GERB MP Stefan Arsov Refers the Hristijan Pendikov Case to the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights

Stefan Arsov, a member of parliament and the Bulgarian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, has sent a letter to the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights, Dr Michael O’Flaherty, concerning the acquittal of Borce Angelov and Ilija Spaseski in the case involving the attack on Hristijan Pendikov in Ohrid.

• Court in Ohrid Acquits Attackers of Hristijan Pendikov

Stefan Arsov is calling on the Commissioner for Human Rights to pay special attention to the case, as well as to the ongoing instances of hate crimes against Bulgarians in the Republic of North Macedonia that remain unpunished. In his letter, Arsov recalls the brutal attack on 19 January 2023, which was carried out because of Pendikov's Bulgarian origin. At the time, Pendikov was secretary of the Bulgarian Cultural Club in Ohrid.

As a result of the beating, he sustained multiple serious injuries and was transported to the Military Medical Academy in Sofia for treatment.

After initial sentences of eight months’ imprisonment each, the case was sent back for a retrial. On 22 October 2026, the Basic Court in Ohrid dismissed the charges against the two assailants.

In his letter, Arsov also refers to the position of the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to which yet another unpunished hate crime against an ethnic Bulgarian deepens the sense of impunity and raises questions about the country's progress towards European integration.