site.btaNationalist Party Calls on Bulgarian State to Act Urgently on Case against Ivan Mihailov Association Chair in Bitola

In a declaration read in Parliament on Thursday, Vazrazhdane called on the Foreign Ministry and the Bulgarian State to take urgent action regarding a case against the chairman of the Ivan Mihailov Cultural Center association, Ljupcho Georgievski.

Georgievski was charged with inciting racial and ethnic hatred and xenophobia after posting Ivan Mihailov quotes on Facebook. In the latest development on the case, the former Prime Minister of the Republic of North Macedonia, Ljubcho Georgievski, appeared before the Basic Court in Bitola as a witness for the defence. He said that Ivan Mihailov was neither a fascist nor anti-Semitic, and that he had never been convicted in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, in the Republic of (North) Macedonia, or in Italy, where he lived during the last years of his life. He explained that his motivation to testify stemmed from what he sees as a double standard by the prosecution: that Ivan Mihailov is being judged for something that happened 80 years ago, while events related to the Serbian occupation are commemorated in North Macedonia without provoking any reaction. The court has eight days from the latest hearing, to announce the judgment.

Georgievski went on trial in 2023 following a tipoff from the commission for prevention of and protection against discrimination, the Left party and the Union of Fighters in Bitola. 

Vazrazhdane’s declaration describes the case as one of many "political trials against Bulgarians" in the Republic of North Macedonia. Party leader Kostadin Kostadinov said that his party insists that the Bulgarian State take urgent measures by the end of the day. In his words, this trial is a litmus test for North Macedonia’s future attitude towards Bulgaria. 

“If the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry fails to respond today, we, Vazrazhdane, will send a letter to the EU Member States, urging them to publicly take a stance on this case. We will send a letter to all official EU institutions, but the impact would be different if the Bulgarian state did this, rather than one of the parties in Parliament,” Kostadinov added.