The Government Withdrew the Istanbul Convention

The government withdrew the Istanbul Convention. The decision was made on 7^th of March during the regular weekly cabinet meeting on Wednesdays. The ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence is postponed until the Constitutional Court makes a ruling, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said.

"As it sounds, the government accepted it, but then there were very serious reactions by the coalition partner, the Orthodox church and the Mufti's Office. There were fears among the Bulgarian people, we are a government elected by the people - not once, and we are obliged to comply with what the people want," Borissov said.

In his words, the Constitutional Court will make a ruling. After the Convention is withdrawn, it will be possible to hold debates. This way, in a relaxed political, social atmosphere, we can weigh all the arguments on this subject.