Commission Report (2002): Czech Republic

Minority rights and the protection of minorities

The 2001 Regular Report noted that while the Government had made considerable efforts as regards Roma and other minorities, further governmental and non-governmental measures to combat widespread discrimination were still needed. Over the reference period, the Government has adopted some more measures in favour of the Roma minority.

The first Report on the situation of national minorities in 2001, submitted in line with the Law on the Rights of National Minorities and adopted by the government in June 2002, identified a number of persistent problems, mainly related to the use by members of minority groups of their mother tongue. The Council also administers grants from the state budget to minorities. In 2001 approximately CZK 30 million was allocated to supporting publications by and for minority groups, CZK 10 million for cultural activities and CZK 15 million for educational activities.

In November 2001 the Government adopted a set of measures to achieve a more vigorous implementation of the government policy for Roma of June 2000. Key measures include the extension of the ``street workers'' (social workers) scheme, the adoption of a primary school pilot project over the 2002 -- 2003 school year and the extension of preparatory classes to prepare Roma children for mainstream primary schools and the presence of assistant teachers beyond primary school.

In January 2002, the Government updated its policy towards the Roma, first adopted in June 2000, by assessing the fulfilment of its tasks and setting out the main priorities for the future. These include the strengthening of the human rights institutional framework; anti-discrimination measures, in line with the acquis; affirmative action in education, employment, social and health care and housing; support for the development of Roma language and culture; changing social attitudes; ensuring the security of the Roma.

However, the budgetary framework for this policy is fragmented along ministerial lines so the necessary resources, for example for housing programmes, need to be made available in the state budget for 2003. Also, regional and local authorities, which are indispensable for the implementation of such a programme, are invited to participate but mechanisms for their co-ordination are lacking.

The Inter-Ministerial Roma Commission, now called the Council for Roma Affairs, has 14 Roma regional representatives and an equal number of officials from the ministries. As in 2001, the Council was allocated CZK 25 million to administer projects for the support of the Roma community, mainly comprising scholarships for Roma students and support for social workers. In February, the Government released a further CZK 9 million to complete the housing project ``Co-Existence Village'' in the city of Ostrava (northern Moravia), started in 1999, which addresses the needs of socially disadvantaged families, some of whom were affected by the floods of 1997.

Building on the experience of the anti-racism campaign ``Tolerance Project'', the Government approved in April a new campaign worth CZK 6 million, consisting mainly of an information and media campaign at regional and local level, a media presentation of the Roma social street workers project, as well as an education campaign at secondary schools.

The Government approved a set of measures dealing with the education of Roma children. The Government thus reacted to the final recommendations of the UN Human Rights Committee, which deplored the segregation of Roma children in special schools. The measures include the dissemination of information material, a voluntary full-time schooling pilot project in five primary schools, and the continuation of the preparatory classes scheme.

Following transfer of competence to the regions, the Regional Premiers (hejtmans) have decided to appoint Roma co-ordinators in only 7 out of 13 regions so far. Meanwhile the fate of the much appreciated Roma advisors seems uncertain, as their administrative basis, the District Offices, will be abolished by the end of 2002. This extensive network has proved useful, by providing local contact points with the Community and by bringing Roma interests to the greater attention of the public administration. The appointment of Roma co-ordinators in the regions still lacking them and the preservation of the Roma advisors` network are important to maintain the momentum.

The National Action Plan on Employment for 2002 contains several measures aimed at improving the situation of the most disadvantaged groups on the labour market, in particular programmes aimed at boosting their qualifications and encouraging retraining. Also, the activities of the Committee for Long-term Unemployed aim to facilitate co-operation between all relevant actors at regional level in improving the situation of the most vulnerable groups on the labour market. In co-operation with Roma organisations, the Committee supports employment and creation of jobs for Roma population. Furthermore, the Committee supports development of specific educational and training programmes and seminars for disadvantaged groups.

In spite of these efforts, widespread discrimination continues to exist and the Government`s efforts to date have not yet reached a threshold capable of bringing about structural change. More attention should be given to achieving results in this area and to measuring progress in achieving them.

Regrettably, the new School Act laying down, inter alia, a wider reform of the education system, notably phasing out the system of special schools, was again rejected by Parliament. Meanwhile, the steps taken thus far by the Ministry of Education appear ad hoc and low impact. Nevertheless, both preparatory classes and the promotion of Roma assistant teachers in the classroom have had encouraging results on a small scale.

Roma unemployment remains very high. Widespread discriminatory hiring practices are still being reported. The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs has so far been unsuccessful in defining an incentive structure for the employment of Roma, as well as for positive actions, as called for by the government policy.

The government policy document recognises the gravity of the problem of the segregation of Roma into inferior categories of social housing (so-called ``holobyty'') and includes a survey of the situation. The absence of legislation against discrimination in the field of housing makes Roma families vulnerable to eviction, as local authorities have discretionary powers in the allocation of municipal housing.

An effective appeal system which may lead to appropriate compensation and sanctions, is required in order to deal with cases of discrimination. The Human Rights Commissioner has emphasised the need for comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation to be adopted and existing legislation to be applied more forcefully. For example, so far there has been no successful case concerning racial discrimination in the field of employment, despite the relatively strong legal framework which exists. Equally, the police and judiciary have a key role to play in ensuring impartiality in their dealings with the Roma community, as does the media in promoting tolerance of diversity. Decisive measures are needed to combat racially motivated violence, including where it would be committed by the police.

As reported in previous years, the Czech Republic is a party to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. In February 2002, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe concludedthat the Czech Republic had made commendable efforts to support national minorities and their respective cultures.

However, there was still scope for improvement, including by law-enforcement officials, especially as regards the Roma. Real problems remained as regards discrimination against the Roma in various fields.

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