Bullying and discrimination of
Roma children at school: what
can the Council of Europe do?
Intervention by Michaël GUET, Head of the I-CARE Unit and
Secretary of CAHROM, Support Team of the Special Representative
of the Secretary General for Roma Issues
ERIO/ILGA event, European Parliament, Strasbourg,
16 December 2014
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS
• What can the Council of Europe further do? (as
several sectors already address the topic of
bullying and discrimination at school)
• Before
even
addressing
bullying
and
discrimination at school fo Roma children, we
should address in many member States and
localities the access to education of Roma
(and Traveller) children!
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
Main issues and obstacles
Roma families face multiple issues,
(poverty, unemployment, debt,
domestic violence, etc.) which leads to
more attention being paid by the family
on solving socio-economic issues
rather than on children’s education.
A lower expectation from teachers
concerning Roma children, lower
quality education provided to Roma
children and a lack of knowledge of
Roma culture and history.
Language barriers (many children
speak Romani at home and have little
knowledge of national language).
Other barriers include lack of ID,
ghettoisation/housing segregation,
constant evictions, health problems...
School drop-outs, absenteeism and
lack of school enrollment (due to
bullying & discrimination; low
education of Roma parents &
tendency for overprotection; lack of
dialogue between schools & parents;
fear of assimilation; travelling way of
life; early marriage...
School segregation, special
classes and enrolment in schools
for mentally disabled.
Negative attitude and perception
from non-Roma parents, and
sometimes school professionals based
on prejudice and stereotypes.
Refusal from schools/authorities to
accept Roma or Traveller children.
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
STANDARDS (CONVENTIONS)
Relevant Council of Europe’s Conventions provide standards
addressing human rights, minorities’ rights and children’s
rights, such as:
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1950 Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and
Fundamental Freedoms (Art. 14- Prohibition of discrimination); Protocol 1
(Art. 2-Right to education), and Protocol 12;
1961 European Social Charter (ESC) and the 1996 Revised ESC;
1992 European Charter of Regional or Minority Languages;
1995 Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities
1995 Council of Europe Convention on the Exercise of Children’s Rights
2007 Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against
Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse
2014 Council of Europe Convention on the Rights of the Child
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
CM RECOMMENDATIONS
The Committee of Ministers (CM) of the Council of Europe adopted
several relevant Recommendations:
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CM Rec(2000)4 on the education of Roma/Gypsy children in Europe;
CM Rec (2006)19 on policy to support positive parenting;
CM Rec(2009)4 on the education of Roma and Travellers in Europe;
CM Rec(2008)5 on policies for Roma and/or Travellers in Europe;
CM Rec(2012)9 on mediation as an effective tool for promoting
respect of human rights and social inclusion of Roma.
http://www.coe.int/t/cm/home_en.asp
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
ECtHR JUDGEMENTS
Several landmark judgements of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR)
condemned discrimination of Roma children at school, either due to separate classes or
enrolment of children in special schools (for mentally disabled):
•
D.H. and Others v. the Czech Republic (13 November 2007)
In the Czech Republic (in 2007), above 50% of the children in special schools for the mentally handicapped were Roma, even though they made
up about only 5% of the total population (in 2014: 30%). The Court held that the Roma applicants had been the victims of indirect discrimination.
The Grand Chamber concluded that: at the very least, selection tests for the schools were biased and did not take into account the particular
characteristics of Roma children; the parents were not in a position to give informed consent to the children being placed in these schools.
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Sampanis and Others v. Greece (5 June 2008)
A number of Roma applicants complained of discrimination where a local school had firstly failed to enrol their children at all for a year, and then,
once places were provided, taught Roma children in separate ‘preparatory classes’, without any objective or reasonable justification. The Court
was able to infer from the facts of the case that the decision to place the Roma children in the annexe was influenced by the protests and the
blockade mounted by the parents of non-Roma children and it considered that the evidence adduced by the applicants created a strong
presumption of discrimination.
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Oršuš and Others v. Croatia (10 March 2010)
Roma children attending mainstream primary schools had been placed automatically in separate classes, supposedly on account of their lack of
proficiency in the Croatian language. The Grand Chamber noted that the test designed to separate the children did not assess their command of
the Croatian language. Furthermore, no programme had been established in order to address the special needs of Roma children lacking in
language skills that included a timeframe for addressing those needs and transferring the children back into mainstream classes.
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Horváth and Kiss v. Hungary (29 January 2013)
The applicants were two young men of Roma origin who had been assessed as having mild mental disabilities and placed in a school for the
mentally disabled. The applicants argued that this was a misplacement and amounted to indirect discrimination. The Court held that the State
has a positive obligation to undo a history of racial segregation in special schools.
Handbook for legal professionals on ECtHR case law “Ensuring access to rights for Roma
and Travellers: the role of the European Court of Human Rights”
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
OTHER COE REFERENCE TEXTS
•
Final Declaration of the 22nd session of the Standing
Conference of the Ministers of Education, on “Building a
more humane and inclusive Europe: role of education
policies” (Istanbul, 4-5 May 2007);
• Recommendations and policy orientations included in the
White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue “Living together as
equals in dignity”(Strasbourg, 7 May 2008);
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Strasbourg Declaration (20 October 2010);
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CM Declaration on the rise of anti-Gypsyism and racist
violence against Roma in Europe (February 2012).
