ECtHR reports Czech Republic to compensate man who was assigned as a child to "special school" because of his Romani origin
The Czech Republic will pay Jaroslav Suchý EUR 4,000 for having assigned him to a "special school" in 1985 on the basis of his Romani ethnicity, according to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), to which Suchý appealed in 2016. The European Roma Rights Centre represented Suchý and the dispute was settled out of court.
“I am glad this protracted dispute with the state has ended and I accepted the offer of an out-of-court settlement after consulting my legal representative,” Suchý told Romea.cz. “This monetary settlement compensates for the discriminatory behavior I experienced.”
Suchý’s childhood was spent in an orphanage and he was assigned to “special school” by the Cheb Department of Education in 1985. For 10 years he was forced to attend a primary school intended for children living with mental disability and was told he would not be able to handle the curriculum of mainstream education.
Suchý completed his primary education after attaining his majority and later graduated from high school. He has previously stated that his being assigned to “special school” deprived him of the opportunity to educate himself and find gainful employment.
He first sued the Education Ministry, unsuccessfully seeking CZK 500,000 from them [EUR 20,000]. His appeal was refused by the Supreme Court, and because he was not successful with a Constitutional Court complaint either, he turned to the ECtHR in 2016.
The core issue of the case was whether, as a child of Romani origin, Suchý had also been subjected to discriminatory treatment as a consequence of the state practice of assigning Romani children to “special schools”. ERRC legal consultant Michal Zálešák has commented on the resolution has follows: “Any out-of-court settlement is always a compromise and can certainly be a disappointment, because it is a way for the authorities to defend themselves against having to deliver full justice.”
“Despite that fact, we are glad for Mr. Suchý that his case is closed, finally, after so many years, and that he has achieved this monetary settlement,” Zálešák said. The Czech Government has three months to pay the settlement.
The ECtHR previously heard a complaint from 18 Romani people against the Czech Republic who also complained of having been assigned to “special schools”. The court instructed the Czech Republic to stop discriminating against Romani pupils at that time.
