CEDH · CASELAW;JUDGMENTS;GRANDCHAMBER;ENG — 16 mars 2010

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text-indent:0pt; display:inline-block } .s5E1364CA { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:14pt } .s23860FF7 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:center } .s57F1263A { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:24pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s2E4C7733 { margin-top:24pt; margin-bottom:5pt; text-align:center } .s9AE6264A { margin-top:5pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .s75A32C27 { border-collapse:collapse } .s938C1CCA { padding-right:5.4pt; padding-left:5.4pt; vertical-align:top } .s2EF62ED2 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:12pt }     GRAND CHAMBER             CASE OF ORŠUŠ AND OTHERS v. CROATIA   (Application no. 15766/03)                     JUDGMENT     STRASBOURG   16 March 2010     In the case of Oršuš and Others v. Croatia , The European Court of Human Rights, sitting as a Grand Chamber composed of:   Jean-Paul Costa, President ,   Nicolas Bratza,   Françoise Tulkens,   Josep Casadevall,   Karel Jungwiert,   Nina Vajić,   Anatoly Kovler,   Elisabeth Steiner,   Alvina Gyulumyan,   Renate Jaeger,   Egbert Myjer,   Davíd Thór Björgvinsson,   Ineta Ziemele,   Isabelle Berro-Lefèvre,   Mirjana Lazarova Trajkovska,   Işıl Karakaş,   Nebojša Vučinić, judges , and Vincent Berger, Jurisconsult , Having deliberated in private on 1 April 2009 and on 27 January 2010, Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on the last-mentioned date: PROCEDURE 1.     The case originated in an application (no. 15766/03) against the Republic of Croatia lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by fifteen Croatian nationals (“the applicants”), on 8   May 2003. 2.     The applicants were represented before the Court by the European Roma Rights Centre based in Budapest, Mrs L. Kušan, a lawyer practising in Ivanić-Grad, and Mr J.A. Goldston, of the New York Bar. The Croatian Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mrs   Š.   Stažnik. 3.     The applicants alleged, in particular, that the length of the proceedings before the national authorities had been excessive and that they had been denied the right to education and discriminated against in the enjoyment of that right on account of their race or ethnic origin. 4.     The application was allocated to the First Section of the Court (Rule   52 § 1 of the Rules of Court). On 17 July 2008 a Chamber of that Section, consisting of Christos Rozakis, Nina Vajić, Khanlar Hajiyev, Dean Spielmann, Sverre Erik Jebens, Giorgio Malinverni and George Nicolaou, judges, and Søren Nielsen, Section Registrar, found unanimously that there had been a violation of Article 6 § 1 of the Convention on account of the excessive length of the proceedings, and that there had not been a violation of Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 taken alone or in conjunction with Article 14 of the Convention. The Chamber also found that the first applicant had withdrawn his application on 22 February 2007 and it therefore discontinued the examination of the application in so far as it concerned the first applicant. 5.     On 13 October 2008 the applicants requested, in accordance with Article 43 of the Convention and Rule 73, that the case be referred to the Grand Chamber. On 1 December 2008 a panel of the Grand Chamber accepted that request. 6.     The composition of the Grand Chamber was determined according to the provisions of Article 27 §§ 2 and 3 of the Convention and Rule 24. 7.     The applicants and the Government each filed observations on the admissibility and merits of the case. In addition, third-party comments were received from the Government of the Slovak Republic, Interights and Greek Helsinki Monitor. 8.     A hearing took place in public in the Human Rights Building, Strasbourg, on 1 April 2009 (Rule 59 § 3). There appeared before the Court: (a)     for the Government Mrs   Š. Stažnik ,   Agent , Mr   D. Maričić ,   Co-Agent , Mrs   N . Jakir , Mrs   I. Ivanišević ,   Advisers ; (b)     for the applicants Mrs   L. Kušan, Mr   J.A . Goldston ,   Counsel , Mr   A. Dobrushi , Mr   T. Alexandridis ,   Advisers .   The Court heard addresses by Mr Goldston, Mrs Kušan and Mrs Stažnik. THE FACTS I.     THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE 9.     The applicants were born between 1988 and 1994 and live respectively in Orehovica, Podturen and Trnovec. Their names and details are set out in the appendix. 10.     During their education, the applicants at times attended separate classes, comprising only Roma pupils, at a primary school in the village of Podturen for nine applicants (the second to tenth applicants) and at a primary school in the village of Macinec, in Međimurje County, for five applicants (the eleventh to fifteenth applicants). In Croatia, primary education consists of eight grades and children are obliged to attend school from the age of seven to fifteen. The first four grades are considered as lower grades and each class is assigned a class teacher who in principle teaches all subjects. The fifth to eighth grades are upper grades in which, in addition to a class teacher assigned to each class, different teachers teach different subjects. The curriculum taught in any primary school class, including the Roma-only classes which the applicants attended, may be reduced by up to 30% in comparison to the regular, full curriculum. A.     