Diplomats, politicians, journalists, business representatives, actors, musicians and artists were among those who attended the event at the British Embassy in Sofia.
The organizing committee of the Bulgarian Pride celebration – Sofia Pride, celebrated the international day against homophobia, biphobia and transphobia on May 17th with an event at the residence of the British ambassador in Sofia. The event brought together various diplomats, politicians, journalists, artists, business represantatives and various represantatives from several Bulgarian non – profit organizations.
The event also gathered numerous special guests, including the mayor of Sofia, Yordanka Fandakova, Vladislav Panev & Ilina Mutafchieva from the “Green Movement” political party, MEP Petar Vitanov, journalists from some of Bulgaria’s biggest networks and media companies, popular musicians, actors and artists. Ambassadors and represantatives of 17 foreign embassies were also among those supporting the event, including the embassies of Albania, Armenia, Belgium, Georgia, Denmark, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, The USA, North Macedonia, Slovenia, Finland, France, Montenegro and Switzerland.
The celebration of the international day against homophobia, biphobia and transphobia was held for the second concecutive year and was put together by the organizing committee behind Sofia Pride, the largest human rights march in Bulgaria. This year, the event was hosted by the British Embassy in Bulgaria and the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Bulgaria. The event also marked the beginning of the 17th concecutive Sofia Pride month in Bulgaria which will culminate with the official Sofia Pride event on June 17th, 2023.
During the official coctail party, His Excellency, Dr. Rob Dixon, the British ambassador to Bulgaria shared the following statement: “The LGBTQ rights are human rights. The LGBTQ community is not seeking out to acquire new or different rights from everyone else. They just want to be treated equally, to live free from discrimination and violence and to be able to enjoy full, healthy and fulfilling lives. The most successful, most prosperous and most peaceful societies are those in which all citizens are treated fairly and can play an active role in their society without any type of discrimination.”
Her Excellency, Irene Plank, the German ambassador to Bulgaria added the following: “It’s 2023, and we should not have to remind ourselves, and others, about the very basic things that form every human’s right in society. Let’s just stop excluding people – in our heads, in our everyday lives and especially in our laws.”
“Events like this give us hope and show us that Sofia Pride does indeed bring change not only for the LGBTQ community, but to our society as well. Today also marks the start of something entirely new – Sofia Pride’s first ever business forum. An event that will clearly show and demonstrate the the ever-increasing commitment of Bulgaria’s local bussinesses to our cause”, said Simeon Vasilev, Chairman and Co – Founder of the GLAS Foundation.