The Commission for Prevention and Protection against Discrimination expresses its dissatisfaction with the text of the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Primary Education. The original objective of amending the Law was to introduce provisions aimed at preventing the segregation of Roma children in education, in line with the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in Elmazova and Others v. the Republic of North Macedonia. The segregation of Roma children in education is a serious and complex issue that constitutes systemic racial and ethnic discrimination. Resolving this problem requires comprehensive changes to the legal framework, as well as national and local policies in the fields of education, housing, and social protection. It also necessitates significant investments to implement effective measures that ensure inclusive education for all children.
The Commission for Prevention and Protection against Discrimination has issued multiple opinions and consistently calls for systemic changes to address this problem. Therefore, we believe that the amendments to the Law on Primary Education in this regard are insufficient and will not significantly contribute to the eradication and prevention of segregation. The Commission has conducted various activities and submitted opinions and requests to the Ministry of Education and Science regarding the text of the draft law, which have not been addressed. The failure to explicitly name the problem as “segregation” symbolically reflects a lack of appropriate and effective solutions to overcome it. Once again, the Ministry has included exceptions to the rule requiring the enrolment of children in their nearest school, which might perpetuate and deepen the segregation.
Even more troubling is the fact that the Ministry is proposing amendments which undermine the inclusion of children with disabilities, gender equality, and the protection from discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Contrary of the obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Ministry designates the parents as the party who should have the final say in determining the best interest of the child. Consequently, the child’s best interest becomes subordinated to the parent’s interest. According to the Convention, parents should be involved in determining the best interest of the child, but it is also necessary for experts in education, social protection, and health care to be involved in the decision making. Through with this and other amendments, the Ministry is rolling back the inclusion process instead of adopting decisive provisions and making significant investments to create conditions for inclusive education.
The Ministry deletes the terms “gender equality,” as well as “sexual orientation,” “gender,” and “gender identity” as grounds for discrimination. This is contrary to the Law on Prevention and Protection from Discrimination, which mandates the harmonization of legislation.
The Commission has previously intervened in cases of discrimination and bulling against children in schools with various protected characteristics, including children with disabilities, special educational needs, Roma and LGBTI pupils. We believe that education is a critical area where inequality, violence, and discrimination against different groups are normalized, leading to long-term consequences for children’s psycho-social development.
We call on the Ministry and the Government to amend the law in line with our comments and recommendations and to acknowledge that, as an equality body, the Commission has the expertise, competence, and capacity in this area. Therefore, our demands, as outlined in the Law for prevention and protection from discrimination, should be taken into consideration. All children have the right to an equal and safe education!