site.btaGERB-UDF Slams North Macedonia Court Ruling against Bulgarian Community Leader as Unfounded and Politically Motivated

The parliamentary group of GERB-UDF expressed strong disapproval and concern over the suspended sentence handed down Thursday by a court in Bitola, North Macedonia, against Ljupcho Georgievski - a prominent representative of the Bulgarian community and former head of the now-closed Ivan Mihaylov Cultural Club. He was charged after posting on social media quotes by Ivan Mihaylov, which were seen as xenophobic and hate speech.

“This sentence is not only legally unfounded, it is politically motivated,” GERB - UDF said in a declaration read out in Parliament Friday by MP Yardanka Fandakova. “Ljupcho Georgievski is not alone - the entire Bulgarian state and people stand behind him,” she added.

GERB-UDF criticized the ruling as part of a broader pattern of institutional repression against Bulgarians in North Macedonia. They emphasized that this case is not isolated, but part of a trend of escalating pressure against Bulgarian individuals and organizations in the country. "For us, this trial was an unambiguous attempt to intimidate the Bulgarian community in North Macedonia and to trample on fundamental human rights, including the right to freedom of expression and association. We regard it as evidence of a lack of independence and impartiality in the judiciary of this country—a candidate for EU membership—which is in serious contradiction with European values and criteria," the declaration says.

They called on North Macedonian authorities to stop the persecution and respect the right to self-identification and freedom of expression. They urged European institutions to respond to these rights violations, asserting that such actions contradict EU values and expectations for candidate countries.