Statement by MODS

The Network of Organisations for the Children of Serbia (MODS) expresses its deep distress for the tragic death of three children caused by fire in Velika Krsna.

This event is a consequence of the situation in society and conditions in the system for protecting children and supporting parents, taking into consideration that parents are not receiving support, which is the fact we have been reiterating. We are afraid that a lesson might not be learned from this tragedy and that no much-needed changes will be made.

We have been pointing out to the lack of cooperation between the various services at the local and national levels, which are responsible for the protection of children. There is a lack of services and support at the local level for families with children, especially the poor and single-parent ones.

The question is raised of whether domiciliary care teams report about the cases of child neglect? Do domiciliary care teams inform the Social Welfare Centres about that? What does the Social Welfare Centres do to prevent such a tragedy? How do local self-governments plan social policy and protection of children?

It is easy to condemn the mother for this tragedy and to say that everyone in the neighbourhood knew what was going on, but no one reacted in time.

We tend to forget that she is not the only mother who was left alone with children and without job. We tend to forget that she was left without the support of close ones, family or neighbourhood. It is a moral (and legal) obligation of each individual to react and report any suspicion of child neglect and abuse. Because it concerns all of us and in this case all of us bear the consequences.

If as a society we do not learn the lesson, if we do not become aware that every one of us holds the responsibility for inaction, we are afraid that we will soon be informed by the media about a new tragedy whose victims will be our youngest citizens.
We therefore call on the public authorities and relevant ministries of health and social protection to understand the tragic event in Velika Krsna, in which three children lost their lives, as a final warning and alert to take all measures to prevent such terrible events in the future.

We enclose also the statement of Smiljka Tomanović, Professor at the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade:

"The latest tragic event that killed three children has opened several difficult and important questions, which are raised from time to time and are unfortunately repetitive, because they are not responded with actions.

Firstly, why do we lack state support for responsible parenting and institutional support at the local level, especially for the families at risk, such as single-parent ones?

Why are the competent institutions, almost as a rule, "uninformed" and "taken aback" by the events or "cases" occurring in the territory of their competence?

Then, what is being done to protect children from neglect and abuse, that is, what kind of sanctions are imposed in case of child neglect?

According to the 2005 Law on Family, it is not allowed to leave preschool children without adult supervision and the public should be continuously informed about that, in order to encourage more responsible parenting and to help parents who need help in child care.

Why, according to the (non-binding) Protocol on the Protection of Children from Abuse and Neglect, do we not punish those who have failed to act despite being witnesses of or suspecting neglect and abuse, regardless of whether they are state officials or citizens (parents, relatives, neighbours, friends)?

Finally, when will the media stop using human and family tragedies and abusing children to increase the number of copies sold?

There are many bad mistakes, many responsible persons, plenty of blame shifting. It is time to put an end to it, so that we as a society finally learn a lesson from one more tragedy and begin to act."

On 9 December 2013, Council of the European Union unanimously issued the Recommendation on Effective Roma Integration Measures in the Member States, which is the first legal instrument of the European Union dealing with the issue of Roma integration.

Even though not legally binding, the purpose of the recommendation is to provide guidance to the Member States in enhancing the effectiveness of their measures aimed at improving the situation of Roma and closing the gap between the Roma and the general population. The Recommendation specifically emphasizes the measures that should contribute to unimpeded access of Roma to the rights to education, employment, health protection and housing.

The document also particularly points to the combat against all forms of discrimination by strengthening the legislative framework, as well as to the reduction of poverty and vulnerability of Roma children and women. The Recommendations suggests that, in order to implement and monitor the national and local strategies and action plans, the Member States should allocate adequate funding from any available sources of funding (local, national, international and/or EU).   

Even though Serbia is not a member of the EU yet, it could most certainly use the recommendation as an encouragement to enable equal access to rights in the stated areas for all its citizens, including members of Roma ethnic minority.