General overview of the two primary schools in question 1.     Podturen Primary School 11.     The proportion of Roma children in the lower grades (from the first to the fourth grade) varies from 33% to 36%. The total number of pupils in Podturen Primary School in 2001 was 463, 47 of whom were Roma. There was one Roma-only class, with 17 pupils, while the remaining 30 Roma pupils attended mixed classes. 12.     In 2001 a pre-school programme called “Little School” ( Mala škola ) was introduced in the Lončarevo settlement in Podturen. It included about twenty Roma children and was designed as a preparatory programme for primary school. Three educators were involved, who had previously received special training. The programme ran from 11 June to 15 August 2001. This programme has been provided on a permanent basis since 1   December 2003. It usually includes about twenty Roma children aged from 3 to 7. The programme is carried out by an educator and a Roma assistant in cooperation with Podturen Primary School. An evaluation test is carried out at the end of the programme. 13.     In December 2002 the Ministry of Education and Sports adopted a decision introducing Roma assistants in schools with Roma pupils from the first to fourth grades. In Podturen Primary School, there was already a Roma assistant who had worked there since September 2002. A statement made by one such assistant, Mr K.B., on 13 January 2009 reads: “I started work at Podturen Primary School in September 2002. At that time there were two classes in the fourth grade. Class four (b) had Roma pupils only and it was very difficult to work with that class because the pupils were agitated and disrupted the teaching. I contemplated leaving after only two months. At the request of teachers, I would give written invitations to the parents or I would invite them orally to come to talk with the teachers at the school. Some parents would come, but often not, and I had to go and ask them again. A lot of time was needed to explain Croatian words to the pupils because some of them continued to speak Romani and the teachers could not understand them. I told the pupils that they should attend school regularly. Some pupils would just leave classes or miss a whole day. I helped pupils with homework after school. I helped the school authorities to compile the exact list of pupils in the first grade. I no longer work at the school.” 14.     Since the school year 2003/04 there have been no Roma-only classes in Podturen Primary School. 2.     Macinec Primary School 15.     The proportion of Roma children in the lower grades varies from 57% to 75%. Roma-only classes are formed in the lower grades and only exceptionally in the higher grades. All classes in the two final grades (seventh and eighth) are mixed. The total number of pupils in Macinec Primary School in 2001 was 445, 194 of whom were Roma. There were 6 Roma-only classes, with 142 pupils in all, while the remaining 52 Roma pupils attended mixed classes. 16.     Since 2003 the participation of Roma assistants has been implemented. 17.     A “Little School” pre-school programme was introduced in 2006. B.     Individual circumstances of each applicant 18.     The applicants submitted that they had been told that they had to leave school at the age of 15. Furthermore, the applicants submitted statistics showing that in the school year 2006/07 16% of Roma children aged 15 completed their primary education, compared with 91% of the general primary school population in Međimurje County. The drop-out rate of Roma pupils without completing primary school was 84%, which was 9.3   times higher than for the general population. In the school year 2005/06, 73   Roma children were enrolled in the first grade and 5 in the eighth. 19.     The following information concerning each individual applicant is taken from official school records.   1.     Podturen Primary School (a)     The first applicant 20.     By a letter of 22 February 2007, the first applicant expressed the wish to withdraw his application. Thus in the Chamber judgment of 17 July 2008 the Court decided to discontinue the examination of the application in so far as it concerned the first applicant. (b)     The second applicant 21.     The second applicant, Mirjana Oršuš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 1997/98. She attended a mixed class that year and the following year, but in those two years she failed to go up a grade. In the school years 1999/2000 to 2002/03 she attended a Roma-only class. In 2003/04 to 2005/06 she attended a mixed class. In 2005/06 she took the sixth grade for the second time and failed. She failed the first and the sixth grades twice. Out of seventeen regular parent-teacher meetings organised during her primary schooling, her parents attended three. 22.     She was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the fourth grade. From the first to the fourth grade she participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group (that is to say a number of different activities organised for the same group of children), organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15, she left school in August 2006. Her school report shows that during her schooling she missed 100 classes without justification. (c)     The third applicant 23.     The third applicant, Gordan Oršuš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 1996/97 and passed the first grade. That year and the following year he attended a Roma-only class. In 1998/99 and 1999/2000 he attended a mixed class and after that a Roma-only class for the remainder of his schooling. In 2002/03 he passed the fourth grade. He failed the second grade three times. Out of fifteen regular parent-teacher meetings organised during his primary schooling, his parents attended two. 24.     He was not provided with additional classes in Croatian. From the first to the fourth grade he participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15 he left school in September 2003. His school report shows that during his schooling he missed 154 classes without justification. 25.     Later, he enrolled in evening classes in the People’s Open College in Čakovec, where he completed his primary education. (d)     The fourth applicant 26.     The fourth applicant, Dejan Balog, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 1996/97. During the first and second years he attended a Roma-only class and the following two years a mixed class. In 2000/01 to 2002/03 he attended a Roma-only class. In 2003/04 to 2005/06 he attended a mixed class. In 2005/06 he took the fifth grade for the second time and failed. He failed the second grade three times, the fourth grade once and the fifth grade twice. Out of eleven regular parent-teacher meetings organised during his primary schooling, his parents attended two. 27.     He was not provided with additional classes in Croatian. From the first to the fourth grade he participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15, he left school in August 2006. His school report shows that during his schooling he missed 881 classes without justification. 28.     Later, he enrolled in fifth-grade evening classes, but did not attend. (e)     The fifth applicant 29.     The fifth applicant, Siniša Balog, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in 1999/2000 and passed the first grade. In 1999/2000 to 2002/03 he attended a Roma-only class, after which he attended a mixed class. In 2006/07 he took the fifth grade for the third time and failed. He failed the fourth grade once and the fifth grade three times. Out of eleven regular parent-teacher meetings organised during his primary schooling, his parents attended one. 30.     He was not provided with additional classes in Croatian. From the first to the fourth grade he participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15, he left school in 2008. His school report shows that during his schooling he missed 1,304 classes without justification. In October 2006 the school authorities wrote to the competent social welfare centre informing them of the applicant’s poor school attendance. (f)     The sixth applicant 31.     The sixth applicant, Manuela Kalanjoš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 1996/97 and attended a Roma-only class. The following two years she attended a mixed class. In 1999/2000 to 2002/03 she attended a Roma-only class and passed the fourth grade, after which she attended a mixed class. From February 2003 she followed an adapted curriculum for the rest of her schooling on the ground that a competent expert committee – the Children’s Psycho-physical Aptitude Assessment Board ( Povjerenstvo za utvrđivanje psihofizičkog stanja djeteta ) had established that she suffered from developmental difficulties. In 2004/05 she took the fifth grade for the second time and failed. She failed the first grade three times and the fifth grade twice. Out of eleven regular parent-teacher meetings organised during her primary schooling, her parents attended three. 32.     She was provided with additional classes in Croatian in her third grade. From the first to the fourth grade she participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15, she left school in August 2005. Her school report shows that during her schooling she missed 297 classes without justification. 33.     Later, she enrolled in fifth-grade evening classes, but did not attend. (g)     The seventh applicant 34.     The seventh applicant, Josip Oršuš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in 1999/2000 and attended a Roma-only class up to and including the school year 2002/03, after which he attended a mixed class. From May 2002 he followed an adapted curriculum in his further schooling on the ground that a competent expert committee – the Children’s Psycho-physical Aptitude Assessment Board ( Komisija za utvrđivanje psihofizičke sposobnosti djece ) had established that he suffered from developmental difficulties. In 2007/08 he took the sixth grade for the second time and failed. He failed the fifth and sixth grades twice. Out of fifteen regular parent-teacher meetings organised during his primary schooling, his parents attended two. 35.     He was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the third grade in 2001/02. From the first to the fourth grade he participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15, he left school in February 2008. His school report shows that during his schooling he missed 574 classes without justification. (h)     The eighth applicant 36.     The eighth applicant, Biljana Oršuš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 1996/97 and in her first three school years attended a Roma-only class, after which she attended a mixed class for two years. On 28 December 2000 the Međimurje County State Administration Office for Schooling, Culture, Information, Sport and Technical Culture ( Ured za prosvjetu, kulturu, informiranje, šport i tehničku kulturu Međimurske Županije ) ordered that she follow an adapted curriculum during the rest of her schooling on the ground that a competent expert committee – the Children’s Psycho-physical Aptitude Assessment Board – had established that she suffered from poor intellectual capacity, concentration difficulties and socio-pedagogical neglect. It was also established that she was in need of treatment from the competent social welfare centre. In 2001/02 and 2002/03 she attended a Roma-only class and passed the fourth grade. In the following two school years she attended a mixed class, took the fifth grade for the second time and failed. She failed the third grade three times and the fifth grade twice. Out of seven regular parent-teacher meetings organised during her primary schooling, her parents attended three. 37.     She was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the third grade in 2001/02. She participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15, she left school in August 2005. Her school report shows that during her schooling she missed 1,533 classes without justification. (i)     The ninth applicant 38.     The ninth applicant, Smiljana Oršuš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 1999/2000 and attended a Roma-only class up to and including 2002/03, after which she attended a mixed class. In 2006/07 she took the fifth grade for the third time and failed. She failed the fourth grade once and the fifth grade three times. Out of eleven regular parent-teacher meetings organised during her primary schooling, her parents attended three. 39.     She was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the third grade in 2001/02. From the first to the fourth grade she participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15, she left school in August 2007. Her school report shows that during her schooling she missed 107 classes without justification. (j)     The tenth applicant 40.     The tenth applicant, Branko Oršuš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 1997/1998 and attended a mixed class for the first two years. From 1999/00 to 2002/03 he attended a Roma-only class, after which he attended a mixed class. On 23 February 2005 the Međimurje County State Welfare Department ordered that he follow an adapted curriculum during the rest of his schooling on the ground that a competent expert committee – the Children’s Psycho-physical Assessment Board – had established that he suffered from developmental difficulties. In 2005/06 he failed the sixth grade. He failed the first grade twice and the fourth and sixth grades once. Out of eleven regular parent-teacher meetings organised during his primary schooling, his parents attended one. 41.     He was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the third grade in the school year 2001/02. He participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group organised by the school. After reaching the age of 15, he left school in August 2006. His school report shows that during his schooling he missed 664 classes without justification. 2.     Macinec Primary School (a)     The eleventh applicant 42.     The eleventh applicant, Jasmin Bogdan, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in 1997/98. The preliminary tests carried out before his assignment to a particular class showed that he did not understand the Croatian language. He scored 15 out of 97 points (15.5%). He was therefore assigned to a Roma-only class, where he spent his entire schooling. In 2004/05 he took the fifth grade for the second time and failed. He failed the first and the fourth grades once and the fifth grade twice. Out of twenty-four parent-teacher meetings organised during his entire primary schooling, his parents attended none. 43.     He was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the third grade in the school year 2001/02. After reaching the age of 15, he left school in August 2005. His school report shows that during his schooling he missed 1,057 classes without justification. (b)     The twelfth applicant 44.     The twelfth applicant, Josip Bogdan, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in 1999/2000. The preliminary tests carried out before his assignment to a particular class showed that he did not understand the Croatian language. He scored 8 out of 97 points (8.25%). He was therefore assigned to a Roma-only class, where he spent his entire schooling. In 2006/07 he took the third grade for the second time and failed. He failed the first grade once, the second grade three times and the third grade twice. Out of thirty-seven regular parent-teacher meetings organised during his primary schooling, his parents attended none. 45.     He was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the first, second and third grades. In the second grade he participated in a dancing group and in the third grade in a choir. After reaching the age of 15, he left school in August 2007. His school report shows that during his schooling he missed 1,621 classes without justification. (c)     The thirteenth applicant 46.     