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
ECRI (1/2)
The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI)
adopted the following relevant General Policy Recommendations:
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ECRI General Policy Recommendation No. 3 on combating racism and
intolerance against Roma/Gypsies (1998);
ECRI General Policy Recommendation No. 10 on combating racism and
racial discrimination in and through school education (2006) (see § II.1);
II. Combat racism and racial discrimination at school, and to this end:
1. ensure that schools are obliged to incorporate the fight against racism and racial discrimination as well as respect for
diversity into the way that they are run:
a) by ensuring that the fight against such phenomena in schools, whether they emanate from pupils or educational staff, is
part of a permanent policy;
b) by setting up a system to monitor racist incidents at school and compile data on these phenomena in order to devise longterm policies to counter them;
c) by adopting, in order to combat incidents of racism or discrimination which do not cause physical harm, educational
measures such as, for example, non formal education activities in organisations dealing with victims of racism and racial
discrimination;
d) by treating incitement to racial hatred in schools and any other serious racist act, including the use of violence, threats or
damage to property, as acts punishable by suspension or expulsion or any other appropriate measure;
e) by encouraging within schools the adoption of a code of conduct against racism and racial discrimination for all staff;
f) by favouring measures (such as special anti-racism days or weeks, campaigns or competitions) to foster awareness among
both pupils and parents of racism and racial discrimination issues and the relevant school policies;
ECRI General Policy Recommendation No. 13 on combating anti-Gypsyism
and discrimination against Roma.
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
ECRI (2/2)
Some examples of ECRI recent country-monitoring reports:
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ECRI recommends that the Swedish authorities step up their efforts to prevent and
combat racial harassment and bullying at school. It draws their attention to Part II,
paragraph 1 of its General Policy Recommendation No. 10 on combating racism and
racial discrimination in and through school education, which proposes a range of
measures that could be taken in this field.
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ECRI encourages the United Kingdom authorities to pursue their efforts to reduce
achievement gaps between minority ethnic pupils and the majority population, to reduce
disproportionality in exclusion rates and prevent racist or religious bullying in schools. It
draws their attention to its General Policy Recommendation No. 10 on combating racism
and racial discrimination in and through school education, which proposes a range of
measures that can be taken in this area.
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ECRI recommends [to the authorities of the United Kingdom] that particular attention
be devoted to combating bullying directed against Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children,
and draws attention to the importance both of training teachers in the history and culture
of Gypsies, Roma and Travellers and of promoting a greater awareness of these
amongst children and society in general.
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ECRI addressed the issue of bullying at school in §79 et seq. of its recent report on
Switzerland.
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
CAHROM (1/2)
The Ad Hoc Committee of Experts on Roma Issues (CAHROM) endorsed several thematic
reports addressing education of Roma children (http://www.coe.int/en/web/portal/cahrom)
•CAHROM (2012)6 Thematic report on school drop out and absenteeism of Roma children
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The Netherlands (requesting country)
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Hungary, Spain , Sweden (partner countries)
• CAHROM (2013)5 Thematic report on school attendance for Roma children, in particular Roma girls
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Finland (requesting country)
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Latvia, Norway, Sweden (partner countries)
• CAHROM (2012)18 Thematic report on inclusive education for Roma children v. special schools
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Czech Republic & Slovak Republic (requesting countries)
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Hungary, Slovenia, United Kingdom (partner countries)
•CAHROM Thematic report on inclusive pre-school education of Roma children (November 2014)
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Czech Republic (requesting country)
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Hungary, Latvia, Poland, “FYROM” (partner countries)
• CAHROM Thematic report on school inclusion of Roma (migrants’) children access to education and
distance learning for Travellers’ children (scheduled in March or April 2015)
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France (requesting country)
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Albania, Belgium (partner countries) + Denmark, Italy and Switzerland (tbc)
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
CAHROM (2/2)
Some extracts of CAHROM thematic reports related to combating
discrimination and bullying of children at school:
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Finland: bullying and demotivation result in unauthorised absences. Bullying
is a phenomenon of concern at school, though studies conducted in Finland
do not reveal that Roma children are more bullied than any other ethnic
groups. The most common form of bullying is ethnic name-calling. According
to school principals, addressing the issue of bullying is helpful.
Good practice: the Finnish Programme “No bullying in KiVa school”
is an interesting approach on addressing bullying for all schools and for
different age groups. It had been implemented in 90% of the Finnish
schools, partially or entirely. However, experts of the CAHROM thematic
group recommended including a section on bullying specifically targeted
at Roma pupils and giving teachers tools for reacting to ethnic
discrimination towards Roma.
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
EDUCATION & CHILDREN PROJECTS
• Project “Education of Roma children in Europe” (2002-2009)”
http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/education/roma/histoCulture_en.asp.
