1. Anti-Discrimination and Other Human Rights Law 2. Political Developments 3. Attacks on Roma 4. Legal Threat to Housing Rights
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The Center for Civil and Human Rights (Poradňa pre občianske a ľudské práva, hereinafter also referred to as „Poradňa“) and the European Roma Rights Centre (hereinafter also referred to as “ERRC”) hereby jointly submit this report to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (hereinafter also referred to as “Committee”) for the consideration to the 72nd Pre-Sessional Working Group (05 Oct 2015 - 09 Oct 2015). The report focuses on issues disproportionately impacting Romani children in Slovakia including: - discriminatory legislation; - discrimination of Romani children in education; - sterilization of Romani girls without parental and informed consent; - segregation of Romani patients, including children, in hospitals; - adequate standard of living; - police ill-treatment and harassment; - Romani children in institutional care. In its 2007 Concluding observations (CRC/C/SVK/CO/2) , the Committee touched upon most of the abovementioned issues. The submitting organisations are concerned that Slovakia has done little to address the Committee’s concerns and recommendations and that progress in complying with the Convention on the Rights of the Child is slow and insufficient. Altogether more than 40 per cent of Roma in Slovakia live in segregated settings either outside of municipalities or on their peripheries. Many of those families live in substandard living conditions facing the threat of eviction. Residential segregation usually affects educational attainment and future employment possibilities. Discrimination against Romani children is twofold in education: they are overrepresented in special schools and classes for children with mild mental disabilities and also segregated in separate classrooms and schools within mainstream education. Romani children are also significantly overrepresented in State childcare institutions and disproportionally affected by the legislative framework regulating the social security system. In recent years, the submitting organisations have recorded a growing number of verbal and physically violent attacks and incidents of harassment committed by police against Roma, including minors, which have not been investigated effectively. Submitting organisations have also advocated for effective investigation of the practice of sterilization of Romani women and girls without parental and informed consent in Slovakia and adequate compensation for affected women and girls, which the Slovak Government fails to conduct.
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The Center for Civil and Human Rights (Poradňa pre občianske a ľudské práva, hereinafter also referred to as „Poradňa“) and the European Roma Rights Centre (hereinafter also referred to as “ERRC”) hereby jointly submit this report to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (hereinafter also referred to as “Committee”) for the consideration at its 72nd Session (17 May 2016 – 03 June 2016). The report provides updates on the issues disproportionately impacting Romani children in Slovakia, which were brought to the attention of the Committee before its 72nd Pre-sessional Working Group, including: - police ill-treatment and harassment; - Q access to water and sanitation; - discrimination of Romani children in education; - segregation of Romani patients, including children, in hospitals; - the practice of sterilisation of Romani girls without parental and informed consent. The report we submitted to the Committee for the Pre-sessional Working Group included also chapters on discriminatory legislation, adequate standard of living and Romani children in institutional care. However, the submitting NGOs have not registered updates in relation to them that is why they are not included in this alternative report although the violations described in these areas still persist and we request the Committee to consider them during the constructive dialogue with Slovak representatives during the Session.
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The Center for Civil and Human Rights (Poradňa pre občianske a ľudské práva, hereinafter also referred to as “Poradňa“) and the European Roma Rights Centre (hereinafter also referred to as “ERRC”) hereby jointly submit this report to the United Nations Committee against Torture (hereinafter also referred to as “Committee”) for the consideration to the 55 Session (27 July 2015 - 14 August 2015). The report focuses on the following issues: • sterilisation of Romani women and girls without parental and informed consent; • police ill-treatment and harassment of Roma; • ineffective investigation of allegations of police ill-treatment and harassment.
