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Bulgaria passes law banning LGBTQ+ ‘propaganda’ in schools


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The worst thing that could have happened in my home country just happened. Imbeciles! I never thought I d see this day. If EU stands by doing nothing... This happens mere months after our southern neighbor Greece adopts gay marriage!

The law's passage comes at a time when the country is already facing scrutiny for its stance on LGBTQ rights

Bulgaria‘s parliament has approved a law prohibiting the “promotion” of LGBTQ issues in schools, sparking outrage among rights groups and prompting protests in the capital, Sofia.

The new law, which sailed through parliament with 159 votes in favour, bans what it terms as “propaganda” related to non-traditional sexual orientations and gender identities within the education system.

It was put forward by the pro-Russian Vazrazhdane party, with the legislation defining “non-traditional sexual orientation” in a way that critics say reinforces heteronormative views.

Radoslav Stoyanov, vice-chair of the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, expressed concerns about the law’s implications, telling AFP that it effectively “bans the dissemination of ideas and concepts including scientific information”.

The bill’s passage swiftly saw protesters gather in the capital of Sofia, while LGBTQ+ rights groups have been vocal in their opposition.

“Witch hunt”

Denitsa Lyubenova, a lawyer with the advocacy group Deystvie, described the bill as “discriminatory” and warned it could lead to a “witch hunt” against LGBTQ-related educational efforts.

Bulgaria’s move echoes similar legislation passed in Hungary in 2021, suggesting a trend that worries LGBTQ+ advocates across Eastern Europe. As Bulgaria nears its seventh parliamentary election in just three and a half years, this latest legislation adds to the complexity.

The law’s passage comes at a time when Bulgaria, an EU member state, already faces scrutiny for its stance on LGBTQ rights. The country doesn’t recognise same-sex marriage and has declined to ratify the Istanbul Convention on preventing violence against women, which some in Bulgaria view as promoting LGBTQ rights.

Bulgaria ranks 107th globally on the Equality Index for LGBT rights, scoring just 37 out of 100. While some protections exist, such as anti-discrimination laws in employment, Bulgaria continues to face challenges in areas like gender recognition and intersex rights.

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1 hour ago, Sanctuary1995 said:

I am all for the EU giving huge fines, or cutting subsidies for such things 

And this is exactly what will happen. In the end, Bulgaria will cave in. 

And once again, "pro-Russian". People really need to wake up, all this nonsense is coming from Russia to destablize the democracies of other countries. It is the same with the "outrage" over the Algerian female boxer. A campaign coming from the disgraced boxing federation led by this guy from Uzbekhistan who happens to have many ties to Russia and is allegedly a close friend with Putin. 

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2 hours ago, Raider of the lost Ark said:

And this is exactly what will happen. In the end, Bulgaria will cave in. 

And once again, "pro-Russian". People really need to wake up, all this nonsense is coming from Russia to destablize the democracies of other countries. It is the same with the "outrage" over the Algerian female boxer. A campaign coming from the disgraced boxing federation led by this guy from Uzbekhistan who happens to have many ties to Russia and is allegedly a close friend with Putin. 

I doubt this will happen. Hungary has similar law from 2021 - 3 fucking years. It hasn't been repealed. EU has done ZERO to pressure horrid Orban. Yes, RU propaganda goes unchecked FOR YEARS. Almost a decade now -since the annexation of Crimea to be exact. Nowadays all the Facebook is reeking of RU antiLGBTQ, anti EU, antiWest propaganda. No-one cares.

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4 hours ago, Sanctuary1995 said:

I am all for the EU giving huge fines, or cutting subsidies for such things 

Absolutely. And it should be millions per day.

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25 minutes ago, Cyber-Raga said:

How very GOP/Republican of them. What a bunch of cunts. 

Absolutely DISGUSTING and VILE. Hope EU puts ENORMOUS PRESSURE on BG for this major fuck up.

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The president signed the law. It seems surreal. I wonder why this is happening in BG, how is this allowed as an EU member?

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12 hours ago, Sanctuary1995 said:

I hope BG and HU leave the EU and join the axis of evil with RU, and see what happens 

Unfortunately this will not happen. Keep in mind, both countries receive EU payments. In 2022 Hungary got 4.6 billion more than they paid, Bulgaria 1.6 billion Euros. Of course there are other perks that come with EU membership, most above all free trade. 

The biggest problem with the EU is that there is no way to kick out "problematic" countries. Countries may only leave on their own. See Brexit. The "founding fathers" of the EU obviously did not believe there would be countries acting in an inappropriate manner that are not in line with values of the whole project. From my perspective a complete overhaul of the EU treaties are needed. Most above all, get rid of the principle of unanimity. If nothing works, the only way may be am EU 2.0 with the biggest nations like Germany, France, Spain, The Netherlands etc. leaving the current EU to form EU 2.0 and I am sure, plans have been developed already because of several unpleasant situations that occured in the past . Maybe the threat of such action will do the trick. 

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57 minutes ago, Raider of the lost Ark said:

Unfortunately this will not happen. Keep in mind, both countries receive EU payments. In 2022 Hungary got 4.6 billion more than they paid, Bulgaria 1.6 billion Euros. Of course there are other perks that come with EU membership, most above all free trade. 

The biggest problem with the EU is that there is no way to kick out "problematic" countries. Countries may only leave on their own. See Brexit. The "founding fathers" of the EU obviously did not believe there would be countries acting in an inappropriate manner that are not in line with values of the whole project. From my perspective a complete overhaul of the EU treaties are needed. Most above all, get rid of the principle of unanimity. If nothing works, the only way may be am EU 2.0 with the biggest nations like Germany, France, Spain, The Netherlands etc. leaving the current EU to form EU 2.0 and I am sure, plans have been developed already because of several unpleasant situations that occured in the past . Maybe the threat of such action will do the trick. 

Unfortunately I agree. The EU lacks mechanism to deal with states like HU, Slovakia and now BG (states that are already WITHIN EU), who obviously abuse the EU principles. Not only that, they are restricting existing rights in RU manner. In reality the 15 EU states that are in the proceedings against HU antiLGBTQ law are the only ones really respecting the enshrined EU principles and the Charter of EU rights, which are the following: 

As of April 2023, 15 member states (Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Ireland, Malta, Denmark, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Slovenia, Finland and Greece) have joined the case.[41][42]"

Only those countries at present do respect in practice the human rights as envisioned in the Treaties of EU. Those should be in a future EU 2.0.

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10 minutes ago, runa said:

Scary times.
We all must be very careful because we never know what can happen next. And it can go pretty quickly. 

In BG it happened in ONE DAY. The law was voted two times (called two readings of the law) in the same day. It is usually done so when there is an "urgent" matter. Its the first time since the early 90ties (after communism) when LGBTQ+ rights in Bulgaria are restricted. Or any rights for that matter.

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