site.btaAt Meeting with National Assembly Chair, BSP - United Left Voice Concern over Old Calendar Orthodox Church Issue

The BSP - United Left Coalition Council met here on Friday with National Assembly Chair Natalia Kiselova, the ABV Party which is part of the coalition said in a press release.

At the meeting, the Coalition Council voiced concern over a rushed judgment deciding the case of the Old Calendar Orthodox Church of Bulgaria. The MPs argued that “the judgment pursues populist purposes and will not lead to a steady stabilization of Orthodox Christianity,” the press release says.

The BSP-United Left representatives stressed the importance of a legislative solution that would ensure the constitutional and legal recognition of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church as the sole recognized religious entity, as stipulated in both the Bulgarian Constitution and the effective Religious Denominations Act. The coalition insists that no other religious body claiming to represent Orthodoxy should be allowed registration in the country. The parliamentary group further argued that the judgment of both the European Court of Human Rights and the Bulgarian Supreme Court of Cassation were unlawful and infringe upon the traditional religion of Bulgaria.

The coalition called for a parliamentary hearing of the Prime Minister on the actions taken by the Bulgarian Government, particularly by the Ministry of Justice and the Directorate of Religious Denominations, to safeguard the State’s legal and constitutional interests. This would include matters related to the above-mentioned judgments.

BSP-United Left called for strict monitoring by the State Agency for National Security and financial intelligence regarding the sources of income and potential foreign funding for all religious denominations. They emphasized the need to review the participation of foreign nationals in leadership positions at religious groups, citing national security concerns.

The Coalition also proposed a legal reform for the re-registration of the religious denominations in Bulgaria which currently exceed 400. The suggested regulations would ensure that religious groups could only be registered if they were founded by a significant number of individuals, so as to ensure that all faiths operating in Bulgaria contribute to the country’s religious harmony and spiritual well-being.

Kiselova agreed with a proposal of the BSP-United Left on the setting up a Legislative Council to further address these issues within the framework of the National Assembly.

The head of Parliament also accepted the coalition’s request for a hearing of the Minister of Energy regarding his obligations under the Energy Act and the regulation for energy poverty households. The hearing will focus on the Government's total failure to address the need of protecting energy-poor citizens.