site.btaVarious Organizations Discuss Awareness of LGBTI-Related Issues and New Ban on "Propaganda of Non-Traditional Sexual Orientation"

Representatives of various organizations shared their views on the awareness of LGBTI-related issues as well as recent changes in the Pre-school and School Education Act. The discussion took place at a joint meeting of the parliamentary committees of demographic policy, children and family and the committee of youth and sport on Wednesday.

On August, as it amended the Pre-School and School Education Act, Parliament set in place a ban on "the propaganda, promotion of, or incitement in any way in the education system of ideas and views related to non-traditional sexual orientation and/or the definition of gender identity other than biological". Earlier this week, over 7,000 people and 76 NGOs demanded that President Rumen Radev veto the ban.

During the meeting, a study on the subject conducted by Single Step, an LGBTI rights organization, was mentioned. It is entitled "National survey on attitudes towards LGBTI+ youth in Bulgarian schools" and was designed for children aged between 14 and 18.

Tanya Mihailova, Deputy Education Minister said they are not aware of the survey or of any LGBTI-related information distributed in the form of leaflets, brochures or others. She also said that the Ministry had not authorized a survey on the said topic.

Child Protection Agency head Teodora Ivanova and Deputy Sport and Youth Minister Stoyan Andonov said that their institutions are not aware of the survey either. 

Milko Bojankov of an organization called "Bulgarian Front for the Unification of Children" said that no form of propaganda has a place in schools. 

Stanimir Minkov of the Bulgarian Association for Youth and Sport said that his organization is against "the imposition of different sexual orientation in schools". Any kind of propaganda is unacceptable in school and pre-school education,  he said.

According to Nelly Tsvetkova, a psychologist who worked on the Single Step survey, there are many LGBT students who feel threatened in school.

Atanas Radev of the National Youth Forum expressed strong disagreement with the ban on "propaganda on non-traditional sexual orientation".

The Bulgarian Women's Fund said the changes to the Pre-School and School Education Act violate basic human rights.

Bela Damyanova of the National Network for Children stressed that the adopted changes violate the Protection against Discrimination Act as well as the Bulgarian Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights.