News
From DADEL
News and case updates related to Anti-Discrimination and Equality law.
On this page you will find news items, press releases, and related links to information on recently decided cases and other developments in the area of anti-discrimination and equality law in Europe.
Anti-Discrimination Glossary in 22 Languages
EU Anti-Discrimination "For Diversity. Against Discrimination." Website Launches Glossary of Anti-Discrimination Terms in 22 Languages"
1 October 2007 -- The Anti-Discrimination Glossary is now available in 22 EU languages as part of the “Stop-Discrimination Guide” on the website of the "For Diversity. Against Discrimination." campaign. The glossary lists many of the most relevant terms used in the anti-discrimination and equality field.
UN Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples
United Nations adopts Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples
13 September 2007 -- The General Assembly today adopted a landmark declaration outlining the rights of the world’s estimated 370 million indigenous people and outlawing discrimination against them – a move that followed more than two decades of debate.
The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples has been approved after 143 Member States voted in favour, 11 abstained and four – Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States – voted against the text.
Report on Racism and Xenophobia in the EU
European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) Issues New Report on Racism and Xenophobia in the Member States of the EU
28 August 2007 -- Unequal treatment continues in employment, housing and education, according to data collected by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). Figures for racist crime in 2005 and 2006 are up in a number of EU countries. Data collection systems remain inadequate to support the fight against racism. While there are more signs that the EU’s anti-discrimination legislation is having a positive impact, victims of discrimination still lack knowledge of the new rules. This shows that Member States need to do more to raise awareness in this respect. These are some of the main findings emerging from FRA’s “Report on Racism and Xenophobia in the Member States of the EU”, presented at the European Parliament on 27 August.
Report on Fighting Racism in Education
New Report from European Network Against Racism: Fighting racism and promoting equal rights in the field of education
9 August 2007 -- A new report by the European Network Against Racism (ENAR), Fighting racism and promoting equal rights in the field of education, shows that ethnic and religious minorities face discrimination and disadvantage in European education systems and concludes that the Lisbon strategy in the field of education and training is not meeting its objective of ensuring equal opportunities for ethnic and religious minorities in education.
UN Convention on Disability Rights
UN Convention on Disability Rights Takes Another Step Towards Entry into Force
1 August 2007 -- The Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities was adopted by the UN General Assembly in New York on December 13, 2006. There are currently 101 signatories to the Convention and 55 signatories to the Optional Protocol. On July 20, 2007, Hungary became the second country to ratify the Convention, after Jamaica. The Convention will enter into force 30 days after it has been ratified by twenty countries.
Angelova and Iliev v. Bulgaria (ECHR)
ECHR Sanctions Excessive Delay in Investigating Racially Motivated Crimes
27 July 2007 -- On July 27, 2007 the European Court of Human Rights delivered its judgment in the case of Angelova and Iliev v. Bulgaria concerning the racial killing of a Romani man by a group of teenagers on April 18, 1996 in Shumen, Bulgaria and the official investigation which followed. The Court held that Bulgaria was responsible for breaches of the procedural aspect of the right to life (Article 2), in conjunction with the prohibition of discrimination (Article 14). The applicants (the mother and wife of the victim respectively) were represented by lawyers acting for the European Roma Rights Centre in cooperation with the Human Rights Project in Sofia.
Cobzaru v. Romania (ECHR)
Strasbourg Court Sanctions Romania for Failure to Remedy Police Ill-Treatment of Romani Man
27 July 2007 -- The European Court of Human Rights today delivered its judgment in the case of Cobzaru v. Romania concerning the beating of a Romani man by police officers while in custody in Mangalia, Romania, and the ensuing official investigation. The Court held that Romania is responsible for breaches of the prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment (Article 3), the right to an effective remedy (Article 13) and the prohibition of discrimination (Article 14). The applicant was represented by Monica Macovei, a Bucharest-based lawyer, the Romanian Helsinki Committee, and the European Roma Rights Centre.
Belgrade Court Finds Discrimination (Serbia)
Discrimination against Roma punished by the Court
27 July 2007 -- On April 19th 2007, the Fourth Municipal Court in Belgrade found Aleksandar Nikolić a security guard at the “Acapulco” club in Belgrade, guilty of denying access to three Roma citizens Zorica Stojković, Petar Antić and Ljutvija Antić solely on the grounds of their ethnicity. The Courts sentenced him to six months in prison, suspended for two years. The second accused, Aleksandar Sabo, was acquitted of all charges.
Report on Tackling the Pay Gap between Men and Women
European Commission Acts to Bridge Gender Pay Gap
18 July 2007 -- Across the EU economy, women continue to earn an average of 15% less than men, according to the European Commission. A new report released today sets out ways the EU can bridge the gap – which has barely changed over the past decade. The gender pay gap represents the difference between average hourly pay for women and men before tax across the economy as a whole. It reflects ongoing discrimination and inequality in the labour market which, in practice, mainly affects women.
Šečić v. Croatia (ECHR)
Judgment Expands ECHR Discrimination Jurisprudence
1 June 2007 -- The European Court of Human Rights yesterday delivered a landmark judgment in the case of Šečić v. Croatia, concerning the lack of a proper investigation carried out by the Croatian authorities into a racially-motivated attack on a Romani man. The judgment is the first in which the Court has elaborated on the obligations of states in cases of racially-motivated attacks perpetrated by private individuals.
Baczkowski and Others v. Poland (ECHR)
ECHR Finds Multiple Violations in Ban on Gay Rights Events
3 May 2007 -- The European Court of Human Rights released its judgment in a case challenging the Warsaw city government's refusal to allow a gay pride march and related events in May and June of 2005. The Court found that the ban had violated the applicants' right to freedom of assembly, and, moreover, that the ban had been discriminatory.
Gergely v. Romania and Kalanyos and Others v. Romania (ECHR)
ECHR Issues Decisions in Two Anti-Roma Pogrom Cases
27 April 2007 -- On 26 April 2007, the European Court of Human Rights delivered judgments in two cases concerning anti-Romani pogroms that took place in Romania at the beginning of the 1990s. The Romanian Government acknowledged responsibility for breaches of a number of articles of the European Convention on Human Rights, committed to paying considerable amounts of money as damages and costs to the applicants, and undertook to implement measures aimed at improving living conditions and interethnic relations in the aggrieved communities.
St Helens Borough Council v Derbyshire & Others (UK)
UK House of Lords Finds Victimization in Equal Pay Case
25 April 2007 -- The UK House of Lords ruled that actions taken by a borough council in a separate equal pay case amounted to victimization of the complainants. In the initial case, over 500 women employed in school catering services had brought an equal pay claim against their employer, the St. Helens Borough Council.
A.S. v. Hungary (CEDAW)
CEDAW Finds against Hungary in Sterilization Case
31 August 2006 -- In a decision communicated this week, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) condemned Hungary for violating the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in connection with the sterilisation of a Romani woman without her consent in January 2001.