Independent society for the protection of human rights

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Independent Society for the Protection of Human Rights
(Независимо дружество за защита правата на човека)
founding January 16, 1988
Place of foundation Septemwri , Bulgaria

The Independent Society for the Protection of Human Rights , or Independent Society for the Protection of Human Rights ( Bulgarian: Независимо дружество за защита правата на човека / Nessawissimo druzhestwo sa sashtita of the People's Republic of Bulgaria in 1988 / in the National People's Republic of Bulgaria / Sashtita na Tschoweka for short , 1988 / in the UGAL People's Republic of Bulgaria , briefly in the UGS Human Rights Organization in 1988. 89. It was founded on January 16, 1988 in Septemwri by 16 mostly former political prisoners and campaigned for the human rights of Bulgarians , Muslims ( Turks , Pomaks ) and Roma .

The association was the first opposition organization in communist Bulgaria and, along with the Committee for National Reconciliation (KNV), was the main advocate of the rights of Bulgarian Muslims.

history

The foundation was preceded by an appeal, written in 1986 and published on December 19 of the same year, to the conference on human rights ( 3rd CSCE follow-up conference) in Vienna . In the appeal, the conference was asked not to end its work until basic human rights are guaranteed in all European countries. The appeal was handed over to the American embassy in Sofia and was able to reach the conference. Among the signatories were Ilija Minew , Grigor Simow , Eduard Genow , Boschidar Statew , Stefan Sawojski and Minka Statewa . After the appeal was announced, the signatories, with the exception of Minka Statewa, were arrested.

The association was founded by 16 Bulgarian dissidents , including Ilija Minew, Grigor Boschilow , Eduard Genow, Blagoj Topusliew , Stefan Walkow , Zeko Zekow and others in Minew's house in the small Bulgarian town of Septemwri. The self-immolation day of the Czech dissident Jan Palach was chosen as the foundation day . Most of the founders had previously been imprisoned for many years. For example, Ilija Minew spent a total of 33 years and Stefan Walkow 25 years in prison. The goals of the UGSW included:

  • the legal struggle against the communist regime
  • the establishment of political pluralism
  • Bulgaria's independence from the Soviet Union
  • the liberation of all political prisoners
  • informing the international community about the assimilation policy of the Bulgarian state and its treatment of political prisoners, especially of the Turkish minorities in Bulgaria
  • the protection of the human rights of all citizens

The founding papers of the organization were also given to the American embassy in Sofia, which passed the information on to the international press. The organization became known in Bulgaria through contributions from the Bulgarian editorial offices of Radios Free Europe and Deutsche Welle . After the founding was announced, all founders were briefly imprisoned and some were forcibly relocated. The program was approved on January 25 of the same year.

In March, the Bulgarian Communist Party tried to control the emerging movement by founding the state-controlled Committee for Human Rights headed by Konstantin Tellalov. After the failure of the committee, the state security was charged. In the period from April 1988 to 1989, a large part of the founders and management of the USGM were expelled from Bulgaria, including Boschidar Statew and his wife Minka, Eduard Genow and his family, Iwan Jankow, Ekaterina Markowa, Zeko Zekow, Christo Swatowski, Seyneb Ibrachimova , Father Blagoj Topusliew , the writer Petar Manolow and others. At the same time, in the winter of 1988/1989, with the expansion of the members of the UGSM, several employees of the State Security were able to infiltrate the Society for Human Rights, including Rumen Vodenitscharow . In July 1989 the group around Vodenitscharow called an extraordinary meeting of the organizational leadership in Sofia, in which the chairman Minew was ousted. Ilija Minew was not informed of the meeting. Vodenitscharow was elected as the new chairman. Under his leadership, the UGSM distanced itself from the problems of the Bulgarian Muslims and as a result the Movement for Rights and Freedom was founded in 1990, which is still led today by former employees of the Bulgarian Stasi.

At the end of 1989 the UGSM and ten other organizations and groups founded the Union of Democratic Forces .

On July 28, 1990 Vodenitscharow was voted out of a national conference of the UGSM as chairman. His place was taken by the troika made up of Nikolaj Kolew, Wassil Kostow and Yassen Slatkow.

Chairman

See also

Web links

Footnotes

  1. ^ György Dalos: The curtain rises: The end of dictatorships in Eastern Europe , CH Beck, 2010, ISBN 978-3-406-60714-1 , p. 262
  2. ↑ Südosteuropa, Volume 39, Issues 1–6, p. 32.
  3. ↑ Cay Lienau: Spatial Structures and Borders in Southeastern Europe , Southeastern Europe Society, 2001, ISBN 978-3-925450-94-5 , p. 235.
  4. ↑ Георги Колев: Илия Минев - живот, загубен за България. (No longer available online.) БГ История, archived from the original on January 16, 2012 ; Retrieved January 13, 2012 (Bulgarian). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.bg-history.info
  5. ^ An open letter from Stefan Walkow to Ahmed Dogan. Retrieved January 13, 2012 (Bulgarian).