². Presentation of the organization
The Association for European Integration and Human Rights
is a non-governmental human-rights organization of jurists united by
the idea to exercise law in the public interest. It was founded on December
1, 1997 in Plovdiv and registered as a ‘foundation’ for the implementation
of socially beneficial activity. For over ten years of its existence,
the Association has implemented a number of human-rights oriented projects
in the followings areas:
1.1. Conduct of cases in the public interest aiming
to bring about changes in legislation and overcome the post-totalitarian
practices in the activities of state institutions.
1.1.A. The main priority in this
respect is the submission of applications to the European Court of Human
Rights in Strasbourg. The legal experts of the Association for European
Integration and Human Rights have submitted more than 400 applications
by Bulgarian citizens. To date, 44 final judgments have been delivered
in favor of the applicants. The relatively small number of final judgments
is not due to legal unsoundness of the complaints raised but rather to
the great length of procedures before the European Court, which usually
take 6-7 years. Some of these judgments have contributed considerably
to setting the national legislation in conformity with international
human-rights standards (see the cases Nikolova v Bulgaria; Ilijkov
v Bulgaria; T. Yankov v Bulgaria, Ekimdzhiev and Association for European
Integration and Human Rights v Bulgaria).
1.1.B. The cases in defense of people
with disabilities against the inaccessible architectural environment
represent a special emphasis in the Association’s human-rights protection
activities. For the first time in Bulgaria, even before the Antidiscrimination
Act was adopted, lawyers from the Association for European Integration
and Human Rights initiated some legal proceedings before the national
law courts and won the cases on behalf of disabled people claiming compensation
by state institutions for the inaccessibility of town planning and architectural
environment. As a result of this human-rights breakthrough, the larger
Bulgarian towns and cities have started the construction of architectural
and communication facilities that facilitate the access of people with
disabilities to public buildings and public transport services.
1.1.C. Another successful project
aimed at exercising civil control over the unlawful acts and actions
of administration, with a focus on conducting cases before the Supreme
Administrative Court for rescission of sub-delegated normative acts.
In the course of the last four years alone, the Association has won about
20 cases concerning some important spheres of public life, such as the
price formation of energy sources, consumers’ rights, and the curricula
and syllabi of Bulgarian schools. Three decisions of the Supreme Administrative
Court of July 18, 2002 caused a considerable public resonance. On the
basis of appeals lodged by the Association for European Integration and
Human Rights, these decisions rescinded some texts of regulations by
the Council of Ministers concerning the formation of prices of heat energy,
electricity and natural gas provided by the energy companies, which are
state monopolists in Bulgaria.
1.2. Providing free legal consultations for socially
vulnerable community members.
The Association for European Integration and Human Rights has been implementing
this activity on an on-going basis over the last five years. So far,
more than 1 800 people have received legal consultations in the Association’s
reception bureau. Quite a few community members whose cases fell into
the priorities of the projects that were being implemented at the time
had the unique opportunity to be represented for free by professionally
motivated lawyers before national institutions and/or the European Court
of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
1.3. Training and professional development of practising
jurists and journalists in the field of human rights.
The training, conducted in the course of more than two years, has made
the Association a specific information center, an institution providing
methodological support and opportunities for improving the professional
qualification of lawyers. The improvement of practicing jurists’ qualification
is one of the goals of the publishing activity described below.
1.4. With the financial support of the Open Society
Institute, the Association for European Integration and Human Rights
and Interights – London published the collection ‘Selected Judgements
Delivered by the European Court of Human Rights between 1996 and 2000’.
With the financial support of Open Society Foundation – Sofia and COLPI
– Budapest, the collection ‘Bulgarian Cases Brought before the European
Court and the European Commission of Human Rights’ was published in 2002.
The Association for European Integration and Human Rights publishes
a specialized legal bulletin - ‘Legal Initiative’ – which creates a ‘tribune’
for voicing expert commentary and criticism of judicial acts, practices
and human-rights issues of considerable public resonance.
1.5. In its work, the Association co-operates with
some Bulgarian and international human rights organizations, such as
the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, Bulgarian Lawyers for Human Rights,
Interights – London, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and others.
II. Implemented projects
2.1. Project for conduct of cases in the public interest
and rendering free legal consultations; realized in the course of 4 successive
years, 1998-2002; fully financed by the Open Society Foundation in Sofia.
