On 13 December 2017, Praxis held a conference „STOP to Child Marriages and Statelessness“, accompanied by the exhibition of children’s drawings on the topic of prevention and elimination of child marriages. The conference was attended by more than 100 people including a large number of the authors of presented drawings. 

The conference was opened by Ivanka Kostić, Praxis’ Executive Director, who welcomed the attendees and gave a brief overview of the activities implemented by Praxis in the field of preventing statelessness and child marriages with the financial support of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The attendees were then addressed by Hans Friedrich Schodder, the UNHCR chief in Serbia, who pointed out that child marriages aggravated the problem of statelessness, constituted a violation of human rights and increased the risk of violence and abuse. He also expressed his satisfaction for continuing the cooperation with Praxis and his expectation that a common goal would be achieved, i.e. that every child in Serbia would be registered in birth registry books.

Milan Radojev, Praxis’ Status and Socioeconomic Rights Programme Coordinator, presented the results achieved over the past years in the field of preventing statelessness and exercising the right to registration into civil registry books. He pointed to the fact that after many years of neglecting the problem of legally invisible persons by the competent authorities, a significant progress had been made in this field since 2012.  In this regard, he particularly stressed the importance of amendments to the relevant legislation and established cooperation among stakeholders in resolving the problem, which resulted in the fact that a significant number of people obtained personal documents for the first time in their lives. Nevertheless, he emphasised that the problem of legally invisible persons in Serbia had not been fully resolved and that it was necessary to amend the by-laws that kept preventing children whose mothers did not possess personal documents from being registered at birth.

Jelena Petrović, Praxis’ Child Rights Programme Coordinator, briefly presented the activities implemented by Praxis for the third consecutive year in the field of prevention and elimination of child marriages. She focused on the activities aimed at preventing and eliminating child marriages and targeting school children, which were implemented by Praxis in 2017. Discussing about why some children dropped out of school, what marital duties were and why child marriages should be prevented, the children were empowered to continue their education and thus stand against child marriages. The children gave their answers in the form of drawings, some of which were presented in the exhibition that the conference attendees had the opportunity to see. Jelena also presented the leaflet „STOP to Child Marriages“, which summarised the experiences acquired by Praxis while working on the prevention and elimination of child marriages, included recommendations for further work and presented some of the children's drawings created in the workshops with more than 140 boys and girls from four primary schools in Serbia.

At the very end, Jasmina Miković, Praxis’ Deputy Executive Director, presented two girls from the Primary School "Jovan Cvijić" from Kostolac and their Roma language teacher, who took part in Praxis’ workshops on the prevention and elimination of child marriages. One of the girls presented her impressions from the workshops and said that it was not good for children to marry early and that it was very important for them to complete education. 

Finally, the conference attendees, including the authors of drawings and their teachers, had the opportunity to view the exhibition and socialise.

Radio Belgrade I broadcast on the conference here.

Within the framework of the project Improving the equality legal and policy framework in Serbia and monitoring implementation of equality norms and policies, implemented by the partner organisations The Equal Rights Trust, Sandžak Committee for Protection of Human Rights and Freedoms and Praxis, and supported by the European Union through EIDHR, Praxis held two consultative community meetings entitled "Identifying the major challenges in non-discrimination legislation, policies and practices in Serbia". The meetings were held in Niš and Belgrade, on 1st and 10th November respectively. The third consultative meeting was organised by Sandžak Committee for Protection of Human Rights and Freedoms in Novi Pazar on 15th November. A total of 134 participants attended the events.

The consultative community meetings brought together members of vulnerable social groups, representatives of civil society organisations dealing with the protection of human rights and freedoms, legal clinic students, local human rights activists and all other stakeholders with the aim of identifying the major challenges and shortcomings in the implementation of the anti-discrimination legislative and strategic framework in Serbia, through the exchange of personal and professional experiences in relation to discrimination cases, regardless of their personal characteristics.  

These members of the project working group shared their experience with the participants: Tamara Lukšić Orlandić (independent expert), Dragana Ćirić Milovanović (MDRI-S), Vanja Macanović (Autonomous Women's Centre), Milan Đurić (Gayten), Gordana Grujičić (Group 484) and Osman Balić (SKRUG - League of Roma). The speakers were also the representatives of the organisations that were granted funds, within the project, for monitoring and documenting cases of discrimination: Milan Janković (Association of Students with Disabilities), Marijeta Lazor (Roma Researchers), Nevena Nikolić (NEOSTART), Stefan Šparavalo (Let it Be Known!) and Marija Demić (CHRIS Network). 

