Gallery
Prayer times (for Sofia)
| Thursday, 11 March 2010 | |
| Dawn | 5:07 |
| Sunrise | 6:42 |
| Noon | 12:44 |
| Afternoon | 15:56 |
| Sunset | 18:34 |
| Night | 19:57 |
Hadith
| От Ебу Хурейра, че Пратеникът каза: „Нуждаещият се е не този, който го връщат една или две фурми, нуждаещ е само онзи, който не протяга ръка (въпреки че се нуждае).” |
| Address of the Representatives of the Muslim Community in the Republic of Bulgaria |
| Tuesday, 26 May 2009 08:50 | |
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF BULGARIA H.E. GEORGI PARVANOV DUPLICATE COPY: CHAIRMAN OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY H.E. GEORGI PIRINSKI DUPLICATE COPY: PRIME MINISTER OF THE REPUBLIC OF BULGARIA H.E. SERGEI STANISHEV ADDRESS OF THE OF THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY IN THE REPUBLIC OF BULGARIA 15.05.2009 The Chief Mufti`s Office as an official representative of over 1 million Muslims in Bulgaria, the 16 District Offices of Muftis and about the 1450 Muslim boards express grave concern on the intimidation and harassment campaign launched against the Muslim community in recent months. Latest actions against the Bulgarian Muslims, whose sole fault is their affinity to their religion, confirm that adversarial and prejudicial stance towards Muslims in recent years have reached alarming proportions. Muslim confession has been deliberately targeted by short-sighted policies and mongering politicians. This constitutes a threat to the public peace. With a view to finding a reasonable and lasting solution to our problems, we address a proposal to start a dialogue with the Bulgarian statesmen and the whole Bulgarian society. Muslims in Bulgaria have always been loyal citizens respecting the constitution and laws of the Republic of Bulgaria. Therefore, Muslim community will not succumb to provocations of some politicians intent on destabilizing the country through vilification of Muslims, whose sole aim has been to preserve their cultural and religious identity and protect historical heritage of their ancestors who have inhabited these lands for centuries. In view of the latest developments, we insist on review of the basic parameters of the relationship between "state-religion-religious communities” through an objective examination of the position and policy of the state vis a vis representatives of a particular minority group in Bulgaria. Recently the foundations of a policy of oppression directed at Muslims have been laid under the pretext that "extremely radical" trends have gained support among the Muslims of Bulgaria. Attempts of the Muslim community to preserve its historical heritage and cultural values, usurped by the forcible assimilation policy of the communist regime, are defined as a threat to national security and dismissed as an act of “İslamization”. In the process of implementation of this policy, we strongly refuse the artificial and deliberate categorization of Muslims into "radicals" and "traditionalists." As has been the case in all religious communities, there are more and less religious people among the Muslims. This is a natural phenomenon and it should not be used as a justification for such disriminatory definitions. Muslims in Bulgaria, who are still trying to remove traces of spiritual decay caused by the communist regime, are now placed under psychological pressure by means of accusations such as “professing radical Islam”. As such, we witness continuation of the oppression policy of the 20th century under the guise of “protection against radical Islam". The antagonistic and prejudiced attitude of certain politicians and political parties against the official representative of the Muslim community in Bulgaria illustrates the level of hostility and hatred Bulgarian Muslims face in the public opinion. This in turn helps instillation of a culture of intolerance in the Bulgarian society against Muslims in Bulgaria. Against this backdrop, institutions entrusted with the task of protecting the state have taken for granted the unfounded and unsubstantiated allegations that certain irresponsible politicians has put forward in order to accrue political dividends. We consider these actions as provocation threatening the internal peace and detrimental to the constitutional principle of equality among citizens. We would like to draw your attention to a process of division in progress in the Bulgarian society in which the dominant majority "exclude" a minority group which in turn consider itself an integral part of the same society. We believe that the course of events constitute a cause of concern for the peace and prosperity of our country. We regret to observe that such a discriminatory approach is gaining ground in a "democratic" country which is a member of the European Union. The problems that Muslims in Bulgaria have been facing in recent years are reminiscent of the methods of oppression employed in the recent past on us by the totalitarian regime: people with uncertain source of loyalty and without enjoying support of the Muslim community, are engaged in a legal struggle for the seizure of the Chief Mufti’s Office, the authoritative representative of the Muslims in Bulgaria. This contention results in loss of time and energy on the part of the Chief Mufti`s Office. Moreover, Muslim community is subject to restrictions in fulfilling its religious needs. Muslims of Bulgaria are not permitted to construct an Islamic Cultural Education and Administrative Center in Sofia. Construction of the center is vital to ensure academic accreditation of the Higher Islamic Institute, which is the only higher education institution to study Islam in the country. Our request for construction permission, filed five months ago, is still pending. The only functioning mosque in Sofia can not meet the needs of 25-30 thousand Muslims living in the capital. We have submitted an application to the Sofia Municipality for the construction of a second mosque in Sofia in November 2008. However the municipality is