DOCSLIB.ORG

HUMAN RIGHTS in BULGARIA in 2013 the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee Is an Independent Non-Governmental Organisation for the Protection of Human Rights

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
HUMAN RIGHTS in BULGARIA in 2013 the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee Is an Independent Non-Governmental Organisation for the Protection of Human Rights HUMAN RIGHTS IN BULGARIA IN 2013 The Bulgarian Helsinki Committee is an independent non-governmental organisation for the protection of human rights. It was established on 14 July 1992. Chair: Krassimir Kanev Deputy chair: Desislava Simeonova Members of the General Assembly: Antoaneta Nenkova, Daniela Furtunova, Desislava Simeonova, Dimitrina Petrova, Georgi Bankov, Georgi Toshev, Iliana Savova, Ivan Bedrov, Kalina Bozeva, Kiril Ivanov, Krassimir Kanev, Margarita Ilieva, Ramadan Kehajov, Vassil Chaprazov, Valko Stanev, Yana Buhrer Tavanier. Contents Political developments in Bulgaria during 2013 5 Right to life, protection from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment 7 Right to liberty and security of person 12 Independence of the judiciary and fair trial 16 Right to respect for private and family life, home and the correspondence 21 Freedom of conscience and religion 23 Freedom of expression and access to information 26 Conditions in places of detention 33 Protection against discrimination 42 Right to asylum, freedom of movement 53 Women’s rights 60 Rights of the child 64 LGBTI rights 69 List of abbreviations AEJ Association of European Journalists – Bulgaria AIP Access to Information Programme BHC Bulgarian Helsinki Committee BNT Bulgarian National Television BSP Bulgarian Socialist Party CBS Correctional boarding schools CEM Council for Electronic Media CPA Child Protection Act ECHR European Convention on Human Rights ECtHR European Court of Human Rights ESDRA Enforcement of Sentences and Detention under Remand Act FRA EU Fundamental Rights Agency FTAC Family-type accommodation centres GDBOP Directorate General on Combating Organised Crime GERB Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria HCDPC Homes for children deprived of parental care HCMD Homes for children with mental disabilities HMSCC Homes for medical and social care for children ITAMJ Institutions for temporary accommodation of minors and juveniles LSMDA Liability of the State and the Municipalities for Damages Act MOEW Ministry of Environment and Water MoI Ministry of Interior MRF Movement for Rights and Freedoms SAC Supreme Administrative Court SANS State Agency for National Security SBS Social educational boarding schools SCC Supreme Court of Cassation SDIA Sofia Directorate of Internal Affairs SJC Supreme Judicial Council SRAC Sofia Region Administrative Court SSM Special surveillance means UJB Union of Judges in Bulgaria Political developments in Bulgaria during 2013 In 2013, Bulgaria was governed by three consecutive governments. The gov- ernment of the Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) was in power until the end of February. On 20 February 2013, following sever- al days of street protests in several Bulgarian cities, targeted bmitted the resig- nation of his government. On 13 March 2013, President Rosen Plevneliev ap- pointed a caretaker government headed by prime minister Marin Raykov. The main purpose of this cabinet was to organise early parliamentary elections. The elections were held on 12 May 2012. They were marked by severe confrontation between the main political parties, discrediting war, vote-buying suspicions and use On 14 June 2013 the of unethical propaganda practices. The discovery that the former government had ar- bitrarily tapped the phones of its political opponents and the suspicions that election government results were falsified tainted the situation even more. Media coverage of the election nominated campaign, especially by the private media, was not balanced. This holds true espe- MRF Member cially for the Alpha and SKAT television channels, owned by the two largest neo-to- talitarian nationalist parties, Ataka and the National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria of Parliament (NFSB). The major ethnic minorities, the Turks and the Roma, had difficulties in under- Delyan Peevski – a standing the election messages as the Electoral Code prohibits electoral campaigns businessman and to be held in a language other than Bulgarian. During the election campaign, the lead- media tycoon who er of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) was fined for publicly