Bulgaria - August 2023

Following a brutal attack on an 18-year-old woman and subsequent mass protests, the parliament passed amendments to the Criminal Code and the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence in an extraordinary session by a vote of 144-58, with eight MPs abstaining. The changes introduce the term “intimate relationships,” expanding the legal framework beyond cases of marital domestic violence, although it remains limited to heterosexual relationships. The legislation was supported by the ruling coalition of Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB)/United Democratic Forces, the We Continue the Change/Democratic Bulgaria bloc, and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms. However, GERB joined the opposition parties, the far-right Vazrazhdane, the populist There Is Such a People (ITN), and the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) in the proposal to include only relationships between men and women in the law. The law has drawn criticism from activists and experts for its exclusion of relationships shorter than 60 days.

Sources: International IDEA, Bulgarian News Agency, Novinite, Veridica, Radio Free Europe Bulgaria, Balkan Insight