Six discussion groups (children's rights, women's rights, LGBT+ rights, rights of ethnic and national communities, rights of persons with disabilities and rights of migrants and refugees) defined the current major challenges and shortcomings in non-discrimination legislation, policies and practices in our country. The concluding considerations from the consultative meetings will serve to further prevent and combat discrimination through raising awareness and education, free legal assistance to victims of discrimination and advocating for systemic solutions.

Focus groups were also held within the framework of these meetings. They were conducted by Prof. Nevena Petrušić, PhD and Kosana Beker, as part of the study on the effectiveness of the anti-discrimination legislation in the Republic of Serbia, and the participants were representatives of civil society organisations dealing with protection against discrimination, persons who had been exposed to discrimination, regardless of their personal characteristics, as well as other community stakeholders. The participants discussed about the extent to which the public was familiar with the current legal framework for the prohibition of discrimination and mechanisms for the protection against discrimination, the existing barriers to access to justice for victims of discrimination, specific characteristics of the social position of individual groups, and (non-)existence of different barriers faced by different vulnerable groups. They also talked about the groups at the highest risk of discrimination, the areas where discrimination was most common, and the necessary measures and recommendations for improving the current situation. 

According to the latest UNICEF data and the National Organisation of Persons with Disabilities, children with disabilities continue to face many difficulties and obstacles in exercising their rights, despite the fact that the Republic of Serbia has ratified all relevant international conventions, adopted strong laws and policies, and has made progress in the development of inclusive services. For example, 45 percent of parents with children with disabilities say that they or their children have experienced some kind of insult, disparagement or harassment on the ground of disability. In 24 percent of the families, one of the parents had to give up work to care for the child, and the parents often faced with the employer’s lack of understanding of additional obligations related to child care. Child support services in the family environment (home assistance, day care, personal companion) are usually not available to children with disabilities and their families. As much as 16 percent of citizens and 18 percent of pupils think that discrimination against people with disabilities is acceptable, while between 25% and 47% of children with disabilities experienced violence.

On the occasion of December 10th, International Human Rights Day, our colleague, Vuk Raičević, spoke with Nadica Blažević, President of the Association of Single Parents and Children with Disabilities Blue Shall from Belgrade, and her 22-year old daughter Marina. He visited them in the premises of the association, where its members were creating New Year's greeting cards, intended to be distributed in order to collect the funds they needed to pay the rent for the association’s premises.

When was your association established and what is your activity?

Nadica: Our association was established in 2010, and its members are children with disabilities from all over Serbia, regardless of their diagnosis. When I decided to establish an association, I was a single mother of three children, one of whom was a child with disability and unique diagnosis in the world. I consider that such an association was necessary, since a significant number of single parents care about children with disabilities. From the very beginning, we wanted to make children and young people with disabilities more visible in society and to include them in cultural and sports events, but also to organise different events, such as sports games for children with disabilities "I Want to Play", which we organise each year. We also organise "The Days of Vuk”, dedicated to Vuk Karadžić who was a person with acquired physical disability and great achievements. Participants come from all over Serbia. In addition, we organise public appearances and free summer vacations for our children. We also provide necessary support to parents.

What symbolises the name of your association?

Nadica: We strive to strengthen the family as a structure, to involve all families in the activities we implement, because in this way the individual is empowered. We want to encourage other families of children and young people with disabilities to open up, not to be isolated in their homes. We encourage them to open their shell and show their pearl. Every child and every family is like a shell that contains one beautiful pearl. However, if the shell remains closed, the pearl will not be seen. The shell is blue, because it is the colour of the sky, and the sky symbolises limitlessness. And the opportunities of every child should be limitless.

 Does our society encourage children and young people with disabilities and their families to open up?

Nadica: Unfortunately, it does not. Prejudices and stereotypes on disability among children and young people are still widely spread in our society. It is primarily a consequence of the lack of information that leads to misunderstanding, and finally to non-acceptance. In such an atmosphere, it is a huge sacrifice also for the parents who face great challenges and pressures on a daily basis, both in their day-to-day activities - at work, in public transport, on the street, at doctor’s, at school, and within their families. The siblings of children with disabilities are also in a difficult position because they are often stigmatised by society, just like their parents.

How are social attitudes transferred within the family?

