Media freedom and freedom of association further deteriorated as authorities targeted journalists and critics and cracked down on anti-government protests. Authorities placed some Roma communities under mandatory COVID-19 quarantines and severely restricted their movement; officials engaged in...

Following a decision by the Central Election Commission at request of the Prosecutor General to revoke the immunity of Bulgarian presidential candidate Boyan Rassate, after he was involved in a violent attack on an LGBTI community centre this weekend, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional...

As the European Court of Human Rights considers a landmark case on climate change brought by six young people from Portugal against 33 European countries, Amnesty International and other human rights organizations and academics have intervened in the case today. They have provided the Court with...

Last month, the UN warned of a “shadow pandemic” alongside COVID-19: a global rise in domestic violence.  Around the world, there has been a spike in reports of violence against women and girls during lockdowns and other restrictions, which left many women and girls trapped at home with their...

Europe: Mass protests provide hope as rights and judicial independence eroded People’s rights are being violated by governments in Europe and Central Asia, who are cracking down on protests and seeking to erode the independence of the judiciary to avoid accountability, Amnesty International said...

Following reports that Turkey is allowing asylum-seekers to depart its territory and attempt to enter the European Union particularly Greece and Bulgaria, Amnesty International’s Deputy Research Director, Massimo Moratti, said: “What we are seeing now at Turkey’s land and sea borders with the EU is...

Bulgaria: Dissolution threat against human rights organization is blatant attempt to silence criticism Spokespeople available        Responding to reports that the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee (BHC), the biggest human rights organization in Bulgaria, has been threatened with dissolution after a...

Sweeping new laws are driving Europe into a deep and dangerous state of permanent securitization, Amnesty International said on the publication of a comprehensive human rights analysis of counter-terrorism measures across 14 EU member states. Dangerously disproportionate: The ever-expanding...

European countries must not transfer any asylum seekers to Bulgaria until the country truly improves its demeaning reception conditions and addresses its asylum procedures, said Amnesty International. On 1 April, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is due to announce its...

The Bulgarian authorities must send a clear message that they will take all necessary measures to curb the growing spate of attacks against refugees and migrants on the streets of the capital Sofia, Amnesty International said. The call comes after two Syrian men in their 20s and 30s were injured in...

Urgent action is needed from the Bulgarian authorities to improve conditions at an emergency accommodation centre for asylum seekers near the Turkish border, Amnesty International said after scores of its residents – including people who fled armed conflict in Afghanistan and Syria – staged a...

The Bulgarian authorities must do more to prevent xenophobic hate crimes, Amnesty International urged today amid a rise in racist attacks that has left migrants living in fear.In the most recent attacks this weekend a Malian teenager was attacked close to a mosque in the capital Sofia, while a...

Europe has taken a further step towards protecting people who have been trafficked with the entry into force of a new convention on Friday. The 14 states that have so far become parties to the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings have committed themselves to...