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Bulgaria joined the Council of Europe and ratified the European Convention on Human Rights in 1992[1] and joined the European Union in 2007.[2] Despite this, Bulgarian compliance with human rights norms falls below the standard expected of an ECHR signatory. The European Court of Human Rights noted that of 596 applications dealt with by the Court in 2022, 25 resulted in a judgement finding at least one human rights violation.[3]
Although the Bulgarian media have a record of unbiased reporting,[4] Bulgaria’s lack of specific legislation protecting the media from state interference is a theoretical weakness. Conditions in Bulgaria’s twelve aging and overcrowded prisons generally are poor. A probate reform in mid-2005 was expected to relieve prison overcrowding.[4]
Bulgarian police have been accused of abusing prisoners and using illegal investigative methods, and institutional incentives discourage full reporting and investigation of many crimes. The Constitution of Bulgaria guarantees freedom of religion, but local governments have attempted to enforce special registration requirements on some groups not designated as historically entitled to full protection. Besides the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the faiths so designated are the Jewish, Muslim, and Roman Catholic. Court backlogs and weak court administration make constitutional protection of defendants’ rights problematic in some instances.[4]
- ^ "Bulgaria - Department for the Execution of Judgmentsof the European Court of Human Rights - www.coe.int". Department for the Execution of Judgmentsof the European Court of Human Rights. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
- ^ HADJIYSKA, NEVYANA (January 1, 2007). "Bulgaria, Romania Join European Union". Associated Press via Washington Post. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
- ^ "ECHR Press Country Profile: Bulgaria". ECHR. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
- ^ a b c Text used in this cited section originally came from: Bulgaria (June 2005) profile from the Library of Congress Country Studies project.