site.btaCivil Coalition Asks Government Why Protection against Domestic Violence Act Is Not Implemented

In an open letter to caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev and the Council of Ministers, 41 NGOs under the umbrella Together Against Violence coalition has called for urgent action on the adoption of a draft Coordination Mechanism by the Council of Ministers and has asked about the BGN 450,000 in funding earmarked for combating domestic violence in 2024.

The Coalition's initiative comes against the backdrop of 16 Days of Activism, a global movement launched on November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and a period that brings together activists and civil society organizations to combat violence against women.

Civil groups are dissatisfied due to the lack of action on the adoption of a Coordination Mechanism for Assistance and Support to Victims of Domestic Violence. It was drafted by the National Council for Prevention and Protection from Domestic Violence and has been waiting for more than half a year to be considered and adopted by the Council of Ministers. So far, there is no sign of such an item entering the agenda of the meetings, and without it, the Protection against Domestic Violence Act cannot be implemented.

"The continued absence of a functioning Coordination Mechanism demonstrates a persistent institutional tolerance of domestic violence in Bulgaria, which has been repeatedly criticized not only by committed citizens and organizations, but also by supranational observers such as the European Institute for Gender Equality, the Council of Europe, the European Court of Human Rights, and the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women," the Coalition said.

In addition, the Coalition recalls that there is still no information why there are no funds allocated for the NGO sector from the BGN 450,000. This further undermines public confidence and faith in the commitment of the state, in particular the existence of a real drive for effectiveness, following the legislative reform, adds the Coalition.

The coordination mechanism is extremely important because it regulates the interaction between the executive authorities, local self-government and local administration, the non-governmental sector and social service providers, in order to achieve synchronized action in specific cases of victims of domestic violence or persons at risk and to ensure prompt, effective and adequate response to domestic violence.

The Coordination Mechanism contains a detailed description of the actions to be taken by the responsible institutions and organizations, according to the stage of development of the case, assigning the rights and obligations of the relevant players in its implementation.      

The civil society sector is also surprised by the increasingly frequent practice of appointing persons who do not have the necessary expertise to important positions related to the implementation of the state policy in the fight against domestic violence (such as the Directorate for Prevention and Protection from Domestic Violence, Cooperation on Ethnic and Integration Issues and Interaction with Civil Society at the Council of Ministers).

The letter was drafted on the initiative of the Animus Association Foundation and coordinated by the Awakeners Foundation. It is addressed to the Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev, the Council of Ministers and the political parties GERB and Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria, with whose votes the Protection against Domestic Violence Act was adopted in 2023.