Groups Call on Czech Minister to Desegregate Schools

The Czech government should take immediate action to end school segregation, urged a letter sent to the newly appointed Minister of Education Josef Dobeš by the Open Society Justice Initiative and partner groups.

Almost three years after the judgement of the European Court of Human Rights in the case D.H. and Others v the Czech Republic, in which the Court confirmed that the overrepresentation of Romani children in special education constitutes discrimination, there is little evidence of progress.

In particular, there is no evidence of a decreased number of Romani children in special schools or otherwise segregated environments. Instead, the Czech School Inspection report from 2010 confirmed that up to 50 percent of the children placed in special education for children with a “mild mental disability” are Romani. In April 2010 the Ombudsman said that there is no acceptable justification for the high percentage of Romani children ending up in special education in practical schools.

The Justice Initiative joined with the European Roma Rights Centre, the Open Society Fund Praha, and the Roma Education Fund in calling on the new minister to help enact legislation to integrate Romani children into standard schools. The groups also asked the minister to make early childhood education available to disadvantaged children and to develop a curriculum to support integration.

The letter is available for download.