The thirteenth applicant, Dijana Oršuš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 2000/01. The preliminary tests carried out before her assignment to a particular class showed that she had inadequate knowledge of the Croatian language. She scored 26 out of 97   points (26.8%). She was therefore assigned to a Roma-only class, where she spent her entire schooling. In 2007/08 she passed the fifth grade. She failed the first grade twice and the second grade once. Out of thirty-two regular parent-teacher meetings organised during her primary schooling, her parents attended six. 47.     She was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the first grade. In the first grade she participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group and in the fifth grade in a choir. After reaching the age of 15, she left school in August 2008. Her school report shows that during her schooling she missed 522 classes without justification. (d)     The fourteenth applicant 48.     The fourteenth applicant, Dejan Oršuš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in 1999/2000. The preliminary tests carried out before his assignment to a particular class showed that he did not understand the Croatian language. He scored 15 out of 97 points (15.5%). He was therefore assigned to a Roma-only class, where he spent his entire schooling. In 2005/06 he passed the third grade. He failed the first grade three times and the third grade once. Out of twenty-eight regular parent-teacher meetings organised during his primary schooling, his parents attended five. 49.     He was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the first grade. After reaching the age of 15, he left school in August 2006. His school report shows that during his schooling he missed 1,033 classes without justification. (e)     The fifteenth applicant 50.     The fifteenth applicant, Danijela Kalanjoš, was enrolled in the first grade of primary school in the school year 2000/01. The preliminary tests carried out before her assignment to a particular class showed that her understanding of the Croatian language was poor. She scored 37 out of 97 points (38.14%). She was therefore assigned to a Roma-only class, where she spent her entire schooling. In 2007/08 she passed the fifth grade. She failed the first grade twice and the second grade once. Out of twenty-one regular parent-teacher meetings organised during her entire primary schooling, her parents attended two. 51.     She was provided with additional classes in Croatian in the first grade. In the first grade she participated in extracurricular activities in a mixed group, in the second grade in dancing, in the third grade in handicraft classes, and in the fifth grade in a choir. After reaching the age of 15, she left school in August 2008. Her school report shows that during her schooling she missed 238 classes without justification. C.     Proceedings before the national courts 52.     On 19 April 2002 the applicants brought an action under section 67 of the Administrative Disputes Act in the Čakovec Municipal Court ( Općinski sud u Čakovcu ) against the above-mentioned primary schools and Kuršanec Primary School, the State and Međimurje County (“the defendants”). They submitted that the teaching organised in the Roma-only classes in the schools in question was significantly reduced in volume and in scope compared to the officially prescribed curriculum. The applicants claimed that the situation described was racially discriminating and violated their right to education as well as their right to freedom from inhuman and degrading treatment. They requested the court to order the defendants to refrain from such conduct in the future. 53.     The applicants also produced the results of a psychological study of Roma children attending Roma-only classes in Međimurje, carried out immediately before their action was lodged, showing the following: –     most children had never had a non-Roma child as a friend; –     86.9% expressed a wish to have a non-Roma child as a friend; –     84.5% expressed a wish to attend a mixed class; –     89% said they felt unaccepted in the school environment; –     92% stated that Roma and non-Roma children did not play together. Furthermore, the report asserted that segregated education produced emotional and psychological harm in Roma children, in terms of lower self-esteem and self-respect and problems in the development of their identity. Separate classes were seen as an obstacle to creating a social network of Roma and non-Roma children. 54.     The defendants each submitted replies to the arguments put forward by the applicants, claiming that there was no discrimination of Roma children and that pupils enrolled in school were all treated equally. They submitted that all pupils were enrolled in school after a committee (composed of a physician, a psychologist, a school counsellor ( pedagog ), a defectologist and a teacher) had found that the candidates were physically and mentally ready to attend school. The classes within a school were formed depending on the needs of the class, the number of pupils, etc. In particular, it was important that classes were formed in such a way that they enabled all pupils to study in a stimulating environment. 55.     Furthermore, the defendants submitted that pupils of Roma origin were grouped together not because of their ethnic origin, but rather because they were often not proficient in Croatian and it took more exercises and repetitions for them to master the subjects taught. Finally, they claimed that Roma pupils received the same quality of education as other pupils as the scope of their curriculum did not differ from that prescribed by law. 56.     On 26 September 2002 the Čakovec Municipal Court dismissed the applicants’ action, accepting the defendants’ argument that the reason why most Roma pupils were placed in separate classes was that they were not fluent in Croatian. Consequently, the court held that this was not unlawful and that the applicants had failed to substantiate their allegations concerning racial discrimination. Lastly, the court concluded that the applicants had failed to prove the alleged difference in the curriculum of the Roma-only classes. 57.     On 17 October 2002 the applicants appealed against the first-instance judgment, claiming that it was arbitrary and contradictory. 58.     On 14 November 2002 the Čakovec County Court ( Županijski sud u Čakovcu ) dismissed the applicants’ appeal, upholding the reasoning of the first-instance judgment. 59.     Subsequently, on 19 December 2002, the applicants lodged a complaint with the Constitutional Court ( Ustavni sud Republike Hrvatske ) under section 62 of the Constitutional Act on the Constitutional Court. In their constitutional complaint the applicants reiterated their earlier arguments, relying on the relevant provisions of the Constitution and of the Convention. 60.     On 3 November 2003 the applicants’ lawyer lodged an application with the Constitutional Court to expedite the proceedings. On 7 February 2007 the Constitutional Court dismissed the applicants’ complaint in its decision no. U-III-3138/2002, published in Official Gazette no. 22 of 26   February 2007. The relevant parts of the decision read as follows. “The first-instance court established in the impugned judgment that the criteria for formation of classes in the defendant primary schools had been knowledge of the Croatian language and not the pupils’ ethnic origin. The [first-instance] court considered that the complainants had failed to prove their assertion that they had been placed in their classes on the basis of their racial and ethnic origin. The [first-instance] court stressed that the complainants relied exclusively on the activity report of the Ombudsman for the year 2000. However, the Ombudsman said in his evidence that the part of the report referring to the education of Roma had been injudicious because all the relevant facts had not been established. The first-instance court relied on section 27 paragraph 1 of the Primary Education Act ... which provides that teaching in primary schools is in the Croatian language and Latin script, and considered a lack of knowledge of the Croatian language as an objective impediment in complying with the requirements of the school curriculum, which also transpires from the conclusion of a study carried out for the needs of the Croatian Helsinki Committee. The [first-instance] court found: ‘pupils enrolling in the first year of primary schools have to know the Croatian language, so that they are able to follow the teaching, if the purpose of primary education is to be fulfilled. It is therefore logical that classes with children who do not know the Croatian language require additional efforts and commitment of teachers, in particular to teach them the Croatian language.’ The first-instance court found that the defendants had not acted against the law in that they had not changed the composition of classes once established, as only in exceptional situations was the transfer of pupils from one class to another allowed. The [first-instance] court considered that this practice respected the integrity of a class and its unity in the upper grades. The [first-instance] court considered that classes should be formed so as to create favourable conditions for an equal approach to all pupils according to the prescribed curriculum and programme, which could be achieved only where a class consisted of a permanent group of pupils of approximately the same age and knowledge. Furthermore, the [first-instance] court found that the complainants had failed to prove their assertion that ... they had a curriculum of significantly smaller volume than the one prescribed for primary schools by the Ministry of Education and Sports on 16   June 1999. The [first-instance] court found that the above assertion of the complainants relied on the Ombudsman’s report. However, the Ombudsman said in his testimony that he did not know how the fact that in Roma-only classes the teaching followed a so-called special programme had been established. The [first-instance] court established that teaching in the complainants’ respective classes and the parallel ones followed the same curriculum. Only in the Kuršanec Primary School were there some deviations from the school curriculum, but the [first-instance] court found those deviations permissible since they had occurred ... at the beginning of the school year owing to low attendance. After having established that the complainants had not been placed in their classes according to their racial and ethnic origin and that the curriculum had been the same in all parallel classes, the first-instance court dismissed the complainants’ action. ... The reasoning of the first-instance judgment ... shows that the defendant primary schools replied to the complainants’ allegations as follows: ‘The [defendant schools] enrolled in the first year those children found psycho-physically fit to attend primary school by a committee composed of a physician, a psychologist, a school counsellor [ pedagog ], a defectologist and a