Bulgarian Nationalist Grants Mitrova EP Job

Mitrova became known publicly after being sentenced in Macedonia to 3 months' imprisonment on charges related to a custody rights dispute.

Her case was a source of controversy in both countries. Mitrova complained that she was treated poorly because she publicly considers herself a Bulgarian. As the trial unfolded, Sofia put pressure on Skopje to release ‘its’ citizen, and Macedonian media were accused of hate speech against Bulgaria.

The young woman's new position was announced Thursday after her meeting with the "Ataka" leader Volen Siderov at the parliament in Sofia, Novinite reports.

“In addition to her job with "Ataka", we will make sure she receives legal protection by our MP and lawyer, Yavor Notev, and by other lawyers too. As a Bulgarian citizen, Spaska is entitled to have a Bulgarian lawyer,” Siderov said.

Mitrova graduated with a major in English philology from the Southwestern University in the Bulgarian city of Blagoevgrad “Neofit Rilski”. Her job in the European Parliament will be to consult Stoyanov on Macedonian issues.

Stoyanov met Mitrova two weeks ago. In his words, people who admit their Bulgarian origin in Macedonia face problems.

“This is a continuing problem at the moment and is connected to Macedonia's membership in the EU. I invited Spaska Mitrova to be my assistant in the EP. I am a member of the inter-parliamentary delegation between the EU and the Macedonian Parliament and I invited her to consult me on issues regarding Macedonia's progress for its membership in the EU,” he said.

European MPs have at their disposal a budget of EUR 17,500 per month to pay their collaborators or other consultants. There is no restriction on the number of collaborators and the salaries are defined by the MEP.

Spaska Mitrova lives in Macedonia, holds a Bulgarian passport and perceives herself as Bulgarian. She was sentenced and served time in a Macedonian prison after being convicted for not allowing her husband to see their daughter. She was released on parole, and a child custody case then began.

On March 11, 2010 the court in the Macedonian town of Gevgelija granted custody rights to the father and Mitrova's estranged husband, Serbian Voislav Savic.

Mitrova then faced charges stemming from the custody trial for contempt against the court related to her remarks that the magistrates were “Udbashi” a nickname used for the agents of UDBA, the secret police of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, SFRY.

On June 21, the Macedonian Court in the town of Kavadarci sentenced Mitrova to a 9 month suspended sentence and a 2 year probation period. In addition to the sentence, the court ordered her to pay the expenses for the trial.

Mitrova firmly rejected the accusations, explaining that the use of “udbashi” was not her own, but that she was quoting someone else.