Macedonia: Suspended Sentence for Mitrova

The court also ordered Mitrova to pay trial expenses.

Mitrova, who lives in Macedonia but holds a Bulgarian passport and considers herself to be Bulgarian, faced charges of contempt against the court which stem from a previous trial over custody rights that was a source of controversy in both countries.

The charges relate to her alleged remarks that the magistrates who ruled in the previous trial were “Udbashi” a nickname used for the agents of UDBA, the secret police of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, SFRY.

Mitrova firmly rejected the accusations, explaining that the use of “udbashi” was not her own, but that she was quoting someone else. During the proceedings it became clear the magistrates have renounced any claims for monetary compensation and have not joined the Prosecution in the charges.

The Bulgarian Consul in Skopje, Iliya Karamanov, attended the proceedings along with representatives of Bulgarian media.

In March 2010 a Macedonian district court ruled that custody rights for the daughter of Spaska Mitrova and Vojislav Savic should be given to the girl's father, who resides in Macedonia.

The ruling came after Mitrova served a three month prison sentence in Macedonia in 2009 for not allowing her husband to visit their daughter. Upon her release Mitrova was greeted by then Bulgarian Foreign Minister Rumiana Jeleva.

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 Mitrova case stirred significant controversy between the two states, which also struggle with other bilateral issues.

Bulgaria was the first state to recognise Macedonia’s independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, and the country recognises its neighbour under its constitutional name (i.e. the Republic of Macedonia rather than the Former Yugoslav Republic Of Macedonia – in contrast to countries such as Greece which insist that Macedonia should change its name in order to avoid any references to possible territorial claims).

However, Sofia has not recognised the existence of a Macedonian language separate from the Bulgarian and many Bulgarian historians say that the Macedonians are part of the Bulgarian nation.

In addition, the Macedonian minority in Bulgaria has complained in the past that it is unfairly treated by the state.