''D.H. and Others v. the Czech Republic'' (No. 57325/00) was a case decided by the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...

(ECtHR) concerning discrimination of

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...

children in the

education system The educational system generally refers to the structure of all institutions and the opportunities for obtaining education within a country. It includes all pre-school institutions, starting from family education, and/or early childhood education ...

of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

. It was the first case of racial segregation in education to be considered by the ECtHR. As of 2021 the case is still pending at the Committee of Ministers and has not been resolved by the Czech authorities.

Facts and proceedings

Most children from the Roma minority in

Ostrava Ostrava (; pl, Ostrawa; german: Ostrau ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic, and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 280,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four rive ...

attended special schools with simplified curriculum, forming majority of their students. The applicants — 18 Romani students, former and then-attendants of special schools, represented by the

European Roma Rights Centre The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) is a Roma-led, international public interest law organisation engaging in a range of activities aimed at combating anti-Romani racism and human rights abuse of Romani people. The approach of the ERRC involves ...

— submitted an application to ECtHR in 2000. The Court has declared in 2005 the application admissible in part on Article 14 (prohibition of

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...

), combined with Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 (

right to education The right to education has been recognized as a human right in a number of international conventions, including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which recognizes a right to free, compulsory primary education for ...

) of the

European Convention on Human Rights The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR; formally the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms) is an international convention to protect human rights and political freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by t ...

. The application in part concerning Articles 3 and 6 was declared inadmissible.

Chamber judgment

In 2006, the Second Section of the Court has found no violation in the case, by six votes to one. Judge

Costa Costa may refer to: Biology * Rib (Latin: ''costa''), in vertebrate anatomy * Costa (botany), the central strand of a plant leaf or thallus * Costa (coral), a stony rib, part of the skeleton of a coral * Costa (entomology), the leading edge of th ...

filed a concurring opinion, agreeing with the majority while saying that "I came to that conclusion only after some hesitation". Judge Cabral Barreto filed a dissenting opinion, finding a violation of Article 14, taken together with Article 2 of Protocol No. 1. The applicants appealed to the Grand Chamber.Request for referral to the Grand Chamber
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Grand Chamber judgment

In 2007, the Grand Chamber has found in the case a violation of Article 14, taken together with Article 2 of Protocol No. 1, by 13 votes to 4. Judges Zupančič, Jungwiert, Borrego Borrego and Šikuta have filed dissenting opinions, finding no violation. The Grand Chamber found that there was an indirect form of discrimination since Roma children ''de facto'' received inferior education because of their

ethnic origin An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...

References

{{reflist

External links

Collection of documents of the case on ERRC websiteChamber judgmentGrand Chamber judgment
2007 in case law Antiziganism in the Czech Republic Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights Education in the Czech Republic European Court of Human Rights cases decided by the Grand Chamber European Court of Human Rights cases involving the Czech Republic Romani rights Segregated schools 2007 in the Czech Republic 2007 in education

Facts and proceedings

Chamber judgment

Grand Chamber judgment

See also

References

External links