Mom, why I can’t go to school?
Source: Danas
Datum: 4.9.2007.
Reporters of the daily Danas gave schoolbooks for the first grade of elementary school to Roma children in settlements Marinkova bara and under the bridge Gazela
Belgrade – “I go to the first grade, I do, I do”, seven-year-old Abraham Redžepi is shouting. He is running barefoot toward us, clouds of dust rising around his feet, under the bridge Gazela. His white teeth are shining behind his excited smile. He opens the metal gate and lets us in the yard, where there are several improvised buildings, which he shares with his mother Sadija and his four brothers and sisters. Yesterday Abraham went to school for the first time. He does not have schoolbooks. Reporters of the daily Danas gave him the set of schoolbooks for the first grade, but they we noticed that he did not have any notebooks, pencils, maybe even shoes…
- I am happy about going to school. There are many children there. I sit with Ivan at the same desk. He is my friend. We will see each other again tomorrow – says Abraham.
Dragica Vasić, slobbery from the fruit she picks up in the garden, in front of her house in the settlement Marinkova bara, is watching curiously into the bag in which her new books are. The school into which Dragica should have been enrolled to according to place of residence did not want to accept her. Her parents were told some solution would be found, as there were no available places in that school. Her mother is shrugging her shoulders, waiting for some solution.
- My son started attending the second grade. He doesn’t have schoolbooks either. We have to manage, but I don’t know how. When we went to school yesterday, while my son was entering the building Dragica asked me why she didn’t go to school. What could I tell her? – says Dragica’s mother.
Analyses showed that the basic problems that their parents face are high expenses of education (clothes and schoolbooks) and lack of documents necessary for child enrolment. Many Roma children are soon transferred to special schools or classes. According to unofficial estimated, number of Roma children in special schools makes between 50% and 80% of the total Roma population in schools, states the report Decade Watch and adds that so far the Government has not shown much willingness to invest in long-term policy aimed at improving educational status of Roma. There are only short-term projects, launched in cooperation of civil society organizations and with financial support by foreign donors. Great assistance was provided to us by Minority Rights Center and we would like to thank them. S. Čongradin - I. Radak
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