ALTERNATIVE CIVIL SECTOR REPORT TO THE SECOND REPORT OF THE REPUBLIC OF BULGARIA PURSUANT TO ART. 25, PARAGRAPH 2 OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES (FCNM) Inter-Ethnic Initiative for Human Rights Foundation Sofia, Bulgaria September 2009 This report was produced with the financial support of the Trust for Civil Society in Central and Eastern Europe Information, opinions and expert assessments on particular issues in this Alternative Civil Sector Report were contributed by the following representatives of non-governmental organisations and individual experts (in alphabetical order): • Deyan Kolev, Amalipe Centre for Inter-Ethnic Dialogue and Tolerance, Veliko Tarnovo • Emilia Mateina, Inter-Ethnic Initiative for Human Rights Foundation • Kalina Bozeva, Inter-Ethnic Initiative for Human Rights Foundation • Ramadan Kehayov, human rights activist, Madan, Southern Bulgaria • Fetie Sharanska, Evroalternativi 21 Association, Yakoruda The information was compiled and the conclusions and recommendations drafted by the team of the Inter-Ethnic Initiative Human Rights Foundation This report was translated from Bulgarian into English by Mark Bossanyi ([email protected]) І. Inter Ethnic Initiative for Human Rights (IEI) Foundation The IEI foundation is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation registered in Bulgaria in July 1996. It strives to promote the rights of minorities and inter-community co-operation in practice in all areas of public life. Іts operational aims are: • To influence official policies in accordance with international human/minority rights protection standards. • Тo inform and sensitise politicians, state and municipal employees about these standards. • To encourage citizen control on the implementation of international minority rights standards. • To enhance public sensitivity and understanding about the problems and rights of minorities, encouraging a spirit of inter- ethnic tolerance, mutual support and non-discriminative practices. • To enhance knowledge among minorities of standards and mechanisms to protect their rights and to increase their capacity for rights-based advocacy in institutions at all levels. • To encourage cooperation and solidarity among NGOs and networks nationally and internationally for the promotion of minority rights. ІІ . Areas of expertise • Advocacy to influence official policies in accordance with international human/minority rights protection standards; • Monitoring of public policies and drafting of reports with findings and recommendations to national and international institutions. • Consultancy services to institutions, organizations and media to formulate programme documents on minority issues and in monitoring and evaluating results. • Training representatives of non-governmental organizations, official institutions and authorities’, teachers, educational experts and media on: international standards for human rights and minority protection; developing and managing projects; organizational development; networking and media relations. • Specialized research on issues related to minorities and inter-ethnic relations. • Publishing and information activities. Contact details: Inter-Ethnic Initiative for Human Rights Foundation 98, Graf Ignatiev Street, Sofia 1000, Bulgaria, Tel. +359 2 980 17 16; е-mail: [email protected] http://www.inter-ethnic.org 2 CONTENTS Page Foreword 6 PART 1: Effectiveness of the protection stipulated in FCNM ART. 12 on the educational 8 rights of persons belonging to national minorities I. Developing children's own identity: promoting multicultural elements in education 9 I.1. Opportunities for learning minority mother tongues 9 1.2. Multiculturalism in the school curriculum 12 1.3. Multicultural teaching personnel 13 1.3.1.Minority language teachers 13 1.3.2. Minority history and culture teachers 14 1.4. Minority language textbooks and teaching aids 14 1.5 . Textbooks and teaching aids in minority history and culture 15 II. Establishing intercultural elements in the education system: measures to develop 15 intercultural dialogue and to ensure mutual acquaintance between various ethnic groups 2.1. Reviewing the curriculum and including curricular content on minorities in various subjects 15 2.2. Access to intercultural textbooks 16 2.3. Academic training of teachers to work in a multi-ethnic environment, including for bilingual 18 teaching 2.4. Qualifying teachers to work in a multi-ethnic environment 20 2.5. Official language teaching for minority children 23 2.6. Access to intercultural contacts 25 2.6.1. Contacts between pupils and teachers from various ethnic communities 25 2.6.2. Ethnic composition of groups of children/pupils 25 2.6.3. Ethnic composition of teaching and administrative personnel