Sofia District Court orders Volen Siderov to stop incitement to discrimination

The Sofia District Court has ordered that Volen Siderov, leader of the Ataka coalition stops incitement to discrimination by abstaining from such acts in the future. The lawsuit was filed by Yuliana Metodieva, of Armenian ethnic belonging, against Siderov under the Protection from Discrimination Act.

This was the first decision in a total of eight lawsuits filed against Siderov under the Protection from Discrimination Act. The court held that with his statements Volen Siderov exceeded the limits of free speech, thus violating the right to freedom from discrimination. The decision is not final and can be appealed.

The lawsuit was filed by the Citizens Against Hatred Coalition, consisting of 68 civil organisations and 18 private individuals, on January 24 2006. The court later divided the lawsuit into eight separate lawsuits in accordance with eight different signs of discrimination.