Bulgaria: Road to Schengen. Part Two: Internal Mistreatment.
In the weeks leading up to Bulgaria’s Schengen accession an episode of political and social unrest occurred with the championing of anti-migrant rhetoric and demonstrations on the streets of Sofia.
The protests(1) came three days after a video a was published by the pro-Russian Vazrazhdane party, which falsely claimed to show migrants attacking a group of young Bulgarian citizens. Bulgaria’s political climate, dominated by right leaning and nationalist parties, was stirred by the release of the video which circulated(2) widely on social media.
The following night a reactive racially driven attack occurred(3) in which two British-Pakistani students were racially profiled and attacked by a group of Bulgarians, resulting in them needing hospital treatment. The attacks and protests led to the Bulgarian government taking(4) to social media to debunk myths that migrants were involved in any of the attacks, in an attempt to stop the spread of misinformation. Migration expert and lecturer Ildiko Otova summarised by stating(5): “there is no migration crisis, but a crisis of narrative that poses a real threat to security”.
These events show the willingness of Bulgarian politicians to take advantage of nationalist feelings and racially driven fears within the Bulgarian public in order to whip up social and political unrest to push their own agendas. When speaking to Bulgarian Helsinki Committee program director Ilana Savova, she told our team that what was particularly worrying about the disruption is the amount of young people taking the far-right, anti-migrant stance. Sofia news publication ‘noinvite’ published(6) a poll in which 75% of their readers believe that Migrants pose a threat to the security of Bulgaria.
These philosophies of society and state are visible on the streets of Sofia. Racial slurs are written on the fence of state camps, and whilst sat in the square adjacent to the central Mosque of Sofia our team saw regular racially profiled controls of people by the patrolling gendarmerie.
A control by the gendarmerie outside Sofia’s central mosque.
This whole episode has come within a wider period of political unrest in Bulgaria. After prime minister Rumel Randev failed(7) to form a government mandate at the beginning of March which lead to a snap general election proposed(8) for 9th of June. This will be the sixth election of its kind in three years.
Outside Ovcha Kupel, the largest of three open camps in Sofia with a capacity of 560, we spoke to a Kurdish man who was staying inside the camp. He told us that that week there had been locals demonstrating outside the camp and as a result a strict 5pm curfew had been introduced for those staying in the camp.
Like the majority of people registered within camps across Bulgaria, this man had sought to claim asylum in Bulgaria. He was currently waiting to secure his residency so that through family reunification processes he could be reunited with his wife and two young children who were in Syria - whom he had not seen in 8 months. He told us of the poor camp conditions namely the overall cleanliness, and the lack of laundry and washroom facilities. We were told many people in the camp had scabies. Although his main frustrations were with the inconsistencies in, and disregard he had endured, during the processes to secure his residency. He told us:
“I had to wait two months to get a meeting, some waited only some days, some are still waiting…. there is no system”.
Whilst visiting state facilities across Bulgaria and speaking to the people who were staying inside the camps, our team learned that concerns about camp hygiene, cleanliness, and provisions of foodstuff were echoed throughout the country. Outside the Voenna Rampa camp an Afghan man, through google translate, told us: “the camp is very dirty. So it is not a human place”. He further expressed that people had to rely on camp staff to use showers and do laundry - yet the staff were often not there. Instead most people are forced to wash their clothes by hand in toilet sinks.
Translated message from a resident of the Voenna Rampa camp.
Near the Turkish border, outside the camp of Harmanli - the largest state facility in Bulgaria with a capacity of 2700 - we spoke to a man from Syria who was staying in the camp. He described a system of bribes where people could pay camp staff for better treatment, as well as showing photos of the corridors where there were many holes and exposed insulation.
At Ovcha Kupel where we spoke to the Kurdish man, we were let in by the camp security in order to speak to the staff of the facility. After walking through the litter filled grounds to the crowded foyer the doorway into the building itself was blocked by bars. Through the cage we spoke to a mask covered translator. In the rushed encounter he stressed the lack of decent food provided by the camp as well as the prevalence of scabies and urged us to contact the state agency for refugees (SAR) so that we could help with the dire situation.
Inside the grounds of the Ovcha Kupel facility in Sofia.
Ovcha Kupel, is the oldest camp in Bulgaria and the largest in Sofia. The repurposed government building, renowned for its poor conditions and located in an up and coming university neighborhood, is set to close. On the 13th of March the SAR announced(9) that a phased relocation of inhabitants would occur. Where people would be gradually transferred to various camps around the country in response to the deteriorating conditions of the facility. A time frame for the relocation has not yet been given, though 34 people have already been moved to the Banya camp in central bulgaria which has a capacity of 70. Currently camps across Bulgaria average around 40% of their total capacity, if the numbers were to rise it is unclear where a population previously housed at Ovcha Kupel would be relocated to.
