Bulgaria MEPs to Request Meeting in Custody Case

The decision was reported by the Socialist MEPs' press centre.

The Bulgarian MEPs reportedly intend to discuss violations of civil rights of people with Bulgarian identity by authorities in Macedonia. The MEPS will point to violations of the Copenhagen criteria in a country that aspires to become a EU Member State, Novinite reports.

In September, the Bulgarian MEPs sent a letter to Fuele's predecessor Olli Rehn concerning the case, and the early release of Mitrova from jail has been attributed by some to that move.

The case centers around Spaska Mitrova, a young woman who lives in Macedonia but holds a Bulgarian passport and considers herself to be Bulgarian. Mitrova is involved in a custody battle with her ex-husband, and a Macedonian court ruled last Thursday that parental rights should be given to the child's father.

The case raised tensions between the two states last year after Mitrova was jailed and became a hot issue again in the days leading up to last Thursday's hearing.

After the Macedonian authorities sentenced Mitrova to three months' imprisonment in August 2009 because she would not allow her husband to visit their three year old daughter, Sofia put pressure on Skopje to release ‘its’ citizen, and Macedonian media were accused of hate speech against Bulgaria.

In the aftermath of the news about the Court's ruling on Thursday, the Bulgarian Foreign Affairs Ministry expressed deep concern over the way the custody trial was held and summoned the Macedonian ambassador to Bulgaria to the Ministry to discuss Macedonia's position.