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The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) and Chiricli respectfully submit written comments concerning Ukraine for consideration by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) at its 52nd Session from 28th April to 23rd May 2014. Regular monitoring of the human rights situation of Roma in Ukraine has been undertaken by the ERRC and Chiricli, and the work of both organisations is reflected in this submission. The present document does not aim to address all issues relevant to the implementation of the Covenant or its provisions in Ukraine, nor is the document a comprehensive summary of all human rights issues facing Roma in Ukraine. With this submission, the ERRC and Chiricli aim to present the results of research in several areas of relevance to the Covenant in order to complement the information provided in the State Report. The information reflects the current priorities of the submitting organisations in their work in Ukraine. According to the 2001 census, the most recent census data, the population of Ukraine is about 45,453,000 people, among them 47,587 Roma. However, unofficial estimates suggest that the number of Roma in Ukraine is between 120,000 and 400,000. Nationwide, comprehensive data on the socio-economic situation of the Roma in Ukraine do not exist. While nationwide statistics are in general based on the census results, the majority of Roma – for reasons that should be clear from what follows – do not disclose their identity in census-taking which creates a serious obstacle for the production of reliable data. Roma in Ukraine face everyday discrimination and social exclusion. Available data, often collected by civil society organisations, indicate that many Romani communities in Ukraine live in conditions of extreme poverty, often in segregated settlements with little or no access to services such as the education system, health system and other essential services. A number of overarching issues and developments have an impact on the enjoyment of all economic, social and cultural rights by Roma in Ukraine. These include the Strategy for the Protection and Integration of the Roma national minority into Ukrainian society up to 2020 and the National Action Plan on Roma Inclusion, both adopted in 2013 as well as recently-introduced anti-discrimination legislation. Other major issues of concerns also addressed in this submission are the lack of personal documents and the consequences thereof when trying to access essential services, the lack of comprehensive or reliable ethnic data, and particular obstacles faced by Roma in Ukraine in relation to accessing education and housing.
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The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) submits this parallel report to the Human Rights Committee, for consideration at the 114th session (29 June to 24 July 2015). This report highlights some of the key human rights concerns for Roma in France.
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The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) hereby submits this report to the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) for the universal periodic review of France’s compliance with its human rights commitments. This report focuses on housing, forced evictions, access to water and sanitation.
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This list of critical issues with background information is presented by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) for consideration by the Committee on the Elimination of the Racial Discrimination at its 87th session (03 - 28 August 2015). It contains country-specific information on issues affecting Roma in Macedonia that raises questions under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD or Covenant hereafter). The Republic of Macedonia has 2,022,547 inhabitants, of whom 53,879 (2.66%) have declared themselves Roma. However, the available unofficial estimate for Roma is 135,490 (6.77%). Roma live in 75 out of 85 municipalities across the country. According to official data, the majority of Roma live in the capital, Skopje (23,475), with 56% of Skopje’s Roma concentrated in the municipality of Šuto Orizari (13,342).
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This list of critical issues with background information is presented by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) for consideration by the Human Rights Committee at its 112th Session (07-31 Oct 2014). It contains country-specific information on issues affecting Roma in Macedonia that raise questions under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The Republic of Macedonia has 2,022,547 inhabitants, of whom 53,879 (2.66%) have declared themselves Roma. However, as elsewhere in the region, the actual number of Roma is much higher than the official figure; the available unofficial estimate for Roma is 135,490 (6.77%). Roma live in 75 out of 85 municipalities across the country. According to official data, the majority of Roma live in the capital, Skopje (23,475), with 56% of Skopje’s Roma concentrated in the municipality of Šuto Orizari (13,342).
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The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) respectfully submits these written comments concerning the Republic of Macedonia for consideration by the Committee Against Torture at its 54th Session (20 Apr - 15 May). The Republic of Macedonia has 2,022,547 inhabitants, of whom 53,879 (2.66%) have declared themselves Roma. However, as elsewhere in the region, the actual number of Roma is much higher than the official figure; various sources and research suggest that the number of Roma is between 150,000 and 260,000, with one unofficial study placing the number at 135,490 (6.77%). Roma live in 75 out of 85 municipalities across the country. According to official data, the majority of Roma live in Skopje (23,475), with 56% of them concentrated in the municipality of Šuto Orizari (13,342).
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This list of critical issues with background information is presented by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) for consideration by the Human Rights Committee at its 112th Session (07-31 Oct 2014). It contains country-specific information on issues affecting Roma in Macedonia that raise questions under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The Republic of Macedonia has 2,022,547 inhabitants, of whom 53,879 (2.66%) have declared themselves Roma. However, the available unofficial estimate for Roma is 135,490 (6.77%). Roma live in 75 out of 85 municipalities across the country. According to official data, the majority of Roma live in the capital, Skopje (23,475), with 56% of Skopje’s Roma concentrated in the municipality of Šuto Orizari (13,342).
