Ruse is another regional city in which, together with the bar associations, the state offers free legal aid in our new center for the most disadvantaged Bulgarian citizens - those who live below the poverty line. The regional center focuses on domestic violence, but it does not limit itself to this topic. Citizens can receive consultations on consumer disputes - for example, for quick loans, traffic accidents, labor cases with an employer, family disputes, and others."
This was stated by the Minister of Justice Georgi Georgiev at the opening of a new Regional Center in Ruse at the bar association there. This is part of the government's commitment to opening such centers in the regional cities. The premises are located in the Courthouse and are provided by the District Court – Ruse, for which the Minister expressly thanked the President of the Court, Judge Chokoeva. He also congratulated all the magistrates present for their work over the years to uphold the rule of law and wished them not to succumb to pressure from the street.
This is the 25th Regional Counseling Center in the country. In it, lawyers will provide free legal assistance to citizens from vulnerable social groups – people below the poverty line, children at risk, victims of domestic violence, human trafficking, international protection seekers, people under guardianship, people with disabilities whose monthly income is not enough to afford a lawyer.
"The issue of domestic violence is central to us as a society and cannot be ignored, because it is a priority for the Ministry of Justice. Therefore, the work on the prevention of domestic violence is our priority. Last year alone, in the municipality of Ruse, the reports of domestic violence filed on 112 were over 1,400, for the first half of this year they were over 600. But first of all, we need to talk about our problems as a society. It is absolutely unacceptable to attack another human being, let alone to subject family members to violence“, said Minister Georgiev.
A total of 20 lawyers registered in the National Register for Legal Aid have expressed their willingness to provide primary legal aid to citizens from the Ruse region. They will provide legal consultations, assistance in filling out documents required by the court, the prosecutor's office, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the administration of citizens in need.
The Chairman of the Bar Association in Ruse, Zlatan Zlatanov, thanked the Chairman of the National Bureau for Legal Aid (NBLA) Natalia Ilieva for the good cooperation. Ilieva, for her part, called on her Ruse colleagues to join the Memorandum for Coordination of Actions on the Protection of Victims of Domestic Violence, signed between the National Bureau of Investigation, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Interior. “Since then, we have started rescuing 303 women, 90% of whom live below the poverty line“, Ilieva pointed out.
The opening was attended by the President of the District Court-Ruse Nikolinka Chokoeva, the President of the District Court-Ruse Elena Baldzhieva, prosecutors, teachers and lawyers.