Romani children are among the next victims of discrimination in Europe, as Amnesty International condemns their lack of access to mainstream education.

Roma children in the Czech Republic are being denied their basic right to education, according to Amnesty International (AI), with the majority placed into lower standard establishments or schools for children with ‘mild mental disabilities’.

This finding is in spite of the recent court judgement that found the country guilty of violating the right of Romani children to an education free from discrimination.

Romani children are part of an ethnic European group, the term ‘Roma’ used as an alternative to ‘gypsy’. AI estimates that there are between 150,000 and 300,000 people of Romani ethnicity in the Czech Republic – around 1.5-3% of the total population.

The report reveals that in some areas, Romani children represent around 80% of the children in practical elementary schools – the new name for the former Czech ‘special schools’. It believes that the children are placed in these schools because they come from socially-disadvantaged backgrounds, not because they have any mental disability.

Although AI believes the Czech Government has acknowledged the issue, it does not think it has gone far enough in committing to ‘real solutions’, and that the reintegration of Romani children into mainstream education has not been a priority.

This is not the first reported instance of Roma discrimination in the country. In 1973, it is reported that the Czech Republic carried out a policy of sterilisation of Roma women. According to the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC), in November 2009 the Czech Prime Minister, Mr Jan Fischer, expressed his regret over the coerced sterilisation.

Rob Kushen, Managing Director of the ERRC, said at the time: “There are many hidden instances of coercive sterilisation. We urge the Czech government to step up investigative actions to ensure that all women who have suffered are identified and provided redress.”

In January this year, the European Court of Human Rights found that Bulgarian police had engaged in “inhuman and degrading treatment of three Bulgarian nationals of Roma origin during their arrest and detention in police custody”.

Persecution of Romanis reached a peak during the Nazi regime, where they were forcibly made to work in concentration camps, then later moved to extermination camps.

Why is the Roma community treated in such a way? In the Czech Republic, the majority of the Roma population suffers from high numbers of unemployment and a low-level of education, which some could argue encourages crime. Yet if the Romani children are denied access to standard, mainstream education, then surely what hope have they got?

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