2.2. Project for civil control over actions and acts
of the administration, funded by the Democracy Commission at the US Embassy
in Sofia. The project focused on monitoring the lawfulness of the normative
acts issued by the executive authorities and the conduct of cases before
the Supreme Administrative Court for rescission of some provisions of
these acts which are in contradiction with legal norms of a higher juridical
rank.
2.3. Project for exercising law in the public interest,
funded by Open Society Foundation – Sofia. This was a one-year project
that was completed on November 15, 2004. The project priority is the
conduct of strategic cases in the interest of the public and primarily
the applications lodged with the European Court in Strasbourg.
2.4. Project for civil control over actions and acts
of the administration, funded by the Balkan Trust for Democracy. The
duration of the project was approximately a year (January 2005 - April
2006).
2.5. Project for institutional support of human rights
activities, financed by Open Society Institute – Budapest. The cases
that were within the framework of this project concerned the new anti-discrimination
law and also the problems of citizens arose in their attempt to acquire
medical assistance of good quality. The duration of the project was 2
years (2004 - 2006).
2.6. Project for civil control over the functioning
of the Bulgarian judicial system (‘.... And justice for all’), funded
by the Democracy Commission at the US Embassy in Sofia. The duration
of the project was one year (October 2005 - October 2006).
2.7. Project for civil control over actions and acts
of the administration, funded by the CEE Trust Funding. The duration
of the project is one year (August 2006 - July 2007).
2.8. Project for institutional support of human rights
activities, financed by Open Society Institute – Budapest (²²). It is
a continuation of the project described in item 2.5. and the activities
concern the application of the Antidiscrimination act and problems of
citizens concerning their attempt to acquire medical assistance of good
quality. The duration of the project is 3 years, starting in March 2007.
III. Recent human-rights achievements
Far from being exhaustive, we are presenting some of our recent human-rights
achievements.
3.1. Article 4 Para.1 (1) of the Rules on Admission
of Students Majoring in Health Care for the Academic Year 2003-2004,
issued by the Medical University (MU) in Plovdiv, was rescinded by virtue
of Judgment No. 7667 of 10.07.2006 of the Supreme Administrative Court.
The undertaken human-rights activities were provoked by a concrete issue.
The management of MU-Plovdiv refused to accept the application of a young
girl, Mariela Yanakieva, who suffered from deafness determined as a second
degree of disability. The refusal invoked Article 4 Para.1 (1) of the
Rules and the Appendix thereof, listing 17 different illnesses and disorders
when student applications for study at the university were not allowed.
The management of the Medical University rejected the girl’s application
although she had finished one of the elite secondary schools in town,
with tremendous efforts, and had been studying for months to get ready
for the entrance exams. In its Judgment of July 10, 2006, the Supreme
Administrative Court recognized the discriminatory nature of the provision
in question and rescinded it. This judgment is final.
3.2. The almost permanent lack of costly medications
for treatment of cancer in Bulgaria is particularly dramatic. In that
field, the case of Rossitza Shkodrova has become emblematic.
The action was brought before the Plovdiv District Court by Mrs. Rossitza
Shkodrova against the Ministry of Healthcare. Mrs. Shkodrova suffered
from cancer which necessitated periodic treatment with chemotherapy.
One of the ingredients used in chemotherapy procedures is the substance Calcii
folinas which must be provided by the Ministry of Healthcare and
distributed free of charge to those who need it. Nevertheless, the doctors
in charge explained to Mrs. Shkodrova in October 2004 that there was
a lack of Calcii folinas and that she had to provide it herself
if she wanted to continue her treatment.
Mrs. Shkodrova requested that the court put the Ministry under the obligation
to provide the necessary quantity of medication and award her just satisfaction.
By Decision No. 94/02.06.2005, the Plovdiv District Court granted Mrs.
