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Reference Book REFUGEES in BULGARIA Building the National System for Refugee Protection 1993-2003

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Reference Book REFUGEES in BULGARIA Building the National System for Refugee Protection 1993-2003 State Agency for Refugees The UN Refugee Agency European Union Reference Book REFUGEES IN BULGARIA Building the National System for Refugee Protection 1993-2003 June 2004 Sofia Bulgarian Red Cross Bulgarian Helsinki Committee Caritas – Bulgaria REFUGEES IN BULGARIA: Building of the National System for Refugee Protection, 1993-2003 Technical Data Co-Editors: DRUKE, Luise and ANTONOV, Boyko; 1. Advisory Board of Heads of NGO Refugee Services: VALCHANOVA, Tatanya SAVOVA, Iliana PATASHEV, Emanouil AWANIS, Linda 2. Leading Academic Experts in the Framework of ARSIB: Prof. GEORGIEVA, Bogdana Assoc. Prof. KOLEV, Georgi Assoc. Prof. KRASTEVA, Anna Assoc. Prof. TZANKOV, Vesselin Assoc. Prof. VIDIN, Blagoy 3. Research, Coordination and Review Group: SABEVA, Kina; SOPF, Davor; KARAYANEVA Petya; KROUMOV, Volen Financial and Printing Matters: GANCHEVA, Irina Secretariat: KIRILOVA, Raina Electronic Processing: PEEV, Emil 4. Editorial Support Group: UNHCR Techn. Coordination: VIKTOROVA, Emilia (B); KIRILOVA, Dessislava (E) SAR: GENCHEVA, Svoboda (B); CHESHIRKOV, Boris (E) BRC/CWR: ONGIRO, Aloyo Alex BHC: STOYANOVA, Mariana CARITAS/ACET: GEORGIEVA, Tzveta 5. Final Editing and Proofreading: STOYANOVA, Daniela (English version) DIMITROVA, Milena (Bulgarian version) ISBN number: 954-90785-3-1 (English version); 954-90785-2-3 (Bulgarian version) Published by the UNHCR Representation in Bulgaria in cooperation with the State Agency for Re- fugees with the Council of Ministers (http://www.unhcr.bg/pubs/10_yr_report/10_yr_report.htm and www.aref-bg.org). Printing House “Obrazovanie i Nauka” Ltd. This Joint Report is prepared to document the first ten years of the implementation of the 1951 Geneva Convention and is launched on the occasion of the World Refugee Day 2004 and in the context of the 8th UNHCR Round Table on Bulgaria's EU Integration, European Asylum Harmonisation and Interna- tional Refugee Protection in the National Assembly in Sofia. Number of copies printed: 2000 in Bulgarian and 2000 in English @ UNHCR Representation in Bulgaria, Sofia, 2004 Reference Book of the UNHCR Representation in Bulgaria and the State Agency for Refugees, in consultation with the MFA and the EC Delegation in Bulgaria, and in co-operation with the Bulgarian Red Cross, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee and Caritas Bulgaria, Sofia June 2004 REFUGEES IN BULGARIA: Building of the National System for Refugee Protection, 1993-2003 ABSTRACT This Joint Report is a publication of the UNHCR Representation in Bulga- ria, the State Agency for Refugees with the Council of Ministers, in cooperation with the Delegation of the European Commission in Bulgaria, and the refugee- assisting NGO partners in Bulgaria. Its objective is to review and document the past ten years of progress in building the national system for refugee protection since the ratification of the 1951 Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Proto- col in 1993, and to look together ahead toward further harmonisation with the in- ternational standards and the evolving EU asylum acquis in the “post-Amsterdam 2004-2006” phase of Bulgaria's EU accession. OUTLINE Contributions of: President of the Republic of Bulgaria UN Secretary-General UN High Commissioner for Refugees Prime Minister of Bulgaria Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria Minister with Responsibility for Refugees Head of the Delegation of the European Commission in Bulgaria Director of Bureau for Europe, UNHCR Geneva Chapters 1. Introduction by UNHCR and the State Agency for Refugees with the Council of Ministers 2. Main political, economic and social developments in Bulgaria, 1993-2003, reviewed by MFA 3. Chapters by the UNHCR Representation in Bulgaria and the State Agency for Refugees (SAR) 4. Chapters by the Bulgarian Red Cross/Council of Refugee Women, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, Caritas BG 5. Summary and Strategic Outlook 6. Selected Bibliography 7. Annexes (Milestones, Statistics, Budget Table, Judicial Decisions, Academic Initiatives, Map, Contacts) Reference Book of the UNHCR Representation in Bulgaria and the State Agency for Refugees, in consultation with the MFA and the EC Delegation in Bulgaria, and in co-operation with the Bulgarian Red Cross, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee and Caritas Bulgaria, Sofia June 2004 REFUGEES IN BULGARIA: Building of the National System for