Jotova: Bulgaria has met all international requirements regarding Macedonian associations

Following a meeting in Strasbourg with Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset, Bulgarian President Iliana Jotova said she expects the supervision of the implementation of European Court of Human Rights judgments concerning OMO “Ilinden Pirin” to be definitively closed at the next session.

Jotova said Bulgaria has so far implemented all recommendations issued by international bodies. According to her, legislative amendments have also been adopted in coordination with the Registration Agency to enable the organization’s registration, but its applications have always been missing a document.

The Council of Europe is the institution responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Strasbourg Court’s judgments.

OMO “Ilinden Pirin” is one of the Macedonian minority organizations and associations operating in Bulgaria. It is the largest and most active in filing lawsuits against Bulgaria before the European Court of Human Rights and regularly wins its cases.

Of the 16 judgments won in total over violations of the right of Macedonians in Bulgaria to freedom of association, 11 resulted from lawsuits filed by OMO “Ilinden Pirin”.

The organization secured its first judgment in Strasbourg in 2001. To date, the Republic of Bulgaria has implemented neither that judgment nor the 10 subsequent judgments it lost.