Bulgaria: Submission to the UN Human Rights Council for Bulgaria’s Universal Periodic Review
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Cheryl Thomas, Director Genoveva Tisheva, Executive Director
Women’s Human Rights Program Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation
The Advocates for Human Rights 5 Evlogi Georgiev, Blv
Minneapolis, MN 55402 USA Tel./Fax: (02)-963-5357
Phone: (001)- 612-341-3302 ext. 102 Email: office@bgrf.org
Email: cthomas@advrights.org
Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation and The Advocates for Human Rights Make Joint Submission to the UN Human Rights Council for Bulgaria’s Universal Periodic Review
Minneapolis/Sofia (April 21, 2010) This November, Bulgaria will be reviewed for the first time by the UN Human Rights Council at the Ninth Session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The UN Human Rights Council will review all 192 UN Member States by 2011, and then each state periodically every four years after their initial examination. The review allows the UN the opportunity to examine
The Advocates for Human Rights and the Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation have submitted a report on
The UPR submission describes the Bulgarian government’s measures taken to protect victims of domestic violence and punish perpetrators, as well as areas for improvement. The adoption of the Law on Protection against Domestic Violence (LPADV) and its subsequent amendments marked an important step in ensuring the right of victims to equal protection of the law. One cannot, however, change an attitude simply by changing the laws. Regular trainings of police, judges, prosecutors and social services are necessary to ensure effective implementation of the LPADV and protection of domestic violence victims. NGO trainings of police, as well as collaborations with and initiatives by the Ministry of the Interior, have facilitated a positive police response in protecting victims. While judicial implementation has revealed both positive and negative practices, new judicial rotations onto the bench indicate that trainings for new judges must be continued on a regular basis. The Directorate for Social Assistance’s use of the LPADV to protect victims and remove perpetrators from the home has been lacking, as the directorate relies on the Child Protection Act to protect children. Also, its history of removing children from a non-violent victim indicates a strong need for training on domestic violence. Finally, the Bulgarian Government must make a real commitment to funding the NGOs and advocates that conduct the monitoring and training on domestic violence. An annual line item allocation is commendable, but the funds disbursed must be of a realistic amount that will sustain their important work against domestic violence.
To read the entire submission, please click here.
For More Information
Please see the Domestic Violence section of this website.
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