site.btaUS Report: Bulgaria Guarantees Religious Freedom but Some Religious Groups Complain of Harassment

US Report: Bulgaria Guarantees Religious Freedom but Some Religious Groups Complain of Harassment

Washington, October 15 (BTA) - The Bulgarian Constitution guarantees freedom of religion and conscience for believers and nonbelievers, regardless of denomination, and states all religious practice shall be unrestricted. However, some religious groups and communities report harassment by the local authorities and the security services and local police, reads the US Department of State's Annual Report on International Religious Freedom for 2014 in its section about Bulgaria.

"The law allows individuals to practice their religion freely as long as the religious group is granted registration by the Sofia city court. The exception is Eastern Orthodox Christianity, which the constitution designates as the country's 'traditional' religion, exempting the Bulgarian Orthodox Church from the registration requirement," the report reads.

"A district court in March found 13 Muslim leaders guilty of spreading pro-sharia ideology and hatred of other religious groups. Security forces detained approximately 26 Muslims in November for propagating anti-democratic ideology and incitement to war. Muslims and Jehovah's Witnesses reported continued harassment by the security services and local police. Some minority religious groups, including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) and the Jehovah's Witnesses, continued to report discrimination and prejudice from local authorities in certain municipalities, despite obtaining national registration. Schools banned the wearing of the hijab and local governments continued to deny requests to construct new mosques. Jewish organizations expressed concern over hate speech and commemoration of World War II figures associated with Nazism," the report reads further.

"In February protesters opposed to a pending restitution claim by the Muslim community attacked the central mosque in Plovdiv, resulting in injuries and arrests. Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses reported physical assaults targeting members of their communities. The Jewish community, Jehovah's Witnesses, and other small religious groups reported nationalist parties increased their anti-minority rhetoric and minority harassment during election campaigns. Muslims, Jews, and Jehovah's Witnesses reported incidents of vandalism against their places of worship."

The report on Bulgaria gives as a positive example the initiative of Sofia Municipality to convene the first ever "Festival of Religions" to promote interfaith tolerance. "The U.S. embassy regularly discussed discrimination cases and the construction of new places of worship with government officials," the US Department of State also notes in the report.