dragging on our request. In March 209 Bourgas Municipality has revoked its earlier decision for allocation of a land to build a mosque on the grounds that "it will appease the nationalist wave stirred up in the city due to the idea of building a mosque in the city.” Bourgas Municipality also suspended the previously approved construction permit of the mosque, citing incomprehensible technical reasons. Despite transition to democracy and EU membership of Bulgaria, Muslim community faces an unfavorable social and political environment. In the aftermath of 1990 around 110 cases of desecration of mosques were recorded, whose perpetrators were not caught and all investigations were concluded without any concrete result. This confirms our belief that the state explicitly disregards the rights of the Muslim community. Only a fracture of the Muslim wakf (religious trust for charitable purposes) property, seized by the communist regime, is reinstated. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the Catholic Church, Jewish and Armenian communities in Bulgaria almost completely restored the titles on the properties confiscated by the communist regime. However, restitution of the properties of Bulgarian Muslims proved problematic. For, official institutions cite numerous reasons and create formidable obstacles to the applications filed by the Chief Mufti’s Office. Incessant attacks launched against the Bulgarian Muslims by the moutpiece of a nationalist party are justified by invoking the notion of the freedom of speech. Explicit and frequent accusations of “Islamic fundamentalism” and “Islamic terrorism” directed through the media-the result of public paranoia, fed by the deep rooted prejudices against Islam and Muslims- and groundless allegations incriminating the Chief Mufti`s Office and Muslims of involving with extreme Islamic movements and terrorists, pave the way for detention, under various pretexts, of particular clerics and believers. Muslim community is implicated through the media coverage leading to an intensification of anti-Muslim feelings in society. The Chief Mufti`s Office has repeatedly expressed its opinion that these phenomena endanger the public peace. Regrettably, these advices were not heeded and our warnings have fallen on deaf ears. A press statement held 2 weeks ago by a reckless politician, whose ill advised statetements and misinformed claims caused the unjustified detention of a member of the Muslim community in last March, proved that the Chief Mufti`s Office`s concerns were justified. Questioning the legitimacy of the Chief Mufti`s Office, which is a Bulgarian institution operating under the Law on Religious Denominations, accusing it of engaging in radical islamic activites, and even pressing an abhorrent charge against the Chief Mufti`s Office to the effect that it is the tool for the pursuit of the interests of another country, would be sufficient to comprehend the standpoint of the Bulgarian political establishment towards the Muslims in Bulgaria. Led by our desire to resolve the above-mentioned problems, we, the Muslims in Bulgaria would like to expand our sincere cooperation with the government institutions through a more effective dialogue. We hope that the Council For Dialogue Among Religions, in which we also participate with good faith and constructive approach, will help create a truly tolerant environment in the Bulgarian society. We will also have the opportunity to discuss our problems within the newly established “National Council of Religious Communities in Bulgaria”. Since the public peace in Bulgaria is a matter concerning the European Union as well, we will refer our case to the European institutions that have experience in the field of pluralist democracy. Furthermore, we believe that the process of “transformation in mentality” vitally important to forge a positive public opinion about Muslims in Bulgaria, could begin through the guidance emanated from the highest political level. We appeal to all statesmen, in particular the President, the Chairman of the National Assembly and the Prime Minister, to avoid using imflammatory rhetoric which will lead to religious and ethnic polarization in the society and to promote meticulous interpretation and application of the Constitution and laws so as to ensure equality and prevent discrimination among the citizens. Let us contribute to the formation of a pluralistic society in which diversity is appreciated not vilified. Let us learn from our own mistakes. Let us adopt an objective curriculum in our schools by which we teach our succeeding generations a universal worldview instead of parochial national dogmas so that they will be able to challenge and question the knowledge imposed on them as a priori truth. Let us bequeath to the future generations a country which is not torn with religious and cultural rifts, but a state in which all citizens enjoy equality without being subject to discrimination. Let us adopt the universal values as a state policy. Let us realize that we can not achieve a genuine peace in the country unless we remedy the sufferings of the oppressed and address the complaints of those discontented and deprived. Let us not forget that the EU membership requires existence of a system of governance whereby human rights are respected, minority rights are protected and the supremacy of the rule of law is firmly established. Our call is not intended to aim at any specific person. This is merely an appeal to all statesmen, politicians, public figures, artists, intellectuals and the entire Bulgarian society so that they devise a new, modern and contemporary thinking so as to terminate the prevalent religious, ethnic, racial, political divisions in the society. The Chief Mufti`s Office of the Muslims of Bulgaria declares its willingness to dedicate its energy in pursuit of the material prosperity and spiritual development of our country and well-being of the whole Bulgarian society!
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