BULGARIA'S 2010 NOMINATION FOR THE WOMEN OF

UNCLAS SOFIA 000669 SIPDIS PLEASE PASS TO S/GWI AND EUR/CE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KWMN PREL PHUM KPAO BG SUBJECT: BULGARIA'S 2010 NOMINATION FOR THE WOMEN OF COURAGE AWARD REF: SECSTATE 111471 ¶1. (U) Post nominates Lidia Pavlova for the 2010 Secretary of State's Award for International Women of Courage (IWOC) for her extreme bravery and professionalism in exposing a powerful organized crime group and rampant political corruption in Dupnitsa, a town of 40,000 in Southwestern Bulgaria. Despite significant personal risk, in a series of published articles, she bravely and meticulously documented the actions and methods of the Galevi brothers, two of the alleged leaders of an infamous organized crime group known for extortion, prostitution, torture, and drug running. By installing people beholden to them in local government and brutally racketeering businesses to pay them rent, the two former commandos completely monopolized the political and economic life of their hometown. Faced with the local authorities' complete unwillingness to take any action against the two de facto mayors of the town, Ms. Pavlova, a single mother of two sons, felt she had to use her professional background as a journalist to fight these untouchable figures. ¶2. (U) After publishing articles about the actions of the brothers, she received numerous threats and warnings to stop her work, and in December 2008 her oldest son was badly beaten by one of the Galevis' bodyguards. Upon hearing the name of the perpetrator, the police declined to inspect the crime scene and the emergency center refused medical services to her son. Nevertheless, Ms. Pavlova, refusing to be silenced, continued writing stories against the brothers and filed a complaint against their bodyguard. Her example prompted other victims to step forward and join her effort, which led to the arrest of the brothers in December 2008. The Galevi brothers were subsequently released thanks to a legal loophole that grants immunity to those running for parliament. Despite losing their election bid, they were released on bail. The trial against them is ongoing, but they remain firmly in control of Dupnitsa. Ms. Pavlova and her two sons are no longer under police protection, and she continues to face harassment and frivolous lawsuits due to her unwillingness to give up her campaign against the brothers. ¶3. (U) Ms. Pavlova has been working as a reporter and correspondent for various Bulgarian newspapers for over 15 years. For the past 12 years she has been reporting for the daily newspaper "Struma," focusing on regional issues in south west Bulgaria. In 2004, the association of Bulgarian regional media named her "Journalist of the Year" and presented her again with a special recognition in 2009. In October 2009, Ms. Pavlova became the first winner of the Prize for Courage in Journalism, which was recently established by the International Federation of Journalists in partnership with the German WAZ media group (WAZ-IFJ). The jury praised Ms. Pavlova for her exemplary courage in speaking out in the midst of fearful silence and for the investigative style of her work. Supporting her compelling fight against corruption, organized crime, and the abuse of power directly corresponds with post's strategic goal of strengthening rule of law and investigative journalism in Bulgaria. She was notified of the nomination and is willing to accept the award if chosen. ¶4. (SBU) Her personal and contact information is as follows: Name: Lidia Pavlova Title/Association: Journalist Date of Birth: April 9. 1969 Place of Birth: Dupnitsa, Bulgaria Citizenship: Bulgarian Telephone/Email: 359-(0)-885-694-128; lidiapavlova@abv.bg Passport Number: 126188156 Languages: Bulgarian ¶5. (U) Post contact is Political Officer Joshua Temblador, TembladorJ@state.gov, 359-2-937-5276. SUTTON