addressing voters in Turkish. The elections were monitored by a mission of the OSCE Office for is widely thought to Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. The monitoring report that was published have amassed his on 25 July 2013 contained many recommendations. The most important ones con- fortune through the cerned the need for adopting measures against vote-buying, ensuring the timely ap- plication of electoral laws, providing greater opportunities for appeal of all election-re- political protection lated decisions, allowing election campaigning in minority languages, guaranteeing a of several previous balanced media coverage of the elections as well as transparent media ownership.1 governments – for Most of the votes went to GERB. Another three political parties also won parliamen- SANS chairman. tary seats: the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), the Movement for Rights and Free- doms and Ataka. In the first weeks after the new parliament was constituted, GERB MPs refused to enter the National Assembly. BSP and DPS formed a government headed by BSP-nominated Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski. However, they were one vote short of parliamentary majority and quorum. The lacking vote was provided by Ataka, making the government dependent on this party. Ataka is an extreme na- tionalist party, which opposes basic political democracy and human rights principles. It consistently instigates hatred, discrimination and violence against the ethnic and the religious minorities, as well as against asylum seekers in Bulgaria. Having the new government rely on the support of this party made the country dangerously dependent on its neo-totalitarian ideology and hindered the adoption of any positive measures in the area of minority rights. In reality, no such measures were adopt- ed by the end of the year and the situation in many fields degraded substantially, even more so with regard to the policy on asylum seekers and refugees in Bulgaria. One of the new government’s first acts was to amend the legislation on combating organised crime. The State Agency for National Security (SANS), a service acting as secret police, burdened by the heritage of the communist secret services and largely excluded from the democratic oversight mechanisms, was given addition- al investigative and detention powers. On 14 June 2013 the government nominat- ed MRF Member of Parliament Delyan Peevski – a businessman and media tycoon who is widely thought to have amassed his fortune through the political protec- 1 OSCE/ODIHR, Republic of Bulgaria: Early Parliamentary Elections, 12 May 2013, Warsaw, 25 July 2013, pp. 27-31. 5 tion of several previous governments One of the areas, where the situation de- – for SANS chairman. His nomination teriorated, was the failure to implement spurred massive spontaneous protests the decisions of the European Court of in Sofia and several other Bulgarian Human Rights (ECtHR, the Court). Al- cities. Many considered it a clear sign though the judgements on applications that the new government wants to use against Bulgaria over the year were not One of the areas, shady means for political retribution. that many (a total of 26, of which 5 by where the situation The protests resulted in Peevski filing a committee), by mid-February 2014 his resignation. The resignation was ac- the number of judgements monitored deteriorated, was the cepted by parliament. Nevertheless, the by the Committee of Ministers of the failure to implement protests continued for several months, Council of Europe as not implemented the decisions of the although gradually losing momentum. by the Bulgarian government reached European Court of a record high of 372. Some of these Systematic and severe violations of hu- were delivered as far back as 2002. Human Rights. man rights in Bulgaria occurred under all governments during the year. The most A joint delegation of the Council of severe and widespread ones were relat- Europe’s Advisory Committee on the ed to the treatment of the newly arrived Framework Convention for the Pro- asylum seekers, most of whom were run- tection of National Minorities and the ning away from the conflict in Syria, be- European Commission against Racism tween September and December 2013. and Intolerance visited Bulgaria in No- Most areas showed stagnation, while in vember. By the end of the year, none some there were certain improvements. of these two bodies had published its observations and recommendations. 