This also comes in the same month that the Bulgarian parliament voted(10) to bolster camp security nationwide. Previously, security for camps in Bulgaria was outsourced to private companies. Now, the responsibility will be assumed by the ministry of internal affairs with police and gendarmerie taking over, the same institutions which are renowned for their disregard of the human rights of people on the move at Bulgaria’s borders. During assessments in March, our team already saw the presence of police outside of the Voenna Rampa and Vrahzdebna camps in Sofia.
In conversation with Iliana Savova of the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, we were told that the poor conditions within camps were actually de-facto deterrent measures by the state in response to the 2015 ‘migrant crisis’. In order to deter the long term stay of people in Bulgaria so that they would move quickly through the country towards western Europe. Under new management SAR recognises the issue of conditions within their facilities, and as a result are open to working with NGOs to address this. Although it is important to remember that it’s a systemic failure to rely on NGOs to fill the gaps left by the state - akin to a sticking plaster-solution. Especially considering the recent EU cooperation framework(11) and associated 85 million euro fund - which has an explicit focus to support asylum and reception measures.
The asylum information database (AIDA) country report for Bulgaria also recognised(12) that conditions within Bulgaria's detention centres were unsatisfactory - especially the closed camps of Lyubimetz and Busmantsi. They highlighted - access to the means to maintain personal hygiene, general cleanliness, and the nutrition of provided food. For example there are not enough showers or toilets for the people who live there - especially when the facilities are overcrowded - bed sheets are changed infrequently, and specialist diets are not provided for those who need it - such as pregnant women or young children.
Even during an EU fact finding mission(13) to assess Bulgaria’s readiness for Schengen accession, security and privacy concerns for women and children were identified within the Lyubimets detention centre. The report stated that “the best interest of the child may not be fully guaranteed at all times”. Despite their own findings, the report concluded there are no issues regarding respect for fundamental rights. Another example of the EU blatantly disregarding rights and dignity in order to push forward a political agenda.
The AIDA report also outlined(14) that the number of individuals returned to Bulgaria under Dublin regulations increased by 192% from 2022 to 2023. In 2024, Austria alone reportedly(15) returned over 200 people between the 21st and 22nd of March. Despite the effect of the new EU migration pact, the philosophy of the Dublin III agreement continues. The Bulgarian state has been criticised for its treatment of those returned under the Dublin regulation. Including a case(16) last year where an individual was beaten by SAR staff in Sofia after being unjustly rejected from the camp. The man jumped out of a window to escape the beating, breaking his foot in the process. He was forced onto the streets with his injury. The AIDA report also shows that despite their supposed immediate access to the national healthcare system, returnees were not given any tailored medical attention for things such as long term prescriptions or psychological support. Considering Bulgaria’s record of mistreatment and the increases in numbers returned, it is vital to monitor the treatment of returnees to Bulgaria throughout 2024 and to hold the state accountable for any discrepancies.
In an unstable political climate prone to targeted outbursts from the far-right and given that the state systems who have a legal duty of care clearly and systematically fail to meet people's basic needs and thus violate their rights - Bulgaria remains a country with a poor rights record. Yet, the EU remains consistent in its hypocrisy by pumping money into its external borders through various frameworks whilst touting the promotion of fundamental rights. Money which is quick to be used for aggressive border measures instead of improving deficient reception conditions. At every turn the decisions of Europe and actions of the Bulgarian state violently cost people their dignity and rights.
Bulgaria’s accession to Schengen has proven again how the EU will happily turn its back on the rights of individuals in order to push a political agenda and defend ‘fortress europe’. Unsurprising given that many EU countries are similarly violent to those who try to seek safety there.
This blog is written in the week that the Schengen borders code reform was voted through by the European parliament. Bulgaria is now a part of a Schengen block in which pushbacks are allowed at internal borders and racial profiling is encouraged. Collective Aid is among the many signatories(17) that condemns the damaging reform.
Resources:
11https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_24_1283
12https://asylumineurope.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/AIDA-BG_2023-Update.pdf
13https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/report-fact-finding-mission-bulgaria_en
14https://asylumineurope.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/AIDA-BG_2023-Update.pdf
15https://www.novinite.com/articles/224973/Austria+Returns+76+Migrants+to+Bulgaria+Amid+Decrease+in+Asylum+Applications https://www.novinite.com/articles/225015/168+Foreigners+Returned+to+Bulgaria+Under+Dublin+Regulation
16https://www.jrs-germany.org/news/not-nach-rueckueberstellung
Words and Pictures by Dan Schoolar