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Rumen Radev
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“Provocative act against minorities in Bulgaria” – this is the title of a letter sent to every MEP in Brussels by the three MRF MPs in the European Parliament – Ilhan Kyuchuk, Iskra Mikhailova and Atidje Alieva-Veli. The letter is a complaint from Bulgarian President Rumen Radev over his public question to MRF leader Mustafa Karadayi about his homeland.
“This act is unprecedented in Bulgaria’s 31-year democratic history,” the three wrote. “It provoked a wave of disapproval among Bulgarian citizens of Turkish ethnicity and Muslims – and not only among them – and cast a shadow over the Bulgarian ethnic model of community unity.”
Attached to the letter was a video and a translation of the transcript of the public part of President Radev’s August 18 consultations with MRF representatives, when Karaday was asked where his homeland was after making an ambiguous statement on June 5 at a reception. Istanbul under Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The text does not indicate what caused the question of the head of state, but directly comes to the following conclusion:
“Radev’s inquiry actually calls into question the loyalty of Bulgarian Muslims, who make up 14% of the population, and crosses the red lines of Bulgaria’s transition period – ethnic tolerance.” According to MRF MEPs, “President Rumen Radev’s goal is to gain support in the unofficial campaign for the presidential election, in which he is a candidate, from nationalists, far-right and radical elements in Bulgarian society through the use of hate speech.”
The MRF claims to have received “hundreds of complaints from various Bulgarian citizens”. His letter accuses the president of violating Art. 92 of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria (Art. 92. (1) The President embodies the unity of the nation.) Bulgaria’s partners in the EU and NATO are invited “not to remain indifferent to these actions of President Radev”, which according to the authors of the letter “may pose a serious threat to democracy in Bulgaria and ethnic peace. “
This is the third letter the same authors have addressed to the European Parliament in the last month. Earlier, they complained twice about the caretaker government appointed by President Radev, which was an indirect attack on him without mentioning his name. One complaint argued that the June 4 decision by the Council of Ministers to compile a “blacklist” of those linked to the US-sanctioned Magnitsky Act constituted a violation of fundamental human rights, including the prohibition of inhuman treatment. According to the three MEPs from the MRF, the decision deprived the targeted persons “of the opportunity to satisfy their basic needs for water, food, electricity, health care, to receive salaries and pensions, to pay taxes and fees, etc.” This happened after they lost access to their bank accounts.
The other complaint against the caretaker government was “pressure on MRF members during the election campaign”. It claims that the caretaker government has obliged MRF activists to sign “warning protocols” through the regional departments of the Ministry of Interior. They “prevented them from getting involved in the election process.”
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