Georg Georgiev before the forum “Sofia says “NO” to hate speech and extremism”: It is impossible for us to remain indifferent to hate speech
15 February 2018 News
“It is impossible for us to remain indifferent or impartial on the topic of combating hate speech, extremism and antisemitism. This issue affects all of us as citizens of the Republic of Bulgaria, as representatives of state institutions, of the NGO sector, of the academic communities, but first of all as humans, said Mr. Georg Georgiev, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and national coordinator for combating antisemitism at the international forum “Sofia says “NO” to hate speech and extremism”.
In his address to the participants in the forum he underlined that the responsibility for combating xenophobia, hate speech and all forms of discrimination is a shared one. It is borne both by the state structures, as well as by the civil society. “Good interaction among the institutions and the NGO sector is an essential condition for the upholding of the constitutional principles that protect basic human rights. It is a sign of the mature and democratic nature of any society”, stated the national coordinator for combating antisemitism.
Georg Georgiev underlined that this country as a European state is proud of its tolerance for the ethnic and religious diversity of its citizens. The Bulgarian government is applying coordinated efforts and implements a consistent policy of prevention of any kind of discrimination. “In the capacity as national coordinator for combating antisemitism, a basic priority of mine is the establishment of a fruitful dialogue among the institutions and the NGO sector with the view of combating extremism, xenophobia and antisemitism. In that same spirit a “contact group” was set up for ensuring the mechanism of ongoing liaison, consultations and dialogue between the government and the Jewish community” added Deputy Minister Georgiev.