in schools 25 ІІІ . Creating equal opportunities for access to education 26 3.1. Legal and institutional framework of equal access to education 26 3.1.1. Constitutional and legal guarantees for the educational rights of minorities 26 3.1.2. Strategies to ensure equal access of minority children to quality education 28 3.1.3. Specialised minority education structures in the education system 30 3.2. Participation of minorities in education policy decision-making processes 32 3.2.1. Advisory Council on the Education of Children and Pupils from Ethnic Minorities at the 32 Ministry of Education and Science 3.2.2. Participation of representatives of minorities on educational policy issues through the 33 National Council for Cooperation on Ethnic and Demographic Issues at the Council of Ministers (NCCEDI) 3.2.3. Participation through minority bodies authorised to conduct dialogue with the government 33 3.3. Resources available for equal access to quality education for minority children 33 3.3.1. Amendments to the budget allocation mechanism to education: the system of delegated 33 budgets 3.3.2. The need for additional budget resources to ensure equal access and to back up 35 integration/desegregation policies 3.3.3. Municipalities: funding beneficiaries under operational programmes 35 3.3.4. School funding under various national programmes 36 3.3.5. State support for the education initiatives of national minorities: vulnerability of small 38 minorities and those which do not enjoy the support of kin state 3.3.6. Bilateral and multilateral agreements in education: in the area of teacher training, drafting 38 textbooks and education materials, pupil exchanges, etc. 3.4. Specific issues in connection with access to education 39 3.4.1. Maintenance of segregated schools for Roma children 39 3.4.2. Refusals to enrol minority children in ethnically mixed schools 40 3.4.3. Mainstreaming and targeted measures/affirmative action: an issue in approaches to 41 conceptualising and planning policies on minorities 3 3.4.4. Lack of progress in policies in the integration of Roma children 42 3.4.5. Secondary segregation due to Bulgarian children leaving ethnically mixed schools 45 3.4.6. The soaring rate of early school leaving among minority children 46 3.4.7. Closure of schools, especially those attended by minority children 50 3.4.8. Restricted access to education due to the lack of opportunities to use the minority mother 51 tongues as a teaching medium in school subjects 3.4.9. Lack of adequate monitoring and evaluation of education and integration policies for 52 minority children 3.5. Supporting structures and programmes to assist children from more vulnerable minority 53 groups 3.5.1. Supplementary teaching groups for children who lag behind in their education (all-day 53 teaching groups) 3.5.2. Teachers’ assistants 54 PART 2: Effectiveness of the protection stipulated in FCNM Art. 15 on the public 56 participation of persons belonging to national minorities Introduction 56 І. Participation in economic and social life 56 1.1. Statistics on the socio-economic situation of persons belonging to minorities 57 1.2. Legislation prohibiting discrimination in social and economic life 57 1.3. Capacity of public institutions to address the socio-economic needs of persons belonging to 58 minorities 1.4. Participation of persons belonging to vulnerable minorities in socio-economic life 59 1.4.1. Employment policies 59 1.4.2. Residence, language and other requirements for participation in socio-economic life 66 1.4.3. Living standards and participation in socio-economic life 67 1.4.4. Health care and participation in socio-economic life 73 1.5. General conclusions and recommendations on the implementation of the National Action 76 Plan on the Decade of Roma Inclusion 1.5.1. Conclusions 76 1.5.2. Recommendations 78 II. Participation in cultural life 80 III. Participation in public and political life 81 3.1. Participation of representatives of minorities in the legislative process 81 3.1.1. Representation and participation of minorities in the legislative process through their own 82 political parties 3.1.2. Representation and participation of minorities in the legislative process through the 94 mainstream political parties 3.2. Representation and participation in public administration, executive authorities and 95 judiciary 3.2.1. Representation and participation in public administration and the executive authorities 95 3.2.2. Representation and participation in the judicial system and the armed forcese 98 3.3. Representation and participation on a regional and local level 98 3.3.1. Representation and participation of the Turkish minority on a regional level and in local 98 authorities 3.3.2. Participation of the Roma minority in the