site.btaParliamentary Foreign Policy Committee Condemns Hate Violence Act in North Macedonia against Journalist Vladimir Perev

At a regular meeting, the parliamentary Foreign Policy Committee adopted a declaration condemning the act of hate violence in North Macedonia against Vladimir Perev, a prominent journalist and defender of the rights of Bulgarians there, the National Assembly said in a press release on Thursday. The unanimously adopted declaration emphasizes the Committee’s unwavering support for all citizens of North Macedonia with Bulgarian identity who are justly defending their rights, the official statement further said. The declaration was included in the meeting’s agenda at the proposal of the Committee’s Chair, Yordanka Fandakova.  

The Committee calls on the authorities in the Republic of North Macedonia to suspend all actions and statements that justify violence. It also rejects the public denial and downplaying of the serious issues affecting the rights and security of Bulgarians there. The Committee urges North Macedonia to ensure equal rights for all citizens, respect their dignity, and take effective measures against hate speech and hate-motivated assaults. It further warns that such actions and rhetoric risk silencing and discrediting critical voices. The declaration also notes that North Macedonia has yet to fulfil its EU-agreed commitment to adopt the required constitutional amendments.

In late November, journalist Vladimir Perev told Tribuna.mk that he was verbally and physically assaulted by a man in his 40s in a shop in central Skopje.

Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry condemned the incident as “another act of hate-motivated violence against a Bulgarian in the Republic of North Macedonia” and urged a prompt and effective investigation. 

Commenting on the topic, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev said that North Macedonia must ensure prosecution of all attacks against Bulgarians if this country seeks to advance in its European integration.