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1. The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) respectfully submits written comments concerning Romania for consideration by the Committee Against Torture at its 54th Session. The ERRC is an international public interest law organisation engaging in a range of activities aimed at combating anti-Romani racism and human rights abuse of Roma, in particular strategic litigation, international advocacy, research and policy development, and human rights training. Since its establishment in 1996, the ERRC has endeavoured to provide Roma with the tools necessary to combat discrimination and achieve equal access to justice, education, housing, health care, and public services. 2. Regular monitoring of the human rights situation of Roma in Romania has been undertaken by the ERRC and other NGOs. The analysis of the Romanian legal framework is informed by our extended litigation experience in both domestic and international forums. 3. After a brief overview of anti-Roma attitudes in Romania, this submission follows the order in the List of Issues Prior to Reporting. While the issues highlighted are often of a general interest, the ERRC is convinced that they have a disproportionate impact on Roma, given Romania’s history of discrimination against and exploitation of Roma, as well as enduring stereotypes and hostility towards them. The present document does not aim to address all issues of relevance to the implementation of the Convention or its provisions in Romania, nor is it a comprehensive summary of all human rights issues facing Roma in Romania. 4. According to current unofficial estimates, Roma in Romania make up approximately 9% of the population (approximately 1,850,000). However, a verified and accurate count remains elusive. According to the final results of the 2011 Census of the Population and Households published on 4 July 2013 by the National Statistics Institute, Romania had a total population of 20.12 million. Among the 18.88 million respondents who self-reported their ethnicity, 621,600 were Roma (3.3%, an increase from 2.46% in the 2002 census). 5. Deeply entrenched anti-Roma attitudes can be vividly seen in the annual surveys carried out by the National Council for Combating Discrimination (NCCD): in 20052 61% of respondents thought that Roma were a source of shame for Romania, while 52% of respondents went further to say that Roma should not be allowed to travel outside the country. These attitudes have not improved much: in 20133 48% of respondents said that they did not want a Roma work colleague, 41% would not want a Roma neighbour, and 38% would not want any Roma in their municipality. Public authorities are not insulated from these wide-spread and pernicious attitudes; in the absence of robust safeguards these attitudes may translate into violations of the Convention. 6. In recent years international monitoring bodies have expressed particular concern about the rise in anti-Roma rhetoric and racism in Romania. For instance, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) noted in its 2014 report that “Stigmatising statements against Roma are common in the political discourse, encounter little criticism and are echoed by the press, the audiovisual media and on the Internet. No effective mechanism is in place to sanction politicians and political parties which promote racism and discrimination.” Similarly, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (“CERD”) stated in its 2010 Concluding Observations on Romania that it was “concerned at reports of the spread of racial stereotyping and hate speech aimed at persons belonging to minorities, particularly Roma, by certain publications, media outlets, political parties and certain politicians”. 7. CERD also expressed its concern regarding “the excessive use of force, ill-treatment and abuse of authority by police and law enforcement officers against persons belonging to minority groups, and Roma in particular”. 8. The climate of impunity for hate speech, stigmatisation, and discrimination is compounded by the absence of a robust framework to address anti-Roma violence, in particular violence perpetrated by the police. Again according to ECRI, as of 2014 “No significant steps have been taken to ensure compliance with the principle of non-discrimination by the police or to enquire as to the reasons why no complaints have been lodged against police officers”.
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The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) submits this parallel report to the Human Rights Committee reporting country-specific information on issues affecting Roma in Serbia that raise questions under the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (CCPR). The present report describes the current situation regarding serious human rights abuses of Roma in Serbia – school segregation, ethnic discrimination and lack of birth registration. The ERRC respectfully submits its written comments concerning Serbia for consideration by the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (CCPR) at its Concluding Observations of the 119th Session, which will be held from 6 to 29 March 2017. The ERRC has undertaken regular monitoring of the human rights situation of Roma in Serbia and this report reflects the current priorities in our work in Serbia. According to current official estimates, Roma in Serbia make up approximately 2.05% of the total population or 147,604 Roma. This makes Roma the second largest minority after Hungarians. However, a verified and accurate count remains elusive. Unofficial sources suggest that the number of Roma in Serbia is significantly higher, ranging between 250,000 to 500,000. In addition to the autochthonous groups, an estimated to 50,000 Roma fled during and after the conflict in Kosovo to Serbia; only half of whom registered as internally displaced persons (IDPs). However, it is not known if all of them remained in Serbia or left for destinations in Western Europe. Furthermore, thousands of Roma have been returned to Serbia from Western European countries in the last years as failed asylum seekers; including Roma who were originally from Kosovo. Roma are the youngest ethnic group in Serbia. The average age is 27.5 years, compared to 40.2 years among the general Serbian population. According to UNICEF, the primary school completion rate for non-Roma children is 94.5% and the transition rate to secondary school is 96.5%, while for Roma children the primary school completion rate is considerably lower - 63%, while the numbers for secondary school for Roma youngsters is even lower - 55.5%. Illiteracy rates range between age groups from 13.7% amongst adolescents to 57.2% among the elderly. Romani women are extremely disadvantaged when it comes to education achievements; illiteracy is estimated to reach up to 80%.