Download: Council of the European Union Recommendation on Effective Roma Integration Measures in the Member States
Download: European Commission Proposal for a Council Recommendation on Effective Roma Integration Measures in the Member States

Download the guide: Guidelines for the Application of the Law on Non-Contentious Procedure "Determining the Date and Place of Birth" by Nikola Bodiroga, PhD

Preuzeto sa sajta Medija centra

Evropska komisija, Visoki komesarijat za izbeglice Ujedinjenih nacija (UNHCR) i Visoki komesar OEBS za nacionalne manjine objavili su danas zaključke Regionalne konferencije o pristupu upisu u matične knjige i ličnim dokumentima u Jugoistočnoj Evropi koja je održana 25. oktobra 2013. godine u Podgorici, Crna Gora.

Zaključci prepoznaju napredak ostvaren dve godine nakon usvajanja Zagrebačke deklaracije koja se odnosi na pitanja ličnih dokumenata i upisa u matične knjige u oktobru 2011. godine. U zaključcima se navode preostali koraci koje je potrebno preduzeti da bi se rešio problem lica bez ličnih dokumenata u regionu.

Zagrebačka deklaracija dovela je do pozitivnih pomaka, među kojima i do izmena zakona kojima se olakšava upis u matične knjige, izdavanje ličnih dokumenata i bilateralna saradnja. Međutim, i dalje postoje prepreke upisu u matične knjige i procesu izdavanja ličnih dokumenata koje zahtevaju sveobuhvatna i sistemska rešenja.

Evropska komisija, Visoki komesar OEBS za nacionalne manjine i UNHCR pozivaju vlade zemalja u regionu da osmisle rešenja koja prevazilaze rešavanje pojedinačnih slučajeva u definisanom vremenskom periodu. One bi trebalo da usvoje sveobuhvatne zakone i obezbede izdavanje odgovarajućih administrativnih uputstava, informišu odnosne zajednice i organizuju obuke za one koji zakon sprovode. Takođe je potrebno osnažiti međugraničnu saradnju u cilju otklanjanja prepreka za lica na koje se ove aktivnosti odnose.

Konferenciji koju je organizovalo Ministarstvo unutrašnjih poslova Crne Gore, prisustvovali su predstavnici vlada Bosne i Hercegovine, Hrvatske, bivše jugoslovenske Republike Makedonije, Kosova, Crne Gore i Srbije. Konferenciji su prisustvovali i predstavnici tri organizacije koje podržavaju ove napore, predstavnici civilnog društva i drugih agencija Ujedinjenih nacija.

Dvadeset godina nakon sukoba, na tlu Jugoistočne Evrope živi oko 20.000 pravno nevidljivih lica. Činjenica da ne poseduju lična dokumenta i da nisu upisani u matične knjige rezultat je društvene marginalizacije, u kombinaciji sa faktorima koji se odnose na raspad prethodne Socijalističke Federativne Republike Jugoslavije i raseljavanje. U odsustvu dokumenata kojima dokazuju svoje postojanje ili nacionalnu pripadnost, njima bivaju uskraćena prava.

Preuzmite: Zaključci konferencije
                Beleške sa konferencije
                Zagrebačka deklaracija iz 2011. godine

Download the report: Determination and the Protection Status of Stateless Persons, European Network on Statelessness

Download the analysis: Legal Analysis of Article 71k, Paragraph 2, of the Law on Non-Contentious Procedure by Nikola Bodiroga, PhD

On 6 December 2013 in Belgrade, Praxis, in cooperation with non-governmental organization Poradna pro občanství/Občanská a lidská práva from the Czech Republic, organized a press-conference and a roundtable “How to conduct situational testing” on the occasion of the end of the project of the same name, funded by the Transition Promotion Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic. 

At the press conference and the roundtable, Praxis presented its experience with situational testing. During the project period, Praxis conducted 5 cases of situational testing in three of which it collected evidence on discrimination against the Roma. The results of testing indicate that the Roma have been discriminated when trying to rent an apartment, get employed or open a bank account, which illustrates the extent of discrimination against the Roma in our society. For the cases in which evidence was collected, Praxis has initiated the appropriate procedures for protection against discrimination as discrimination against the Roma would not be left without legal consequences.

