NRC Demands Results, Not Just Excellent Projects
The issue of education of the Roma population is eminently political and will demand greater practical engagement by the state and its institutions, believes the National Roma Centre from Kumanovo.
“Looking at the past projects implemented by various ministries and institutions, they all look perfect on paper. On the other hand, there is little practical effect and we need to place the focus on such practical projects”, said Elezovski. He also warned on the continuing presence of stereotypes and discrimination against the Roma children in the schools, even practiced by their teachers, as well as the bad economic situation of the Roma community, which contributes greatly to the continuing discrimination. “This year again we will have 1,000 Roma children out of the schools because they lack the proper personal documents. For a family that lives on social welfare allowance of 2,000 denars monthly, the procedure to get a birth certificate can become an expense well beyond their reach. This is not educational, but purely political issue. If, in fact, the Roma are the least integrated ethnic community in Macedonian society, some urgent action is needed”, he added. The “Key is in Your Hands” campaign included several activities. Representatives of the NRC visited and talked to the parents of school-age Roma children to convince them to enroll them in school. Also series of meetings with representatives of elementary and secondary schools and the local self-government were held in all cities and townships with Roma children that need to go to school. According to Slavica Kurciska, although the official data on number of children that enrolled for the 2006-2007 academic year has not been released yet, the NRC data shows that the number of 304 Roma children that enrolled for the previous year has been well surpassed and that about 400 children enrolled the schools in Macedonia. NRC emphasized the positive experience of their cooperation with the media who could and do contribute for improved participation of the Roma community in education system and process in the country. A documentary film was produced under the auspices of the documentary (directed by Dragan Antonovski), that discusses the issue of Roma education in Macedonia. The film will have its premiere tonight, at 19:00 hours at the “Mala Stanica” cultural centre, while a great number of TV stations from the country and abroad expressed interest to air the film in their programmes. |
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