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The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) submits this parallel report to the Council Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review reporting country-specific information on issues affecting Roma in Serbia that raise questions under the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (CCPR). The present report describes the current situation regarding serious human rights abuses of Roma in Serbia – school segregation, ethnic discrimination and lack of birth registration. The ERRC respectfully submits its written comments concerning Serbia for consideration by the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (CCPR) at its 29th working group session, which will be held from January to February 2018. The ERRC has undertaken regular monitoring of the human rights situation of Roma in Serbia and this report reflects the current priorities in our work in Serbia. According to current official estimates, Roma in Serbia make up approximately 2.05%2 of the total population or 147,604 Roma. This makes Roma the second largest minority after Hungarians. However, a verified and accurate count remains elusive. Unofficial sources suggest that the number of Roma in Serbia is significantly higher, ranging between 250,000 to 500,000. In addition to the autochthonous groups, an estimated to 50,000 Roma fled during and after the conflict in Kosovo to Serbia; only half of whom registered as internally displaced persons (IDPs). However, it is not known if all of them remained in Serbia or left for destinations in Western Europe. Furthermore, thousands of Roma have been returned to Serbia from Western European countries in the last years as failed asylum seekers; including Roma who were originally from Kosovo. Roma are the youngest ethnic group in Serbia. The average age is 27.5 years, compared to 40.2 years among the general Serbian population. According to UNICEF, the primary school completion rate for non-Roma children is 94.5% and the transition rate to secondary school is 96.5%, while for Roma children the primary school completion rate is considerably lower - 63%, while the numbers for secondary school for Roma youngsters is even lower - 55.5%. Illiteracy rates range between age groups from 13.7% amongst adolescents to 57.2% among the elderly. Romani women are extremely disadvantaged when it comes to education achievements; illiteracy is estimated to reach up to 80%.
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Articles 2, 23 (1), 24 (1)– Right to family and non-discrimination: Romani Children in State Care 3 Articles 2, 26, 27: Right to equal education: School segregation of Romani pupils 4 Articles 2, 26, 27: Harassment and differential treatment of Romani women at childbirth 6 Articles 2, 20, 26: Racial profiling of Roma: Discriminatory fining practices, discriminatory inspections and harassment of Roma by the Hungarian authorities 6
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This list of critical issues with background information is presented by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) for consideration by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights at its 56th Session (Presession working group 12 Oct- 16 Oct). It contains country-specific information on issues affecting Roma in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (hereinafter “Macedonia”) that raises questions under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (hereinafter “the ICESCR” or “the Covenant”). Macedonia has 2,022,547 inhabitants, of whom 53,879 (2.66%) have declared themselves to be Roma. However, the available unofficial estimate for Roma is 197,000 (9.56%). Roma live in 75 out of 85 municipalities across the country. According to official data, the majority of Roma live in the capital, Skopje (23,475), with 56% of Skopje’s Roma concentrated in the municipality of Šuto Orizari (13,342).
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According to current unofficial estimates the total number of Roma in Romania may be up to two million people. A verified and accurate count remains elusive. In 2013, the National Statistics Institute published the results of the 2011 Census of the Population and Households, finding that the total population had dropped from 21.68 million inhabitants in 2002 to 20.12 million. Of the 18.18 million respondents who gave information about their ethnicity, the number of persons self-identifying as Roma had increased to 621,006 (3.3% of total respondents, an increase from 535,140 (2.46%) in the 2002 census). The ERRC’s research in Romania shows that Roma face discrimination, social marginalisation and extreme poverty and challenges in many areas of life, including employment, housing, health and education.
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