BULGARIA RALLIES AGAINST MOSQUE
Karlovo, 6 Muharram 1435/10 November 2013 (MINA) – Hundreds of Bulgarians gathered on Saturday (9/10) to protest a proposal to return the town of Karlovo’s old mosque to the Chief Mufti to reopen as an active religious place for Muslim worshippers.
“We will not allow this,” Stoyo Karagenski, chairman of Karlovo City Council, OnIslam as quoted by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA) as reporting.
Karagenski added that Bulgaria will be hurt most if there is a working mosque next to the home of Vasil Levski, a Bulgarian revolutionary and a national hero of Bulgaria who is dubbed the Apostle of Freedom.
Protests erupted after plans appeared about returning “Kurshum Dazamiya”, (Bullet Mosque), to the Chief Mufti.
The mosque, with the highest minaret in the country, is not operating currently as a worshipping house.
At the protest, people carried posters which read: “Folks!!!”, “Karlovo thanks all Bulgaria for their support”, “Apostle, we will not allow”, “Brothers from Karlovo, Kazanlak is with you”.
Mayor Emil Kabaivanov emphasized in his speech that he would do everything possible to protect the interests of Karlovo people in Court.
Making up some 15 percent of Bulgaria’s 7.3 million people, the Muslim community population is the highest proportion in any European Union member state.
Different mosques in Bulgaria have remained closed for worship since the establishment of the Communist regime in 1944 which confiscated Muslims’ placed of worshipping, keeping them closed for decades.
After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1989, the confiscated properties began to be returned.
Earlier this year, it was revealed in April that the Taskopru (Stone Bridge) Mosque, a 16th century worship place in Plovdiv, was turned into a bar and a restaurant.
The tragic story of the mosque, an exemplar of 16th century Ottoman architecture, began with the 1928 earthquake that caused damage to the historic building.
To repair the minaret of the mosque destroyed in earthquake, a portion of the land was sold, but repairs could not be completed since enough money was not collected.
Yet, the Taskopru Mosque, which was expected to be returned to the office of the regional Mufti, was given to two Bulgarians by a court decision who rented it out to persons who used it as a “Greek tavern”, “Italian restaurant,” and bars. (T/P013/P03)
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
