While URI Europe celebrates 16 years, some CCs from Bulgaria are happy to mark their five-year membership of URI, the largest grassroots network for interfaith dialogue. Pastor Stoyan Todorov, a pastor in the Roma Christian Church in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, has been an active peacebuilder for the last five years. A member of URI Bulgaria since 2011, he has taken part in various events, including the 2012 “Faith Paths Through the Crisis” in Varna, where for the first time Bulgarian interfaith leaders gathered together. Pastor Todorov regularly takes part in local events in Plovdiv, such as roundtables for World Interfaith Harmony Week and International Day of Peace, and has initiated events for promoting peace, tolerance, and understanding in the city’s Roma neighborhoods. He also collaborates often with URI Europe Regional Coordinator Karimah Stauch and URI Youth Ambassador Rosen Dimov.
He is also passionate about informing young people of Plovdiv about the importance of human trafficking prevention. Generally, Roma people in Bulgaria are ill-educated, reflecting their poverty and difficult socioeconomic circumstances. Aiming to find a better life, they often become victims of human trafficking or get involved in criminal activity. Roma people tend to be marginalized and suspicious toward others from different ethnic groups. Because of such reasons, they often lack access to quality education, representation, or integration. The pretentious style of the language in popular media and elections also is not inclusive or encouraging. That’s why Pastor Stoyan insists that there is a need for young Roma volunteers to be trained in political systems and representation and be aware of human trafficking issues in easily-understood language. Accessibility like this will ensure that people are aware their human and civil rights as per The Charter of Human Rights of EU.
In a beautiful way, Pastor Stoyan marked URI Bulgaria’s fifth anniversary with photo reportage.
