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Statistics (Percentage of the total number of the population on the year 20 1 1)

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Statistics (Percentage of the total number of the population on the year 20 1 1)

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  1. ERIO Workshop 2:“Protecting Roma Against Discrimination: The Role of Equality Bodies“27 September 2013, BrusselsExperience of the Office of the Equal opportunities Ombudsperson investigating roma complaintsAušrinė Burneikienė andDanguolė Grigolovičienė, Office oftheEqual opportunities OmbudspersonPhone+370 5 261 2660 ; +370 5 272 7719E-mailauburn@lrs.lt;dagrig@lrs.lt

  2. Statistics (Percentage of the total number of the population on the year 2011) • Lithuanians 84.1 % • Poles 6.6 % • Russians 5,8 % • Belarussians 1,2 % • Ukrainians 0,5 % • Jews 0,1 % • Germans 0,1 % • Tartars 0,1 % • Latvians 0,1 % • Gypsies 0,1 % (aprox. 2115) • Other 0,2 % • Undefined 1,1

  3. Public opinionQuestion: ,,Various group of people are listed here. Which people you would not like to live with? (in percent)

  4. Legal regulation of national minorities • Laws prohibiting discrimination • Law on Equal Treatment (main law implementing the EU Directives 2000/43 and 2000/78); • Criminal Code (2003); • Labour Code. • The Strategy of Development of the National (Ethnic) Relationships Policy • On June 8, 2004 under the Resolution of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania a long-term Action Programme for the Integration of National Minorities in the Lithuanian Society for 2005 to 2010 was adopted.

  5. The very first Programme for Roma integration in to the Lithuanian Society for 2000-2004 was approved by Lithuanian Government • The allocations for the implementation of this Programme have been assigned also by the Government directly from the State budget. • It should be noticed that the first Programme was the most successful in achieving the goals prescribed by it, e.g. the establishing of the Centre of Roma Society in Vilnius, the establishment of 2 preparatory classes in Vilnius secondary school, the publishing or curriculum for Roma children in Roma language.

  6. The second Programme for Roma integration in to the Lithuanian Society for 2008-2010 as well as the Action Plan for Roma integration in to the Lithuanian Society for 2012-2014 • have been approved by the Minister of Culture of the Lithuanian Republic. The Ministry of Culture is in charge to deal with the programme for 2012-2014 and the Action Plan. • Obviously the significance of the Programme for Roma integration has been put in to the lower position as not the Government , but the Ministry of Culture is entitled to implement the Programme in reality , also to coordinate the implementation of the Programme.

  7. It should be mentioned that Roma people face with the problems in the sphere of employment, housing, health services providing etc. • Unfortunately the other ministries, dealing with those specific areas do not have allocations assigned for the problems of Roma people. On our opinion, the local government should take more responsibilities to help Roma people in resolving their daily problems. • It is also very important to have and to support assistants of the teachers working in the schools with Roma children. The results of recent surveys showed that Roma children are willing to learn, to obtain knowledge and the number of Roma pupils is increasing little by little.

  8. Law on Equal Treatment Came into force in 1 January 2005; The Law prohibits: • Direct discrimination based upon gender, age, sexual orientation, disability, race, nationality or ethnic origin, language, social status, religion or beliefs, convictions or views. • Indirect discrimination. • Harassment. • Instruction to discriminate.

  9. How can you Address the Ombudsperson? • The complaints should be in writing, it can be send by post, fax, e-mail or brought directly to the Office; • Ombudsperson can start investigation on his own initiative when the complaint has been received by word or telephone, or if Ombudsperson has found indications of violation of equal rights; • The Ombudsperson may decide to investigate anonymous complaints; • The time limit for filing complaints shall be 3 months.

  10. What may the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson Decide? • To refer the material to investigative bodies; • To recommend to discontinue the actions violating equal opportunities or to repeal a legal act relating to that; • To dismiss the complaint; • To discontinue the investigation; • Admonish regarding a violation which has been committed; • To temporarily halt the investigation, if the person is ill or away.

