By Mariya Petkova
[AlJazeera] On September 2, 2020, Bulgarian journalist Dimitar Kenarov headed to the centre of the Bulgarian capital Sofia to cover an anti-government protest.
He was filming the largely peaceful demonstration calling for then-Prime Minister Boyko Borisov’s government to resign, when a few individuals started throwing projectiles at the police, who responded with pepper spray and batons.
In the ensuing violence, Kenarov, who had by then put on a gas mask marked “Press”, was yanked to the ground by police officers, kicked repeatedly in the face, and handcuffed, despite insisting that he was a journalist and showing them his press card.
He was eventually taken to the police station and released several hours later.
In the following weeks, the interior ministry denied that Kenarov had been held, despite available footage of his detention and a medical certificate that he was assaulted.
When he tried to take the case to court, the prosecution stalled the proceedings, while the interior ministry asked the National Income Agency to audit his tax and social security payments.
The episode provoked international condemnation from organisations including Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which took the case into account when preparing its latest Press Freedom Index released in April.
It ranked Bulgaria 112th in the world, the third-lowest among European countries, after Russia (150) and Belarus (158).
Mariya Petkova is a Bulgarian journalist covering the Middle East, the Balkans and Eastern Europe.
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