• Programme « Building a Europe for and with children »
http://www.coe.int/t/dg3/children/
• Council of Europe Strategy for the Rights of the Child (2012-2015)
• CM Guidelines on child-friendly justice
• Child participation assessment tool (including indicators to monitor
progress of children’s participation)
• Guidelines on integrated national strategies for the protection of
children against violence
• Publication “Children and young people in care – discover your rights!”
• Framework Curriculum for the Romani language
• Film “Beat bullying” - Tackling Bullying at School through Citizenship
and Human Rights Education http://www.coe.int/beatbullying and
http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/education/edc/Source/Resources/FlyerBeatBullying_EN.pdf
•Bullying and discrimination
•of Roma children at school
THE COE’S WAY FORWARD (1/3)
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(Roma) school mediators/ assistants
The joint EU/CoE ROMED programme is not just about training (Roma) mediators but about mediation as
a process, each actor having responsibilities and accountability. Some lessons from past experience:
- There is a need of a code of conduct and a clarification of the role of mediators in order for them to
perform their work properly [cf. CM Rec (2012)9 on mediation];
- There is a need for institutionalisation of mediators (good examples: Bulgaria, Romania, the Republic
of Moldova, etc.);
- There is a need for involvement and contribution of local authorities (e.g. Latvia, Portugal, etc.)
- The mediators should shift from service providers to facilitators of processes.
ROMED1 component on education includes school governance through which mediators, parents,
teachers, education professionals, etc. are involved in the process of education of Roma.
ROMED2’s focus is on governance at local level, including governance in schools.
The ROMED programme is a learning exercise for Roma and non-Roma who sit together and agree on
matters concerning them through effective participation (in decision making process, again including in
schools).
www.coe-romed.org
•Bullying and discrimination
•of Roma children at school
THE COE’S WAY FORWARD (2/3)
Sharing good practices such as
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Pre-school enrolment of Roma children (e.g. Hungary, “The FYROM”)
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Affirmative actions to facilitate school enrolment in mainstreamed education
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free meals free transport or free textbooks (e.g. Latvia, Poland)
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quotas and scholarships (e.g. Romania, “The FYROM”)
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Incubators and inclusion of Roma parents (e.g. Slovenia)
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Fighting bullying and discrimination at school (e.g. Finland)
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School assistants with a Roma background (Latvia)/bridge-builders (Sweden)
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Training of teachers on cultural diversity/Romani culture & history (e.g.
Sweden, Pestalozzi programme http://www.coe.int/en/web/pestalozzi)
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Collect and share good practices (e.g. Online database on Roma-retated
good practices http://goodpracticeroma.ppa.coe.int/en)
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Introduction of Roma history in school curriculum (e.g. International Seminar
on Introducing Roma History Teaching in School Curriculum, Rome, Italy,
December 2014; Roma history factsheets http://romafacts.uni-graz.at/; joint
CoE/OSCE-ODIHR website on the genocide of Roma during WWII
http://roma-genocide.org/
•Bullying and discrimination
•of Roma children at school
THE COE’S WAY FORWARD (3/3)
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Promoting a greater awareness of Roma culture, history amongst
children, young people and society in general and fight against
discrimination and prejudice/stereotypes
DOSTA! campaign “Go beyond prejudice, meet the Roma!” - www.dosta.org
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In 2005-2009 as joint CoE/EU Roma programmes; Since 2008 open to all CoE member States;
nationally implemented; Launched in 17 member States + Kosovo* ; financially supported by Finland
Multilingual website, Dosta! toolkit, leaflets, calendar, radio/video spots, CD, etc.
3 main objectives: address stereotypes and prejudice; combat anti-Gypsyism; promote Roma
culture, history, language and positive image/role models
Activities: public debates, music/theatre festivals, media training, street events, school awareness,
Roma history promotion, photos and drawing competitions, photexhibitions, portraits and testimonials
of integrated Roma/role models, Congress Dosta! prize; annual Roma Pride in 13 to 17 countries, etc.
No hate speech campaign
NO HATE SPEECH MOUVEMENT /
Young People Combating Hate Speech Online: project
run by the Council of Europe’s youth sector in 2012-2014. It aims to combat racism and discrimination, as
expressed online as hate speech, by mobilizing young people and youth organisations to recognise and
act against such human rights violations. http://nohate.ext.coe.int/The-Campaign
CoE Publication: Barabaripen: Young Roma speak about multiple discrimination following
a joint CoE Conference on multiple discrimination (with focus on Roma, women, migrants and LGBT)
Bullying and discrimination
of Roma children at school
More information on Roma issues at the Council of Europe at:
www.coe.int (go to Human Rights / Roma Rights)
On YOUTUBE:
Beat Bullying film (10’27):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5sB7mndfrQ
Chimères absentes short movie (11’36) by Fanny Ardant, Dosta!
ambassador: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo3xogU3T4c
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION!
Michaël Guet
Head of the I-CARE Unit
CAHROM Secretary
Support Team of the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the Council
of Europe for Roma Issues
michael.guet@coe.int