The representatives of the partner organization and the Ombudsman of the Czech Republic talked about their experience with special reference to time limits of situational testing of discrimination, psychological aspect of the testing and financing of accompanying strategic litigation. In addition, the representative of the Commissioner for Protection of Equality gave the overview of cases from the practice of this body in which situational testing was used to prove discrimination in Serbia.

Despite differences in the situational testing system reflecting in the obligation of reporting the situational testing and prohibition of audio and video recording in Serbia and the lack of obligation of reporting the testing Republic and freedom of audio and video recording in the Czech, the participants of the roundtable agreed that situational testing is the extremely useful evidence which needs to be applied more frequently in cases of discrimination. In addition, the participants discussed the specificity of conducting of situational testing, monitoring of recommendations of independent bodies competent for the implementation of anti-discrimination regulations and establishment of  court practice in Serbia in the field of discrimination and cases of situational testing used as evidence.

Also, the manual “Strategic Litigation in Service of Human Rights” prepared by Poradna pro občanství/Občanská a lidská práva was presented at the roundtable.

Download:
News at Media Centre
Press Release
Manual "Strategic Litigation in Service of Human Rights"

Praxis published the report Contribution to Social Inclusion and Combat against Discrimination of Marginalised Population in Serbia within the project Praxis implemented in partnership with the organisations Roma Educational Centre from Subotica and Osvit from Nis in the period December 2010 - November 2013 and with financial support by the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The report presents the results achieved and progress made, but also the remaining problems regarding the exercise of the right to be recognised as a person before the law, right to social welfare and health care, education, work and employment and adequate housing. The data used in this report derive from Praxis research based on the combined methodology that included the legal framework analysis, case studies, survey and focus groups with individuals of Roma ethnicity, as well as interviews with representatives of relevant authorities and institutions. Research results do not tend to accurately represent the population, but rather to illustrate the extent of the problems faced by Roma on a daily basis.

Download the report: Contribution to Social Inclusion and Combat against Discrimination of Marginalised Population in Serbia

On 6 December 2013 in Belgrade, Praxis, in cooperation with non-governmental organization Poradna pro občanství/Občanská a lidská práva from the Czech Republic, organized a press-conference and a roundtable “How to conduct situational testing” on the occasion of the end of the project of the same name, funded by the Transition Promotion Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic.

At the press conference and the roundtable, Praxis presented its experience with situational testing. During the project period, Praxis conducted 5 cases of situational testing in three of which it collected evidence on discrimination against the Roma. The results of testing indicate that the Roma have been discriminated when trying to rent an apartment, get employed or open a bank account, which illustrates the extent of discrimination against the Roma in our society. For the cases in which evidence was collected, Praxis has initiated the appropriate procedures for protection against discrimination as discrimination against the Roma would not be left without legal consequences.

The representatives of the partner organization and the Ombudsman of the Czech Republic talked about their experience with special reference to time limits of situational testing of discrimination, psychological aspect of the testing and financing of accompanying strategic litigation. In addition, the representative of the Commissioner for Protection of Equality gave the overview of cases from the practice of this body in which situational testing was used to prove discrimination in Serbia.

Despite differences in the situational testing system reflecting in the obligation of reporting the situational testing and prohibition of audio and video recording in Serbia and the lack of obligation of reporting the testing Republic and freedom of audio and video recording in the Czech, the participants of the roundtable agreed that situational testing is the extremely useful evidence which needs to be applied more frequently in cases of discrimination. In addition, the participants discussed the specificity of conducting of situational testing, monitoring of recommendations of independent bodies competent for the implementation of anti-discrimination regulations and establishment of court practice in Serbia in the field of discrimination and cases of situational testing used as evidence.

Also, the manual “Strategic Litigation in Service of Human Rights” prepared by Poradna pro občanství/Občanská a lidská práva was presented at the roundtable.

Download:
News at Media Centre
Press Release
Manual "Strategic Litigation in Service of Human Rights"

On the occasion of the completion of the three-year project “Contribution to Social Inclusion and Combat against Discrimination of Marginalized Population in Serbia”, funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Praxis held a press conference “Social inclusion – progress and challenges” in Media Centre. The report on the progress made in exercise of status and socioeconomic rights was also presented at the press conference. 

Download here.