6 Right to life, protection from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment Despite the fact that the legislative framework on the use of force and firearms in the Ministry of Interior Act was improved in 2012,2 this had no tangible effect on the frequency of the use of excessive force and firearms in 2013. In 2013, BHC received many reliable complaints by citizens who had been mistreated by police officers and by officers in places of deprivation of liberty. In at least three cases in 2013, people lost their lives in circumstances that give rise to justifiable doubts that excessive force and firearms were used by the law enforcement bodies: • On 23 March, a police officer shot and killed Nikolay Petrov, a Roma, in the vicinity of the railroad tracks at the village of Banya, Razlog municipality. On 31 January 2014 Despite the fact that the Blagoevgrad Regional Prosecutor’s Office notified BHC that pre-trial proceed- the legislative ings had been initiated on a count of premeditated
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Cooperation Between Police Forces and LGBT Organisations in Europe
    Richard Polaček Joël Le Déroff Joining forces to combat homophobic and transphobic hate crime Cooperation between police forces and LGBT organisations in Europe Joining forces to combat homophobic and transphobic hate crime Cooperation between police forces and LGBT organisations in Europe Written by Richard Polacek Joël Le Déroff August 2010 Written by Richard Polacek and Joel: Le Déroff The European Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans & Intersex Association (ILGA) rue Belliard straat 12 Brussels B-1040 Belgium Telephone: + 32 2 609 54 10 Fax: + 32 2 609 54 19 [email protected] www.ilga-europe.org Layout: Silja Pogule, www.siljadesign.lv Printer: Corelio Printing, www.corelioprinting.be ISBN 978-92-95066-04-5 This Guidelines is supported by the Directorate-General for Employment, social affairs and equal opportunities of the European Commission. Its funding is provided for under the European Community Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity PROGRESS (2007-2013). For more information see: http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/progress/index_en.html The information contained in this publication does not necessarily reflect the position or opinion of the European Commission. The research was financially supported by the Dutch Government within the frame of a project Working with the police and challenging hate crimes in Europe 2008-2011. THIS DOCUMENT IS ALSO AVAILABLE IN LARGE PRINT ON OUR WEBSITE: WWW.ILGA-EUROPE.ORG Joining forces to combat homophobic and transphobic hate crime Welcome In the past years, we have witnessed some positive developments of the legal environment to combat discrimination based on sexual orientation in the European Union Member States, although a lot still remains to be done.
    [Show full text]
  • Bulgaria's Perpetual Stagnation Due to Its Negative National Narrative
    Claremont Colleges Scholarship @ Claremont CMC Senior Theses CMC Student Scholarship 2021 Maledictum Bulgaricus: Bulgaria’s Perpetual Stagnation Due to its Negative National Narrative and Political Nostalgia Yoana Sidzhimova Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Sidzhimova, Yoana, "Maledictum Bulgaricus: Bulgaria’s Perpetual Stagnation Due to its Negative National Narrative and Political Nostalgia" (2021). CMC Senior Theses. 2645. https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/2645 This Open Access Senior Thesis is brought to you by Scholarship@Claremont. It has been accepted for inclusion in this collection by an authorized administrator. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Claremont McKenna College Maledictum Bulgaricus: Bulgaria’s Perpetual Stagnation Due to its Negative National Narrative and Political Nostalgia submitted to Professor Zachary Courser by Yoana Nikolaeva Sidzhimova for Senior Thesis Full Year Thesis 2020 – 2021 May 3, 2021 1 Acknowledgements First, I would like to thank Professor Courser for his guidance throughout my entire journey at CMC. From sitting in his office for our first ever advisor meeting freshman year, having the pleasure to learn and work alongside him in CMC’s Policy Lab, and, finally, completing my thesis with his guidance, my experience at CMC would not have been the same without him there. Thank you for always pushing me and helping me understand the value in a ‘Big Think,’ having my best interests as a both a student and individual at heart, and, most importantly, reminding me the value in slowing down and taking a breather. I have learned so much from you in the past four years.
