Vazrazhdane Urge Foreign Ministry to Denounce Reaction of Skopje Authorities to Bulgarian Trip of Art Students

Kaloyan Vassev

Vazrazhdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov (BTA Photo)

Sofia,

21.07.2023 12:15

(BTA)

Vazrazhdane Friday urged the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry to issue a statement to condemn the way the authorities in Skopje are treating an art school for taking students to Bulgaria. "The Foreign Ministry should issue a statement condemning what is happening in Bitola and the issue should be raised with our so-called partners at the highest level," Vazrazhdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov said in a parliamentary statement on Friday.

Vazrazhdane's reaction came shortly after it was reported that the Interior Ministry in the Republic of North Macedonia has asked the prosecution service to probe the said art club for taking art students on a trip to Bulgaria and arranging for them meetings with Bulgarian politicians.

Kostadinov said: "At the moment, when declarations about the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising were being read out in Parliament yesterday, on the orders of North Macedonia's Interior Minister Oliver Spasovski, a trial started against 32 children under the age of 14 who are being interrogated by prosecutors, by police."

He added that "these repressions against children are not an isolated case but a common practice in recent years". "They have increased visibly since last year, when the veto was lifted for the start of the EU accession process of the Republic of North Macedonia. Then [when it lifted the veto] Bulgaria encouraged all kind of anti-Bulgarian actions", he added.

Kostadinov said that if Bulgaria does not react, these cases will continue in order to instill fear among North Macedonia citizens of any contacts with Bulgaria.

/RY/