In the Case of D.H. and Others v. The Czech Republic

Approximately 150,000 to 300,000 members of the Roma ethnic group lived in the Czech Republic (defendant). Over half of the Roma children in the Czech Republic had been placed in special schools (i.e., schools operated by the Czech government for children with special social or mental needs). Studies indicated that Roma children were disproportionately represented in special-school enrollment. Children in special schools followed a simplified curriculum that placed the children many years behind students in traditional schools. In 1999, some Roma children and their families (collectively, the applicants) (plaintiffs) challenged the children’s placement in the special schools, asserting that the special-education system was discriminatory. The Czech Constitutional Court dismissed the applicants’ challenge. The applicants then filed a petition with the European Court of Human Rights, alleging discrimination in the applicants’ enjoyment of the right to education based on race or ethnicity, in violation of Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the convention) in conjunction with Article 2 of Protocol no. 1 of the convention. The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) issued a report finding that Roma children were often placed into special schools nearly automatically and that the placement practices must be fully examined. The ECRI later noted that Roma parents were often not given complete information regarding the choice to send children to special schools. The Commissioner for Human Rights also noted in February 2006 that Roma children were often placed into special schools based solely on ethnicity, without any psychological or intellectual assessment. The Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights found that no violation of the convention occurred because, among other things, the special schools had not been established solely to educate Roma children. The Chamber noted that the Czech educational system was imperfect with respect to the Roma children but found no conclusive evidence suggesting that the applicants had been placed in special schools based on racial prejudice. The Grand Chamber considered the case.