    [Show full text]
  • The Magnitsky Law and the Rico
    SSRG International Journal of Economics and Management Studies Volume 8 Issue 7, 6-20, July, 2021 ISSN: 2393 – 9125 /doi:10.14445/23939125/IJEMS-V8I7P102 © 2021 Seventh Sense Research Group® The Magnitsky Law and The Rico Law - The Guarantee For The Fight Against Corruption And The Mafia In Bulgaria And The European Union - The Example of The Attempts To Steal Private Land Through Concession, Theft of Land And Theft of Land Through State Structures Lord Prof. PhD PhD Momtchil Dobrev-Halachev Scientific Research Institute Dobrev & Halachev.JSC., Sofia.Bulgaria Received Date: 17 May 2021 Revised Date: 22 June 2021 Accepted Date: 05 July 2021 Abstract - Lord prof PhD PhD Momtchil Dobrev- The fight against the mafia and corruption in Bulgaria Halachev and Prof. Mariola Garibova-DObreva and in the European Commission and the European Union developed 2006 “Theory of degree of democracy” and does not yield results because the mafia is at the highest “Theory of degree of justice / injustice /” based on their state and European level and does what it wants. This practice in court, prosecutor's office, state. Prof. Momchil mafia holds courts, prosecutors and all kinds of state Dobrev has been creating Theory of Corruption, "Theory institutions and the latter carry out its orders. of the Mafia," Theory of Mafia "," Financial Banking Resource Technological Mafia Materialism "since 2003" 1.1 Introduce the Problem The problem with the mafia and corruption in Bulgaria Keywords - Crise, mafia, corruption, Magnitsky law, and in the European Union and the European Commission RICO law, finance. is huge. We have repeatedly applied evidence of the scale .
    [Show full text]
  • Human Rights Information Bulletin – No
    Human rights information bulletin – Recent titles No. 85, November 2011- April 2012 ISSN 1608-9618 – H/Inf (2012) 2 (2012) Human rights Human rights of Roma and Travellers in Europe ISBN 978-92-871-7200-6, €15/US$30 of Roma Human Rights writings In many European countries, the Roma and Traveller populations are still denied basic human rights and suffer blatant racism. They remain far behind others in and terms of educational achievement, employment, housing and health standards, and they have virtually no political representation. Travellers In many European countries, the Roma and Traveller populations are still denied basic human rights and Anti-Gypsyism continues to be widespread and is compounded by a striking lack of knowledge among the general population about the history of repression of Roma in Europe. In times of economic crisis, the tendency to direct frustration against scapegoats increases – and Roma and Travellers appear to be easy targets. This report presents the first overview of the human rights situation of Roma and in Europe suffer blatant racism. This report aims to encourage a constructive discussion about policies towards Roma Travellers, covering all 47 member states of the Council of Europe. Its purpose is to encourage a constructive discussion about policies towards Roma and Travellers in Europe today, focusing on what must be done in order to put an end to the discrimination and marginalisation they suffer. and Travellers in Europe today, focusing on what must be done in order to put an end to the discrimination www.coe.int The Council of Europe has 47 member states, covering virtually the entire continent and marginalisation they suffer.
    [Show full text]
  • Bulgaria 2000
    Welcome to Bulgaria 2000 ISTANBUL, Turkey May, 1999 By Whitney Mason With his stylishly coifed hair and well-cut clothes, Giorgi Kuzmov, known as "George" to his many foreign friends, might not look like someone interested in international affairs. My old friend Frederic, working at the French Embassy in Sofia as the attachd audiovisuel, had introduced me to George because, as one of Bulgaria's top TV executives, he knew a lot of Bulgarians who spoke English and most of them happened to be beautiful young women. But one of the joys of the Balkans, for a reporter, is that here politics is not a subject of interest only to specialists but a universally fascinating aspect of the drama of everyday life. And so it was perfectly natural that night, as Giorgi and I drove through Sofia's pot-holed streets in his Dodge Voyager van, that he brought up the sub- ject of Kosovo, where NATO would begin air strikes a few weeks later. Wasn't it hypocritical of the U.S. to moralize about Kosovo, Giorgi asked rhetorically, while never raising any opposition to Turkey's oppression of the Kurds? Since then, I have heard that question repeated many times; I have never had a re- sponse to offer. A cool acid jazz tune by US3 was playing loudly when we walked into E1 Cabana. Giorgi introduced me to three beautiful friends and ordered gin and tonics all around before segueing seamlessly back to Kosovo. "What would Americans say if blacks in New Orleans (where he'd just spent ten days) de- clared that they wanted independence?" Giorgi asked.
    [Show full text]
  • Bulgaria 2018
    Monitoring the Right to Free Assembly Pavleta Alexieva Aylin Yumerova Margarita Kaloyanova Radina Banova Nadya Shabani 2017 Bulgaria 2018 #right2freeassembly A TIME TO PROTEST: THE RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF PEACEFUL ASSEMBLY IN BULGARIA Research report on citizens’ right to freedom of peaceful assembly Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law, 2017 - 2018 “... a group of shrill women who wanted to capitalize on Authors: Pavleta Alexieva, Aylin Yumerova, Margarita Kaloyanova, Radina Banova (Bulgarian Center their children, manipulating society, bringing these – presumably for Not-for-Profit Law) sick – children out in the scorching sun and in the rain, without a Editor: Nadya Shabani (Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law) hint of a motherly feeling of care for them...”, Published in May 2019 spoken by Valeri Simeonov, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic and Demographic Policy in the Third Government of Boyko This publication has been developed within the framework of the “Support to Civil Society Organizations Borissov, on occasion of the protest of mothers of children with Continued and Expanded” Project implemented by the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law and disabilities in 2018. financed by America for Bulgaria Foundation. The content and views expressed in this publication belong to the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of America for Bulgaria Foundation. The monitoring report was conducted as part of the ‘Monitoring the Right to Free Assembly’ regional The Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law (BCNL) is a foundation registered under project, managed by the European Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ECNL) The project is made possible the Bulgarian law in 2001 as a non-profit public-benefit legal entity.
    [Show full text]
  • Zornitsa Markova the KTB STATE
    Zornitsa Markova THE KTB STATE Sofia, 2017 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or express written consent from Iztok-Zapad Publishing House. transmitted in any form or by any means without first obtaining © Zornitsa Markova, 2017 © Iztok-Zapad Publishing House, 2017 ISBN 978-619-01-0094-2 zornitsa markova THE KTB STATE CHRONICLE OF THE LARGEST BANK FAILURE IN BULGARIA — THE WORKINGS OF A CAPTURED STATE THAT SOLD OUT THE PUBLIC INTEREST FOR PRIVATE EXPEDIENCY CONTENTS LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS / 12 EDITOR’S FOREWORD / 13 SUMMARY / 15 READER’S GUIDE TO THE INVESTIGATION / 21 1. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND / 23 DEVELOPMENTS IN THE BULGARIAN BANKING SECTOR THAT PRE-DATE KTB ..........................................................25 Headed for a Banking Crisis .................................................................................................. 26 Scores of Banks Close Their Doors................................................................................... 29 First Private Bank — Backed by the Powerful, Favoured by the Government ......................................................... 33 Criminal Syndicates and Their Banks — the Birth of a State within the State ...........................................................................35 A Post-Crisis Change of Players ..........................................................................................37 A FRESH START FOR THE FLEDGLING KTB ..................................................... 40 KTB SALE ..........................................................................................................................................42
    [Show full text]
  • Far from Stability: the Post-Election Landscape in Bulgaria Dariusz Kałan
    No. 50 (503), 15 May 2013 © PISM Editors: Marcin Zaborowski (Editor-in-Chief) . Katarzyna Staniewska (Managing Editor) Jarosław Ćwiek-Karpowicz . Artur Gradziuk . Piotr Kościński Roderick Parkes . Marcin Terlikowski . Beata Wojna Far from Stability: The Post-Election Landscape in Bulgaria Dariusz Kałan Early parliamentary elections not only will not help restore political stability in Bulgaria but also could further deepen the chaos because of the high dispersion of votes and the expected difficulties with creating a coalition. For a country immersed in crisis, maintaining the post-election stalemate is particularly not beneficial because of the deteriorating economic situation and growing public pressure. Regardless of which party will return to power, one should not expect a significant improvement in Bulgaria’s image in the EU or a positive settlement of the most important issues, including the country’s rapid accession to the Schengen area. Although the winner of the early parliamentary elections of 12 May was the centre-right Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB, 30% of votes), for all four parties that exceeded the 4% electoral threshold, the results can be seen as satisfactory. GERB, the ruling party in 2009–2013, won for the second time in a row during unfavourable economic and social situations. The similar support for the Bulgarian Socialist Party (27%), which received more than 600,000 additional votes than in 2009, is because of the mobilisation of its permanent electorate and generational changes in the party. Also, for the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (11%), which represents the Turkish minority, and the nationalist Attack party (7%), the results are a confirmation of their stable positions on the political scene.
