish hate speech. Throughout 1994-1996 the press continued to publish slander and to provoke the public towards actions against some religious minorities. Some of the grievous incidents of physical violence were perpetrated after and as a result of the publication of defamatory articles.

Article 7 The Parties shall ensure respect for the right of every person belonging to a national minority to freedom of peaceful assembly, freedom of association, freedom of expression, and freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

Under this Article please only provide information on the freedom of assembly and the freedom of association. Information on freedom of thought, conscience and religion may be provided under Article 8 and all information on freedom of expression may be provided under Article 9.

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