Shkodrova’s claims and sentenced the Ministry to pay her 2000 BG levs
in non-pecuniary damages and to provide the medications needed for her
continued treatment until its end. This case has been the first one of
this type in Bulgaria. Its social significance and the neglectful attitude
of the Ministry of Healthcare to the treatment of one of the most vulnerable
social groups – cancer patients – triggered a widespread public and mass
media debate. As a result, the Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of
Bulgaria commenced an inspection procedure for the public tenders for
procurement of the costly medications which the Ministry of Healthcare
should distribute to the needy for free. In other cities, cancer patients
also brought similar actions. Civil protest campaigns against the State
policy of procurement and distribution of the necessary medications were
organized on several occasions. As a result of this public pressure,
the Minister of Healthcare declared his willingness to effect radical
changes in the tendering procedures for procurement of the unavailable
costly medications.
An appeal against the decision in the case of Shkodrova was submitted
to the Plovdiv Regional Court by the Minister of Healthcare. By Judgment
of 24.02.2006, the appeal was dismissed and the first-instance decision
remained in force. Meanwhile, Mrs. Shkodrova died, partially due to the
delayed treatment. Her case, however, has become a legal precedent for
Bulgaria and has led to a tangible modification of the practices adopted
by the courts and the Ministry of Healthcare in the procedures of supplying
medications to cancer patients.
3.3. With a Decision No 58/29.11.2006, the Commission
for protection against discrimination held that “EVN Bulgaria Elektrorazpredelenie”
joint-stock company, specified in providing electricity, had imposed
a discriminatory electricity regime in the biggest Roma residential district
of Europe, called “Stolipinovo”. It is situated in the town of Plovdiv
and over 40 000 Roma live there.
During 2002 “Elekrtorazpredelenie” joint-stock company, at that time
owned by the State, imposes an electricity regime in the neighborhood,
because of unpaid duties of part of the inhabitants. The regime is applicable
to all of the people regardless of the fact whether they have paid or
not their obligations. Such a regime was never implemented in other residential
districts of the city of Plovdiv. Thus, the company implies different
– worse conditions for the Roma people, living in Stolipinovo.
Meanwhile, in the district of Stolipinovo, there are also ethnic Bulgarians
live. They do not have a regime, despite the fact a lot of the inhabitants
do not pay their bills to the company. Therefore the Roma people are
put in a in a less favorable position compared to people of Bulgarian
ethnical origin, living in the same neighborhood.
Because of the situation described, the Association for European Integration
and Human Rights approaches the national Commission for protection against
discrimination with the problem. By a Decision No 58/29.11.2006, the
Commission held that “the electricity regime, established
at the moment in the segregated on ethnical basis residential districtof
Plovdiv, named Stolipinovo, represents an indirect discrimination of
ethnical basis as regards the concrete consumers of the company, by which
the norms of Article 4, paragraph 3 of the Antidiscrimination Act are
being infringed as well as an administrative offence is accomplished,
according to Article 78, paragraph 1 of the Antidiscrimination Act”.
3.4. On 28 June 2007 the European Court of Human Rights
held a fundamental Judgement, in which it de facto said that
the normative regime of collecting information by special investigative
measures in Bulgaria is contradictory to Article 8 and Article 13 of
the Convention. The application was lodged by the Association of European
Integration and Human Rights and Mr. Mihail Ekimdjiev. According to the
Court:
“1. Against this
background, the Court concludes that Bulgarian law does not provide
sufficient guarantees against the risk of abuse which is inherent in
any system of secret surveillance. The interference with the
Article 8 rights of the applicants was therefore not “in accordance
with the law” within the meaning of paragraph 2 of that provision.
This conclusion obviates the need for the Court to determine whether
the interference was “necessary in a democratic society” for one of
the aims enumerated therein (see Malone, p. 37, § 82; Kruslin, p. 25,
§ 37; Huvig, p. 57, § 36; and Khan, § 28, all cited above).”
The cited Judgement means that all Bulgarian citizens has
the right to claim to be a potential victim of a violation of the Convention
as, in the existing national law, there is no guarantees of abuse in
either collecting the information, its keeping or its use.
VI. Contact Information:
Address:
"Àssociation for European Integration and Human Rights"
2 Khan Kubrat Street, fl.3, 4000 Plovdiv, BULGARIA
Òel/fax: +359 32 26 40 97; +359 32 62 32 64
å-mail address: hurights@mail.bg, ekimjiev@mail.bg
web-page: http://www.eurorights-bg.org/
Contact person: Lawyer Katina Boncheva,
Manager of the Association for European Integration and Human Rights