    [Show full text]
  • Issue 12, Express Special Edition – the Government Resigns February 2013
    Issue 12, Express Special Edition – The Government Resigns February 2013 20 Feb 2013, 11:00 a.m. EXPAT CURRENCY BOARD WATCH EDITORIAL COMMENT 0º This is an ‘express special issue’ of Expat Compass Average We were just preparing a ‘normal’ regular issue when the political landscape in Bulgaria changed significantly within a few days -45º Bad II.13 Good +45º The mass protests were initially directed at the high I.13 electricity bills in December, but are now turning into general protests against the government The finance minister Dyankov was forced to resign -90 º Dangerous Excellent +90º on Monday, which was followed by the fall of the OUTLOOK: NEGATIVE whole cabinet It is too early to say what government will follow and We are not worried about the currency board and when see no immediate danger of devaluation. However, due to the latest political events, we are increasingly In January, the financial outlook was positive worried about the lack of government and hence Before the latest events, we were planning to about the budget in a difficult election year. improve the reading of the Compass from +5˚ to +15˚, as well as improve the Outlook from Stable to Positive. The main reasons were: The 2012 budget was better-than-expected, with BREAKING NEWS a deficit of BGN350.2m, -0.45% of GDP. This is the 3rd lowest deficit in the EU (see p. 7) The old Eurobonds were repaid successfully in Today, 20 Feb 2013, Boyko Borisov’s government has January, as expected resigned The new Eurobonds were trading at a yield as Technically, despite Simenon Dyankov’s resignation low as 1.75% – in line with the rally in global from Monday, he will continue being Finance Minister bond markets.
    [Show full text]
  • TABLE of CONTENTS Part I Theory and Sexuality Part II Sexual Politics in the East
    TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements Introduction 3 Melinda Chateauvert Part I Theory and Sexuality Is Sexuality the End of Utopia? 8 Francis Ronsin (France) The Absent Foucault: Bulgarian (Mis)uses 13 Stanimir Panayotov (Bulgaria) Mêmeté and the Critique of Sexual Difference: On Monique Wittig=s Deconstruction of the Symbolic Order and the Site of the Neuter 23 J. Edgar Bauer (Germany) Part II Sexual Politics in the East Constructing a Narrative: The History of Homosexuality in Poland 32 John Stanley (Canada) Invading Law and Public Space? The Situation of LGBT Persons in Poland 51 Patrycja Pogodzinska (Poland) The ASexual Revolution@ in Bulgarian Socialism 59 Karin Taylor (Austria) The LGBT Movement in Bulgaria 75 Monika Pisankaneva (Bulgaria) Melting the Iron Curtain: the Beginnings of the LGBT Movement in Slovenia 83 Bogdan Lešnik (Slovenia) New Social Movements in Turkey: Kaos GL as a Sexual Identity Organization 94 Mustafa Kemal Coskun and Tuba Ozkan (Turkey) Feminism and its Impact on a Couple=s Life 105 Maria Nicoleta Turliuc (Romania) 1 Part III Sexual Politics in the West The Connection Between the Squatter, Queer and Alterglobalization Movement: The Many Diversities of Multiculturalism 117 Saskia Poldervaart (The Netherlands) The Demise of Gay and Lesbian Radicalism in the Netherlands 117 Gert Hekma (The Netherlands) Antiracist Queer Politics: a Gramscian Approach 142 Nancy Wagenknecht (Germany) Walking the Streets: The U.S. Prostitution Rights Movement from An International Perspective 153 Antonia Levy (Germany) Respectability, Sexuality and Citizenship: Comparing the U.S. Civil Rights and Gay Rights Movements 164 Melinda Chateauvert (United States) 2 INTRODUCTION Melinda Chateauvert1* The essays in this anthology have been written by scholars from across Europe and North America for the sixth meeting of the Socialism and Sexuality network in October 2004.