Nadica: Our members include children with autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, hearing and sight impairments, with rare diagnoses in Serbia and in the world, as well as children with acquired disabilities. We always highlight that "a child is a child to be loved and understood". Our children are not children with special needs. Their needs are the same as the needs of all other children - to be loved, to be educated, to socialise, to be supported, to develop their talents. However, driven by the wrong social norms and ignorance, many families retreat and become invisible, without giving a chance to their children. Such families see everything through the problem and do not seek a solution to the problem but live a life full of guilt and justifications. Some even consider their children to be a curse. After the child's birth, it usually happens that mothers are left alone. Nuclear and extended families reject them, while fathers, under the pressure of the family, often abandon them. I am a mother of three. My youngest daughter is a person with disability and I was left alone with my children to struggle. Such negative attitudes are even more pronounced in smaller communities, where the families of children with disabilities get smaller support. This is the reason why I moved with my children to Belgrade from a small village in Vojvodina.

Where are the roots of such an attitude towards children with disabilities and how can this problem be overcome?

Nadica: Problems appear already during the birth of a child. Our health care system lacks an adequate approach to a newborn with disability and its family. The mother leaves the hospital only with the diagnosis that the child has a certain disability, written in Latin, which in most cases she does not understand at all. She is not aware of the consequences or the needs arising from such a diagnosis. Therefore, the family receives the child unprepared, which causes fear and concern, both for the mother and other family members. This often leads to the rejection of the child, for the foregoing reasons. The same approach is then taken towards the future treatment of the child, his or her education, growing up and inclusion in society. Mothers and children should be provided with adequate support by the health care professionals in the maternity hospital, as well as by the family. They need the engagement of pediatrician, surgeon, special education teacher, psychiatrist, psychologist and all others who will first explain the diagnosis of the child, and then provide all the necessary information and support for his or her proper development and growing up, to all family members. Such treatment of mothers and their children in maternity hospitals would solve the problem of insufficient information, misunderstanding, fears and non-acceptance, thus preventing rejection in many cases. As regards society as a whole, there is also a lack of information about everything that children with disabilities and their parents face, and there is no sufficient knowledge of the nature of physical and mental disabilities. Children and their parents often experience unfavourable treatment wherever they happen to be. Each of us has repeatedly experienced reproaches and criticism for the behaviour of our child in public transport, shops, post offices. Sometimes people protest because we skip the line at the doctor's office. They avoid socialisation with our children and with us. Therefore, it is necessary to work on the education of the entire society and on increasing the visibility of persons with disabilities. In addition, year after year there are increasingly fewer social welfare services provided in spa facilities, which are crucial for helping our children. These services should be developed, not abolished. On the other hand, many families are not adequately informed about all support services available to them, and this is especially evident in smaller and rural areas.

What is your message for parents of children with disabilities?

Nadica: Do not perceive your child as a problem or concern. Believe in your child. I consider my Marina to be a gift and I am happy that she has just arrived in my life. It is very hard to face all the difficulties of parenting in our case, but you have to remain brave, persistent and have to give unconditional love and support to your child. My daughter and I have spent more than 2,000 days in hospitals and spas. I am unemployed, although I had worked as a school teacher for twenty years. I live in a rented apartment. I did not allow to be affected by that or by the curious looks of unknown people in public transportation and on the street. When they are looking at us with astonishment, we give them a smile, which makes them feel ashamed and see that they are wrong. Thanks to all this, my daughter has been able to dedicate to what she likes most - dancing. Today she is proud to be the world vice-champion in hip hop dance for children with disabilities. She received this prestigious award at the competition in Germany. Also, do not be embarrassed to seek help. Seeking assistance from a social welfare centre, psychologist or a psychiatrist, or a counselling centre, does not mean that you are not able to deal with your life, but on the contrary, that you have been proactive as much as you can. Support services exist to make life easier to you and your child. Finally, make sure to replace sterility and white colour, characteristic for health care facilities where our children have to stay for a long time, with various colours. Such are the premises of our association, where there is a creative chaos and where something new and interesting is always going on.

Finally, Marina sent her message to children with disabilities and their parents.

