1 April 2022 – 31 March 2024
Maribor, Slovenia

The Association EPEKA, Soc. Ent., participated as a partner in the project Promoting Roma Equality in Slovenia and Slovakia – PRESS.

The project Promoting Roma Equality in Slovenia and Slovakia – PRESS, in which EPEKA Slovenia participated as a partner, aimed to promote and protect the rights of Roma who have faced discrimination by raising awareness among society and stakeholders, improving the implementation of non-discrimination legislation, and empowering Roma to seek legal aid in Slovakia and Slovenia.

The project Promoting Roma Equality in Slovenia and Slovakia – PRESS, which ran from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2024, aimed to protect the rights of Roma against discrimination and to raise awareness of society and stakeholders on these issues. The programme was implemented by Minority Rights Group Europe (MRGE) in cooperation with the Centre for Civil and Human Rights (Poradňa pre občianske a ľudské práva) in Slovakia and the EPEKA Association in Slovenia.

minorityrights.org

FINAL REPORT:

Programme Objectives:

  • To improve knowledge of anti-discrimination legislation and access to justice among legal professionals, NGOs, Roma mediators, activists and decision-makers.
  • To strengthen the capacity and willingness of legal professionals to provide legal assistance to Roma victims of discrimination and to assist them in legal proceedings.
  • Raise awareness among Roma communities of their rights and available remedies and encourage them to seek legal redress in cases of discrimination.

Key activities and achievements:

  • Research: A survey was carried out in Slovenia and Slovakia, mapping the different areas of discrimination against Roma and the obstacles to their access to justice. The results were published in a report in English, Slovak and Slovenian.

minorityrights.org

FINAL REPORT:

A Handbook for Lawyers – PRESS:

Handbook – Legal Protection:

Handbook – Equality and fairness:

  • Training: Two sets of training materials were produced for legal professionals, NGOs and Roma activists in both countries.
    • In Slovenia, 33 lawyers were trained on anti-discrimination legislation and case law.
    • 34 Roma activists and NGO representatives were trained on anti-discrimination legislation, available legal remedies and how to support discriminated Roma in reporting cases of discrimination to the competent authorities.
  • Fieldwork: Roma mediators and partners carried out 181 field visits to 80 Roma communities and interviewed 881 community members.
  • Legal aid: 129 free legal consultations were provided and 15 cases of discrimination were reported to national equality bodies or other competent institutions.
  • Round tables and advocacy: A round table for national equality bodies was organised to exchange experiences in dealing with discrimination and share best practices. 11 advocacy meetings were held at local and 3 at European level, where the results of the project were presented.
  • Shadow reports: Shadow reports were submitted to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, the UN Committee against Torture, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the UN Human Rights Council in the framework of the Universal Periodic Review mechanism.
  • Lessons Learned Report: A Lessons Learned Report was published in English, Slovak and Slovenian, summarising lessons learned from field and legal work in Slovenia and Slovakia.

minorityrights.org

Programme relevance:

The PRESS programme contributed to raising awareness of discrimination against Roma in Slovenia and Slovakia and strengthened the capacity of legal professionals, NGOs and Roma activists to deal effectively with discrimination cases. This was an important step towards greater equality and inclusion of Roma in both countries.

Resources

Project Partnership:

Minority Rights Group International (MRG), in collaboration with some 150 partners in more than 50 countries around the world, works to ensure that disadvantaged minorities and indigenous peoples, who are often the poorest of the poor, have a voice. Minorities, for which MRG is responsible, are defined as “disadvantaged ethnic, national, religious, linguistic or cultural groups that are smaller in number than the rest of the population and wish to preserve and develop their identity”.

The Centre for Civil and Human Rights (Counselling Centre) is a Slovak-based NGO focusing on the protection of human rights, with a particular emphasis on minority rights and protection against discrimination. It has long been working on the issue of discrimination against Roma in various areas of public life.

EPEKA, Soc. is an organisation active in the field of EU citizenship, EU values and intercultural dialogue, with branches in several European countries. It has a long-standing commitment to working with disadvantaged groups, both young people and adults, and to promoting the human rights of Roma in Slovenia.

The programme is funded by the European Union’s Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV) and the Ministry of Public Administration.

 

 

 

The Association EPEKA, Soc. Ent., is supported by: