The Bulgarian Parliament voted into law yesterday legislation banning LGBTI propaganda in schools and this is just the beginning.
On 07 August 2024 Bulgaria's National Assembly has voted on a bill to amend and supplement the Preschool and School Education Act (PSEA). This bill conceptually amends and expands the prohibitions in the system of pre-school and school education, which currently in Article 11 par. (2) and (3) of the PSEA affirms it as secular (para. 1), "preventing the imposition of ideological and/or religious doctrines and prohibiting the implementation of political and partisan activities." The following prohibition has been added to Article 11(2), p. (3) of the PSEA "the carrying out of propaganda, promotion and incitement in any way, directly or indirectly, of ideas and views related to non-traditional homosexual orientation and/or the determination of gender identity other than biological."
Among the legal definitions appears one of the newly introduced terms "Non-traditional sexual orientation "Non-traditional sexual orientation - different from the generally accepted and enshrined in the Bulgarian legal tradition notions of emotional, romantic, sexual or sensual attraction between persons of opposite sexes".
The law was adopted with almost full majority in the National Assembly.
The motives of the bill do not comply with the requirements of Article 28(2) of the Statutory Instruments Act, namely to contain "the reasons which necessitate the adoption" and "the objectives pursued", as well as "an analysis of compliance with EU law". Among the grounds are the commonly known and applicable definition of marriage in the Bulgarian Constitution, also what the Constitutional Court understands as "traditional human society". Furthermore, it is argued that in recent years "public propaganda of an unacceptable model of normalization of non-traditional sexual orientation has been imposed, especially against the background of the severe demographic crisis in Bulgaria, as well as the placement of advertising and information elements promoting such socio-cultural models, including in the immediate vicinity of educational establishments...". Next, in their reasoning, the petitioners refer to "the educational function of the Bulgarian school as a state institution".
The given reasons clearly indicate that the objectives of the drafters of the bill go far beyond the subject of regulation of the Preschool and School Education Act. The motives do not speak of relevant "propaganda" being established in schools or educational programs themselves, but of general "public propaganda" that is CLEARLY OUTSIDE THE SUBJECT OF REGULATION OF THE PSEA. Just as alcohol and cigarettes are banned from being sold near schools, but that is not a prohibition in the PSEA, the public propaganda in question, if the legislature seeks to ban it, cannot do so through this law. The educational function of Bulgarian schools is carried out by teachers through school curricula, for which there are State Educational Requirements (SERs) in Bulgaria and their compliance is entrusted to a whole system of bodies and institutions, NOT TO THE LAW.
In yesterday's debate in the National Assembly, arguments were made about the religiosity of the Bulgarian people and direct references to Christianity and Islamism with direct quotes from the Bible.
In plenary, the deputies used hate speech and wholly discriminatory statements that tend to undermine the foundations of democracy and the rule of law. Some of these speeches, among others, would be subject to sanction under the Protection from Discrimination Act and the European Convention on Human Rights.
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