The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination issued findings on Azerbaijan, Benin, Nicaragua, Slovakia, Suriname, the United States of America and Zimbabwe with regard to racial discrimination on August 30, 2022. (source: Unsplash)
Racism against Roma people and people of African descent has not vanished and remains a problem in Slovakia, the United Nations has found.
The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination published its findings on several countries, including Slovakia, on August 30.
"Despite the implementation of the Anti-Discrimination Act, racial discrimination persists in Slovakia, especially against Roma and persons of African descent," the committee wrote.
In its report, the committee talks about its main concerns and recommendations regarding the implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, adopted in 1965.
"It is essential that we continue to speak up against any notion of racial superiority and that we work tirelessly to free all societies from the blight of racism," said UN Secretary-General António Guterres on the International Day for People of African Descent.
The day falls on August 31.
Education and court proceedings
As for Slovakia, the committee expressed concerns over court proceedings in racial discrimination cases, saying that they are lengthy and impede victims' effective access to justice.
The country should adopt appropriate and necessary measures to eliminate the problems.
Moreover, the committee points out that many Roma children could not participate in online learning during the Covid-19 pandemic, because they did not have any access to the Internet.
Therefore, Slovakia should take necessary measures to "address the root causes of discrimination and segregation of Roma children in the education system" and make sure that Roma children enjoy equal opportunities in access to quality education.
Council of Europe's earlier warning
The UN Committee's report on racial discrimination is not the first one to address racism in Slovakia.
The Council of Europe's Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities published its Opinion on Slovakia on June 15, 2022.
The committee urged Slovak authorities to eradicate the discrimination of Roma children in education and to improve the mechanism for supporting national minority cultures.
