Szolcsan c. Ungheria, ECtHR (First Section), No. 24408/16, 30 March 2023

Discrimination of Roma pupil on account of segregation in a State-run primary school attended almost exclusively by Roma children. 

Art. 14 ECHR
Art. 2 First additional protocol ECHR
Art. 46 ECHR
 

1. Discrimination on account of a person’s ethnic origin is a form of racial discrimination. Racial discrimination is a particularly invidious kind of discrimination and, in view of its perilous consequences, requires from the authorities special vigilance and a vigorous reaction.

2. No difference in treatment which is based exclusively or to a decisive extent on a person’s ethnic origin is capable of being objectively justified in a contemporary democratic society built on the principles of pluralism and respect for different cultures.

3. Discrimination potentially contrary to the Convention may result from a de facto situation, so that in cases concerning discrimination in education it is not necessary to prove the discriminatory intent on the part of the authorities. Therefore, the fact that a school is attended almost exclusively by Roma children is, in itself, a form of segregation, and the placement of Roma children in segregated schools without appropriate measures being taken by the competent authorities to correct the inequalities is incompatible with the state's duty not to discriminate on the basis of race or ethnicity.