Bulgaria | HCRW

Bulgaria regularly reports hate crime data to ODIHR. Bulgaria implemented ODIHR's Training Against Hate Crime for Law Enforcement (TAHCLE) programme from 2012 until 2017. Bulgaria also took part in ODIHR's project on "Building a Comprehensive Criminal Justice Response to Hate Crime", helping to develop a joint training programme for police and prosecutors that was piloted in the country. Bulgaria has also made efforts to improve hate crime identification, recording and data collection systems through ODIHR's Information Against Hate Crimes Toolkit (INFAHCT) programme. ODIHR completed a review of Bulgaria's hate crime legislation in 2018.

SELECT YEAR

Download the 2013 hate crime report for Bulgaria

OFFICIAL DATA REPORTED BY STATES

Year	Hate crimes recorded by police	Prosecuted	Sentenced
2023	Not available	12	3
2022	Not available	Not available	Not available
2021	18	384	303
2020	727	353	289
2019	22	432	155
2018	46	6	158
2017	22	9	9
2016	28	299	71
2015	704	752	135
2014	617	750	117
2013	651	300	239
2012	Not available	Not available	Not available
2011	29	41	10
2010	20	34	4
2009	20	22	9

Download official data

National developments

Throughout the year, the Police Academy continued to train police officers on hate crimes as part of ODIHR’s Training Against Hate Crimes for Law Enforcement (TAHCLE) programme. In 2013, ODIHR evaluated the implementation of the TAHCLE programme in Bulgaria.

In November 2013, as part of the European Commission’s PROGRESS programme, police officers received training from the Commission for Protection against Discrimination on various issues relating to hate crime prevention and reporting.

KEY OBSERVATION

ODIHR observes that Bulgaria has not reported hate crime data disaggregated by bias motivation to ODIHR.

Incidents reported by civil society, international organizations and the Holy See

Reports

Anti-Muslim hate crime

The Grand Mufti’s Office reported one physical assault resulting in serious injury carried out by a group against a man, leaving him in a coma; 12 cases of the desecration of mosques, including damage to property, and one incident where a pig’s head was placed outside a mosque; and an arson attack.

Hate crime against Christians and members of other religions

The European Association of Jehovah's Christian Witnesses / Jehovah’s Witnesses – Bulgaria recorded one physical assault, one threat, one incident of damage to property, and two incidents of the desecration of places of worship, including one where the windows to a church were broken.

Anti-Semitic hate crime

World Without Nazism reported one incident of the desecration of a Holocaust memorial.

Racist and xenophobic hate crime

World Without Nazism reported two physical assaults in which the victims were stabbed, causing serious injuries; a series of physical assaults against refugees; and a further two incidents of physical assault, including one against a Bulgarian of Turkish background.

INTERNATIONAL REPORTS

Anti-LGBTI hate crime

In its fifth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recommended that the Bulgarian authorities include sexual orientation and gender identity in all the articles of the Criminal Code addressing hate speech and hate crime, and collect data on hate speech and hate crimes against LGBT persons, including on the number of cases reported, investigated and prosecuted.