    [Show full text]
  • On Fundamental Rights
    Fingerprint - State of art Report - 2013 STATE OF ART REPORT on Fundamental Rights A youth perspective on the practical application of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights in Bulgaria, Estonia, Italy and Portugal. Edited in 2013 - European year of Citizens 1 European Charter on Fundamental Rights - PORTUGAL index 04 ::: General Introduction 06 ::: Portugal 24 ::: Estonia 38 ::: Italy 58 ::: Bulgaria 2 Fingerprint - State of art Report - 2013 3 European Charter on Fundamental Rights - PORTUGAL General Introduction In 4 countries... 4 organizations are committed to the identification of several obstacles that citizens find in their daily life considering their fundamental rights as Europeans. 4 Fingerprint - State of art Report - 2013 The present document is a State of Art Report on the practical application of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights specifically in these 4 countries: Bulgaria, Estonia, Italy and Portugal. Organized in 3 chapters, we will focus first on an overall review of the European Charter considering the national laws of each country, secondly we will introduce 40 real life cases of citizens from these countries that have recently found some obstacles to the fulfilment of their rights as European citizens. Finally, you can find some references that will link you to national and European institutions, projects, departments that can help us all work together and contribute to defending our fundamental rights. According to the Eurobarometer spring 2012 survey. On European Citizenship, the attachment of citizens to the European Union suffered a significant deterioration since the spring 2010 survey, Europeans who are attached to the European Union are now in the minority, more specifically we have:BULGARIA (53%); ITALY (45%); ESTONIA (43%) and PORTUGAL (42%).
    [Show full text]
  • Modernity and Tradition: European and National in Bulgaria
    MODERNITY AND TRADITION: EUROPEAN AND NATIONAL IN BULGARIA Marko Hajdinjak, Maya Kosseva, Antonina Zhelyazkova IMIR MODERNITY AND TRADITION: EUROPEAN AND NATIONAL IN BULGARIA Marko Hajdinjak, Maya Kosseva, Antonina Zhelyazkova Project IME: Identities and Modernities in Europe: European and National Identity Construction Programmes, Politics, Culture, History and Religion International Center for Minority Studies and Intercultural Relations Sofia, 2012 This book is an outcome of the international research project IME – Identities and Modernities in Europe: European and National Identity Construction Programmes, Politics, Culture, History and Religion (2009-2012). IME was coordinated by Dr. Atsuko Ichijo from the Kingston University, UK. It involved Universities and research institutes from Bulgaria, Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. The project was funded by the Seventh Framework Program of the European Commission (FP7 2007-2013) Theme: SSH-2007-5.2.1 – Histories and Identities: articulating national and European identities Funding scheme: Collaborative projects (small or medium scale focused research projects) Grant agreement no.: 215949 For more information about project IME, visit: http://fass.kingston.ac.uk/research/helen-bamber/ime © Marko Hajdinjak, author, 2012 © Maya Kosseva, author, 2012 © Antonina Zhelyazkova, author, 2012 © International Center for Minority Studies and Intercultural Relations, 2012 ISBN: 978-954-8872-70-6 CONTENTS Introduction, Marko Hajdinjak .......................7 Catching Up with the Uncatchable: European Dilemmas and Identity Construction on Bulgarian Path to Modernity, Maya Kosseva, Antonina Zhelyazkova, Marko Hajdinjak ..........13 Identity Construction through Education, State Promotion and Diaspora Policies in Bulgaria, Antonina Zhelyazkova, Maya Kosseva, Marko Hajdinjak ..........65 Living Next Door to “Europe”: Bulgarian Education between Tradition and Modernity, and between the European and National, Maya Kosseva, Marko Hajdinjak ....................
    [Show full text]