Bulgaria
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.
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 |
Hate crime recorded by police
KEY OBSERVATION
ODIHR recognizes Bulgaria's efforts to report information on hate crime information and statistics to ODIHR and to improve its existing legal framework to ensure that bias motivation can be effectively addressed. Based on the available information, ODIHR observes that Bulgaria has not reported statistics on hate crimes recorded by the police to ODIHR. In addition, ODIHR observes that Bulgaria would benefit from raising awareness and building the capacity of law enforcement and criminal justice officials to address hate crime.
ODIHR recalls that in Ministerial Council Decision 9/09, OSCE participating States committed to promptly investigate hate crimes and ensure that the bias motivations are acknowledged. To that end, the given law enforcement body or bodies must, as a first step, record the bias motivations of hate crimes. Participating States have also committed to enacting specific, tailored legislation to combat hate crimes, providing for effective penalties that take into account the gravity of such crimes. ODIHR stands ready to support Bulgaria in meeting the relevant commitments through the provision of comprehensive resources and tailored assistance in the area of hate crime recording and data collection, as well as through further resources and tailored legislative advice.
INCIDENTS REPORTED BY CIVIL SOCIETY
🛈 Please note that the data in the charts above are based on voluntary civil society submissions and as such might not be representative of the actual number of incidents affecting individual communities.
🛈 ODIHR no longer presents descriptions of property attacks in the incident tables below. Data on property attacks are presented in the breakdown charts above. One property attack may target multiple properties or involve multiple types of attack.
🛈 Please note that the data in the charts above are based on voluntary civil society submissions and as such might not be representative of the actual number of incidents affecting individual communities.
🛈 ODIHR no longer presents descriptions of property attacks in the incident tables below. Data on property attacks are presented in the breakdown charts above. One property attack may target multiple properties or involve multiple types of attack.
🛈 Please note that the data in the charts above are based on voluntary civil society submissions and as such might not be representative of the actual number of incidents affecting individual communities.
🛈 ODIHR no longer presents descriptions of property attacks in the incident tables below. Data on property attacks are presented in the breakdown charts above. One property attack may target multiple properties or involve multiple types of attack.