Adoption of the curriculum that neither foresees nor adequately respects the national group of subjects for the constituent people that represent a minority constitutes a violation of the right to education despite the fact that the law such a plan and program is based on proclaims the principle of prohibiting discrimination.
Dženana Radončić
Focus of this Commentary is the decision of the District Court in Banja Luka, that upheld the judgment of the Municipal Court in Kotor Varoš which established that there was no case of discrimination against Bosniak children who were not allowed to study the „national group of subjects“ (history, language, literature) in the elementary school "Sveti Sava", branch school in Vrbanjci, in Kotor Varoš. In this case, the courts have not dealt with the provisions of the Law on Primary Education, but with the content and implementation of the curriculum. Therefore, the conduct of the Republika Srpska (or more precisely the Minister of Education and the Republic Pedagogical Institute) was analyzed from the aspect of potential discriminatory norms and practices.
The Commentary is published within the project “Equality for All: Civil Society Coalition against Discrimination“, and is implemented in cooperation with Mediacentar Sarajevo, Analitika – Center for Social Research, Rights for All and Vaša prava BiH. This project is financed by USAID and Open Society Fund Bosnia and Herzegovina.
This publication is published by the generous support of the American People through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents of this Commentary are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.
The publication in local languages is available HERE.