Marina: Every beginning is hard. But everything can be achieved with the support of the family. My Mum always showed me the brighter side of going to treatments, to a hospital or spa.  She used to tell me that I would meet new friends there, that we would visit parks, eat cakes or ice cream. We used to buy some souvenirs for my brother and sister. I trained folklore in the village where I lived. I did not find it difficult to accept the change when we moved to Belgrade, although unknown people often stared at me in astonishment. I was not used to it in my village, where everyone knew one another. In my family, I have learned that everybody is different from others in some way and that there is no person without any difficulty in life. But these differences should bring us closer to one another and make our lives more beautiful. In the meantime, I realised that I would be able to dedicate to something new, such as hip hop. I was very surprised when I was given the opportunity to go abroad to participate in the world hip hop competition. I had no idea that I would pass eight elimination rounds and that I would win the second place, which made me very happy. I am particularly satisfied for becoming an independent choreographer and teaching Ana, who cannot see, and Esma and Selma, who do not hear, a choreography that brought them a great success in competitions. We have proved that it is possible to dance in the dark and in silence, but also if you are the only one on the planet with a certain diagnosis. If you have a goal and the will to reach it, you will succeed. I cannot say that I have completely recovered, but today, thanks to the support of my family, I can be independent in my life despite all the health problems. Happiness is our middle name.

Interview published in Ibarske novosti on page 4.

The Commissioner for Protection of Equality, acting upon a complaint lodged by Praxis, issued an opinion establishing that the employees of the company Srbija voz a.d. discriminated against the unaccompanied minors at the Belgrade Central Railway Station on several occasions during March and April 2017.

In fact, at least on two occasions the unaccompanied minors from Afghanistan were hindered or prevented from getting on the trains for Šid, despite the fact that they were in possession of regularly purchased and valid tickets. Discriminatory treatment consisted of imposing special conditions for getting on the train, such as insisting that refugees and migrants could use only one departure for Šid daily and that minors could not be transported by train unless accompanied by adults. Among other things, some Srbija voz employees also stated that "they were fed up with refugees who were in large numbers in Šid", "that they were not allowed to get on the train at the stations in Novi Beograd and Zemun either", that they must be "clean and tidy" and "that it had been said that the tickets for Šid could be purchased only for the train departing at 10:55 a.m.". The Commissioner for Protection of Equality established that such treatment was not justified and that it was directly related to the personal characteristic of these individuals, which led to direct discrimination in the field of public services and constituted a violation of Article 6, in conjunction with Article 17 of the Law on the Prohibition of Discrimination. Therefore, the company Srbija voz a.d. Beograd was recommended to inform the employees who performed the activities of passenger transport about the Instructions on Migrant Transport Procedures, and to ensure that in performing its regular operations and activities, the company did not violate the legal regulations on the prohibition of discrimination.

The analysis of the Commissioner for Protection of Equality dealt only with unaccompanied minors, although the complaint included the same evidence demonstrating that adult migrants, refugees and asylum seekers had also been exposed to such discriminatory treatment. However, the Commissioner assessed that the submitted evidence did not prove it.

The Commissioner for Protection of Equality failed to act on allegations presented in the complaint, according to which the treatment of Srbija voz a.d. employees constituted a serious form of discrimination under Article 13, paragraph 6 of the Law on the Prohibition of Discrimination, taking into account that it was repeated discrimination. Although the Commissioner for Protection of Equality stated in her opinion that the imposition of the condition for unaccompanied minors to be "clean and tidy" constituted a violation of the dignity of these persons, which created a humiliating and offensive environment, it was not clearly established that Article 12 of the Law on the Prohibition of Discrimination, which prohibits such conduct, had been violated.

Srbija voz a.d. informed the Commissioner for Protection of Equality that it had complied with her recommendation.

Today, on the World Children's Day, once again we would like to draw attention to the practice of child marriages in Serbia. 

We are recalling that child marriages constitute a gross violation of the rights of the child, harm the mental and physical health of girls and expose them to the risk of statelessness, domestic violence, trafficking in human beings, and lead to an increased rate of early school leaving, and later to poverty and economic dependence. 

On that occasion, we talked to the children from four primary schools in Serbia, who expressed their opinions on the topic “Stop to child marriages” in the form of messages addressed to their mother, father, a friend or a politician/institution representative that, in children’s opinion, could contribute to ending this harmful practice. Most of the messages indicated that child marriages were the main obstacle to education and employment and that early pregnancy was very harmful to the health of girls. Some of these messages were printed on the postcards that we have sent today to representatives of all relevant institutions in Serbia.  

STOP to child marriages! 

In early October of the current year, Praxis warned about the situation of thirty-three families displaced from Kosovo facing a risk of becoming homeless after having been ordered to move out of the social housing in the suburban settlement “Beranovac” near Kraljevo.  

The residents of “Beranovac”, threatened with eviction, and Marija Dražović from Praxis spoke for Deutsche Welle about the situation of these people today and the lack of understanding and adequate response to their hardship.  

The DW footage that summarises all the events that happened after the publishing of our first statement is available here.