Bulgaria: Far-Right Forcefully Ousts TV Reporter Flora Stratieva From Political Event – CFWIJ Calls For Party To Stop Intimidating Journalists
Location: Bulgaria, Sofia
Date: April 3, 2023
Reporter Flora Stratieva ridiculed, humiliated, and insulted by far-right Revival party before forcing her to leave a press conference. The Coalition For Women In Journalism is appalled by the behavior of Revival’s leader Kostadin Kostadinov and the party’s supporters. Press must be allowed to cover political events.
On March 31st, 2023, Bulgaria’s far-right Revival party removed journalist Flora Stratieva from their press conference.
“Why are there persons here who are not invited?” said Kostadinov, leader of the Revival party, as BNT reporter and popular YouTuber Flora Stratieva entered. The party leader told her to leave and said she was not welcome at Revival events. When she refused, supporters shouted she was “rubbish” and a “brat.”
“Come on my girl, since you don’t want to take the easy way out, we’re going to get you out of here the hard way,” an unidentified person threatened Stratieva while waving his hand and making a slapping gesture.
On April 3, Stratieva wrote about her experience on Facebook.
Bulgarian journalist association AEJ condemned the incident. “Attempts to humiliate and threaten journalists are absolutely unacceptable,” it stated. Bulgarian National Television also published a statement supporting Stratieva.
Stratieva suspects that Kostadinov is targeting her because of reporting she did on Revival’s proposed foreign agent’s bill.
After the event, Stratieva had a back-and-forth with Kostadinov over the phone in which he called her “undignified,” “a liar,” and that she would not be welcome at any Revival events. He did, eventually, apologize for not believing she was with BNT - which confirmed she is their reporter.
Flora Stratieva is known for her 2021 election campaign series “One Day With Each Party” on her YouTube channel. She joined BNT as a journalist in the autumn of 2022.
Kostadinov’s persistent harassment of journalists
The Revival party leader has repeatedly attempted to intimidate or obstruct journalists who are critical of his party. In February, he criticized Deutsche Welle’s Emilia Milcheva at a party press conference. In October 2022, he attempted to humiliate reporters, including Ralitsa Ficheva, by insulting and ejecting them from an event.
The political party Revival is known for its anti-vaccine, pro-Russian and anti-EU positions. Following parliamentary elections on April 2, the party is the third most popular in the country.
On several occasions, Kostadinov has revoked access to journalists and called them names in attempts to damage their reputations. Revival’s leader behaves like a bully, targeting those who report on him and his party critically. Politicians must act responsible while interacting with the media. This harmful rhetoric needs to stop. The Coalition For Women In Journalism vehemently condemns the actions of Kostadinov and Revival supporters. Journalists should be free to report on political events.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.