The right to education is a fundamental human right. Yet, many European countries still deny thousands of children, including children with disabilities, Roma children and refugee or migrant children, equal access to it by keeping them in segregated schools. This is a violation of children’s human rights with far-reaching negative consequences for our societies. Member states have an obligation to secure the right of every child to quality education without discrimination,
said the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Nils Muižnieks on 12 September 2017. He was presenting a position paper on tackling school segregation through inclusive education, recently published by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights.
The Commissioner’s position was clearly conveyed in his speech: ‘School segregation harms children’s learning opportunities and is a clear injustice against minority and other vulnerable groups of people, which also perpetuates their marginalisation’, said Mr Muižnieks in his presentation.
The paper provides an overview of school segregation in Council of Europe member states, as well as its main causes. It also contains a list of recommendations and conclusions concerning school segregation and inclusive education, based primarily on the Commissioner’s country-monitoring and thematic work.
The position paper is available on the website of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, along with a short summary of the paper.
