Urgent: for the attention of the Bulgarian Prime Minister

Urgent: for the attention of the Bulgarian Prime Minister   Date:  22nd December 2017

RE:  Mr Saman Bohaden Majed D.O.B:  1979

Dear Boyko Borrisov,

My name is Dashty Jamal, General Secretary of International Federation of Iraqi Refugees and I am writing to you on behalf of Mr Saman Bohaden Majed whose body was found in the Bulgarian sea, and moved to the police station Bulgaria 8130 Sozopol Pirin Street.  His body is currently being held in the morgue in the city of Bourgas.

The Bulgarian Police contacted Saman’s family via messenger once they found and identified his body.  Saman’s family requested that his body not be buried in Bulgaria but that his body be returned to Kurdistan. The family wish to arrange a funeral in Kurdistan. His family also made contact with me in the UK in order to assist them with this case.  We immediately sent a member of his family from London to Bulgaria and also one of our Representatives in Bulgaria, they went to the address mentioned above where Saman’s body was held on two separate occasions.  On 23rd October 2017, they provided all of the information which the authorities requested and they provided hair samples from Saman’s mother for a DNA test to be carried out so that the authorities would be able to release the body to his family.

Since 23rd October, I have personally contacted the Bulgarian Embassy regarding this case on many occasions and I sent all of the information requested to your Embassy. I was told several times that everything in this process is finished however Saman’s body has still not been released to his family.  Our representatives from Bulgaria have also been constantly calling and chasing up the status of this case as have I.  Unfortunately your authorities refuse to release the body and they are unable to provide any reasons for why they are unable to do so.

Saman’s family are very worried they are unable to properly mourn their loss until the body is released to them.  They have spent a lot of money and time on this case and are in severe distress. The family is in daily touch with us from Kurdistan calling on us follow up on the status of this case.  Due to the sensitivity of this case and the impact it is having on Saman’s family, I ask if you could kindly use your authority and position to help Mr Saman’s family and release his body to them as a matter of urgency before the New Year. This will enable them to properly mourn their loss and relieve them of their distress.

His family would appreciate this deeply and I hope this can be resolved as soon as possible.

Please contact me if you require any further information and I hope to hear back from you.

Yours truly,

Dashty Jamal

Secretary of International Federation of Iraqi Refugees-IFIR

The International Federations of Iraqi Refugees has predicted the regressive trend of ther era, warned against its destructive effects on people’s lives at various junctures, clarified the practical ways in which to resist, and been at the forefront of the struggle for defending human values and refugee rights. Our starting point in the struggle for refugee rights as ever has always been the inalienable right of human beings to a better life. The effort and struggle to secure free and equal rights is an ongoing vast social movement with various dimensions and forms. Our philosophy of existence and daily activities are connected to ther very struggle to secure and guarantee the rights of human beings. We believe, first and foremost, in the unconditional freedom of travel and movement and freedom to choose one’s place of residence for all. Furthermore, we believe that eliminating the calamities of today’s world is linked to the abolition of capitalism, a system that reproduces poverty, hunger, war and flight on a daily basis for billions of people and owes its survival to these very social inequalities. Until the refugee question remains, however, we are duty-bound to continue our struggle to secure and guarantee the most extensive refugee rights.