  11. ROMA COMPLAINTS 2005-2012

  12. IN 2005 – the Office of Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson received 11 complaintsfromromapeople 4 regarding housing (3 of them were made repeatedly); • 3 regarding personal identity documents; • 2 regarding emplyment; • 1 regarding each a decision of the Seimas Ombudsperson and activity of the pre-trial investigation officers and the court.

  13. Interrelated cases of Roma discrimination in housing • The Public Institution Roma Community Centre, Mrs. Svetlana Novopolskaja, Lithuanian Gypsy Association Gypsy Fire,Josef Tyčina, and Vilnius City Gypsy Community, Stepas Visockis applied to the Office of Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson asking to make a legal evaluation of the fact of demolition of 5 Roma-owned residential houses and 1 non-residential building in the Roma settlement Kirtimai in Vilnius municipality. The demolition was initiated by Vilnius municipality on 2-3 December 2004.

  14. Interrelated cases of Roma discrimination in housing • Roma people that have suffered loss filed a lawsuit to Vilnius Regional Administrative Court for compensation for material and nonmaterial damage.

  15. As a result of project activities implemented by NGO every year, except 2006, quite a few complaints from Roma people were investigated • A woman of Roma origin faced direct discrimination while seeking employment. • On 29 October 2007 directed by the Labour Exchange S.M. applied to a café administration (Disona Ltd) for a job of a dishwasher. A representative of the administration claimed that the position of a dishwasher is already occupied.

  16. A woman of Roma origin faced direct discrimination while seeking employment • For the first time in Lithuania, the testing method was applied in this case. It was instrumental in identifying the discrimination fact: after a Roma woman had been refused employment, a Lithuanian woman was asked to apply for the same job on the same day (within a couple of hours). She was immediately offered the job in contrast to the Roma woman. While negotiating the employment contract with the Lithuanian woman, the employer’s administrator revealed that on that same day they had a woman sent by the Labour exchange, she was a “gypsy” and as the staff did not want a “gypsy”, they could not therefore employ her.

  17. S.M. filed a complaint to the Office of Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson. Having conducted an investigation the Ombudsperson ascertained direct discrimination in the sphere of employment and imposed administrative sanction. • The case investigation was dismissed when S.M. lodged the complaint to the court. On 30 June 2008 the court adopted the ruling, stating that a person of Roma origin had faced direct discrimination while seeking employment and adjudging from the defendant 864.98 Lt (an average wage) and 2000 Lt compensation for non-material damage. • On 10 December 2008 Vilnius District Court confirmed the decision of the lower instance court.

  18. In the other two cases of discrimination in employment employers were admonished regarding violation of the equal opportunities. • In the case of discrimination in housing the Municipality of Marijampole was very cooperative and improved living conditions of a Roma woman who have a disabled child.

  19. In 2010, Roma complaints accounted for the quarter of all complaints in this category. Three of them were about discrimination in housing. However, the fact of discrimination was not identified in all of them. In other two cases plaintiffs complained that they could not arrange identity documents. • Again discrimination fact was not identified in both of them. No complaints were received about discrimination in health care services.

  20. Decisions of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson in roma complaints (2005-2012) according article 24 Law on equal opportunities for women and men.

  21. Implementation of the Action Plan on Roma Integration into Lithuanian Society 2012–2014 started in 2012 • It aims to promote participation of the minority in life of the society, reduce social exclusion, improve awareness of Roma community and tolerance of the society. Some measures are funded under the European Commission’s PROGRESS programme by projects implemented by the Office of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman.

  22. For example, establishing two positions of teacher assistants to work with Roma children in Vilnius schools was supported by the Office in 2012-2013; organisation of educational events, preparation for the school year for Roma children in 2012 were are also supported by the Office.

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