Refugee Protection, 1993-2003 Table of Contents Dedication . .i Quotes of the President of the Republic of Bulgaria, the UN Secretary-General and the UN High Commissioner . .ii Message Prime Minister of Bulgaria . iii Forewords Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria . .iv Minister with responsibility for refugees . v Head of the Delegation of the European Commission in Bulgaria . .vi Preface Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe, UNHCR Headquarters, Geneva . vii Co-editors and Acknowledgments . .viii Photos . .xvii 1. Introduction, UNHCR Representative and State Agency for Refugees President (co-editors) . .1 2. Main Political, Economic and Social Developments in the Republic of Bulgaria . .5 3. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees . .11 3.1. Mandate, Goals and Priorities for Central Europe and Bulgaria . .11 3.2. Protection and Durable Solutions for Refugees . .19 3.3. Programme and Operations . .40 3.4. External Affairs . .48 3.5. Administration and Human Resources . .54 4. State Agency for Refugees . .55 4.1. Legal Foundation and Building of the Government Institution . .55 4.2. EU Accession Negotiations & SAR's Collaboration with the Delegation of the European Commission . .58 4.3. SAR's External Relations: Cooperation with UNHCR, IOM and NGOs . .61 4.4. SAR's Participation in International Forums . .69 4.5. SAR's Cooperation with Counterpart Agencies Abroad . .70 4.6. Media Policy .. .71 4.7. Conclusion . .71 5. Bulgarian Red Cross, including Council of Refugee Women in Bulgaria (CRWB) .72 5.1. Mission and Goals . .72 5.2. Chronicle of a Decade . .72 5.3. Number and Origin of Persons Assisted by BRC . .76 5.4. Types of BRC Assistance Rendered on behalf of UNHCR . .76 5.5. Projects and Financing . .77 5.6. Cooperation with the Council of Refugee Women in Bulgaria . .77 Reference Book of the UNHCR Representation in Bulgaria and the State Agency for Refugees, in consultation with the MFA and the EC Delegation in Bulgaria, and in co-operation with the Bulgarian Red Cross, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee and Caritas Bulgaria, Sofia June 2004 REFUGEES IN BULGARIA: Building of the National System for Refugee Protection, 1993-2003 6. Bulgarian Helsinki Committee . .80 6.1. Establishment of the Refugee and Migrant Protection Program in 1994 with support of UNHCR . .80 6.2. Programme and Operations . .80 6.3. Working with the Courts . .81 6.4. Monitoring of Border and Detention Places . .82 6.5. External Relations and Public Information . .83 7. Caritas Bulgaria, including Assistance Centre for Torture Survivors (ACET) . .84 7.1. Caritas Bulgaria – who we are . .84 7.2. Caritas Bulgaria – Partnerships, 1996-2001 and 2001-2003 . .84 7.3. Caritas Bulgaria – Opportunities, Perspectives and Expectations . .86 7.4. Cooperation with Assistance Centre for Torture Survivors . .86 8. Summary and Strategic Perspective . .88 8.1. Summary . .88 8.2. Strategic Perspective . .93 9. Selected Bibliography . .97 9.1. International Legal Instruments http://www.unhcr.bg/bglaw/index_international.htm . .97 9.2. EU Legal Instruments and Documents Related to Asylum http://www.unhcr.bg/euro_docs/index_eu.htm .. .98 9.3. National Legislation http://www.unhcr.bg/bglaw/index_national.htm …. .100 9.4. Annotated Bibliography research/translation supported and/or financed by UNHCR in Bulgaria http://www.unhcr.bg/arsib/publ_en.pdf.. .100 9.5. Reference on general refugee matters www.unhcr.ch . .104 9.6. New Issues in Refugee Research http://www.unhcr.ch/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/research. .110 9.7. Selected Specialised Journals and Publications of Research . .121 10. Annexes . .123 10.1. Key Milestones of Developing the National System for Refugee Protection in Bulgaria (1992-2003). .123 10.2. Statistics (Asylum Applications Worldwide; Asylum Applications submitted in Europe; Asylum Applications in Central Europe; Trends, Countries of Origin and Decisions on Asylum Applications in Bulgaria; Related to BRC's work). .128 10.3. Budget Table showing UNHCR's contributions to the governmental and NGO refugee bodies 1993-2003. .142 10.4. Significant Judicial Decisions of a Precedent-Setting Nature (Supreme Administrative Court and Sofia City Court). .144 10.5. Chronology and Development of the Academic Refugee Initiative in Bulgaria (ARSIB) . .149 10.6. Acronyms Used . .154 10.7. Map of Bulgaria with Refugee-related Points of Interest . .156 10.8. Contact Information of Organisations Involved in Refugee-related Work in Sofia . .157 Reference Book of the UNHCR Representation in Bulgaria and the State Agency for Refugees, in consultation with.
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