Dimitar Peshev
| Dimitar Peshev | |
|---|---|
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| Born |
25 June 1894 Kyustendil, Principality of Bulgaria |
| Died | 20 February 1973 (aged 78) Sofia, People's Republic of Bulgaria |
Dimitar Peshev (Bulgarian: Димитър Пешев) (25 June 1894 – 20 February 1973) was the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Bulgaria and Minister of Justice (1935-1936), before World War II. He rebelled against the pro-Nazi cabinet and prevented the deportation of Bulgaria's 48,000 Jews and was bestowed the title of "Righteous Among the Nations".
Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria joined in an alliance with Adolf Hitler in 1940 agreeing to what his anti-Semitic course. In January 1941 the parliament (National Assembly) of Bulgaria put into effect the "Law for protection of the nation", which was modeled upon the Nuremberg Laws. Dimitar Peshev as a vice president of the Sobranie did not object to the Bulgarian alliance with Nazi Germany when King Boris III joined Hitler’s Axis. He did not object to drafting anti-Jewish laws (Law for Protection of the Nation Закон за защита на нацията [1]). In fact in 1940 he voted for the law to protect the nation [2].These laws depicted the Jews as the country's most vile enemies and defined as a Jew anybody who had at least one Jewish parent. Under the law, Jews were no longer eligible for Bulgarian citizenship, had to change their last names if they resembled anything Bulgarian and could not intermarry with non-Jews. A strict quota of less than 1% was instituted dictating how many Jews could study in universities, and Jews could not hold employment in the majority of occupations. The majority of Bulgarians, including many members of parliament, the Orthodox Church, writers, artists, lawyers and other members of the intelligentsia opposed the law.
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