teacher. They did not enrol Croatian children or Roma children as such, but children found by the said committee to be psychologically and physically fit to be enrolled in primary school. ... The defendant primary schools maintain that the first obstacle for Roma children in psychological tests is their lack of knowledge of the Croatian language in terms of both expression and comprehension. As to the emotional aspect of maturity, most of these children have difficulty channelling their emotions. In terms of social maturity, children of Roma origin do not have the basic hygienic skills of washing, dressing, tying or buttoning, and a lot of time is needed before they achieve these skills. ... It is therefore difficult to plan lessons with sufficient motivation for all children, which is one of the obligations of primary schools. There are classes composed of pupils not requiring additional schooling to follow the teaching programme and classes composed of pupils who require supplementary work and assistance from teachers in order to acquire the necessary [skills] they lack owing to social deprivation. ...’ The reasoning of the same judgment cites the testimony of M.P.-P., a school counsellor and psychologist at Macinec Primary School, given on 12 December 2001   ...; ‘Before enrolment the committee questions the children in order to establish whether they possess the skills necessary for attending school. Classes are usually formed according to the Gauss curve, so that the majority in a given class are average pupils and a minority below or above average. ... However, in a situation where 70% of the population does not speak Croatian, a different approach is adopted so as to form classes with only pupils who do not speak Croatian, because in those classes a teacher’s first task is to teach the children the language.’ The above shows that the allocation of pupils to classes is based on the skills and needs of each individual child. The approach is individualised and carried out in keeping with professional and pedagogical standards. Thus, the Constitutional Court finds the approach applied correct since only qualified experts, in particular in the fields of pedagogy, school psychology and defectology, are responsible for assigning individual children to the appropriate classes. The Constitutional Court has no reason to question the findings and expert opinions of the competent committees, composed of physicians, psychologists, school counsellors [ pedagog ], defectologists and teachers, which in the instant case found that the complainants should be placed in separate classes. None of the facts submitted to the Constitutional Court leads to the conclusion that the placement of the complainants in separate classes was motivated by or based on their racial or ethnic origin. The Constitutional Court finds that their placement pursued the legitimate aim of necessary adjustment of the primary educational system to the skills and needs of the complainants, where the decisive factor was their lack of knowledge or inadequate knowledge of Croatian, the language used to teach in schools. The separate classes were not established for the purpose of racial segregation in enrolment in the first year of primary school but as a means of providing children with supplementary tuition in the Croatian language and eliminating the consequences of prior social deprivation. It is of particular importance to stress that the statistical data on the number of Roma children in separate classes in the school year 2001/02 ... are not in themselves sufficient to indicate that the defendants’ practice was discriminatory (see also the European Court of Human Rights judgments Hugh Jordan v. the United Kingdom , no.   24746/94, § 154, 4 May 2001, and D.H. and Others v. the Czech Republic , no.   57325/00, § 46, 7 February 2006). Moreover, the complainants themselves maintain in their constitutional complaint that in the school year 2001/02 40.93% of Roma children in Međimurje County were placed in regular classes, which tends to support the Constitutional Court’s conclusion that there is no reason to challenge the correct practice of the defendant primary schools and expert committees. ... In their constitutional complaint the complainants further point out that, ‘[e]ven if lack of knowledge of the Croatian language on enrolment in the first year was a problem, the same could not be said of the complainants’ enrolment in upper grades’. They therefore consider that their rights were violated by the courts’ findings that it had been justified to maintain separate [Roma-only] classes in the upper grades in order to preserve the stability of the wholeness of a given class. The complainants submit that the stability of a class should not have been placed above their constitutional rights, multiculturalism and national equality. In that regard the Constitutional Court accepts the complainants’ arguments. While the Constitutional Court considers correct and acceptable the courts’ findings that lack of knowledge of the Croatian language represents an objective obstacle justifying the formation of separate classes for children who do not speak Croatian at all or speak it badly when they start school ... bearing in mind the particular circumstance of the present case, it cannot accept the following conclusion of the first-instance court: ‘Furthermore, the integrity and unity of a class is respected in the upper grades. Therefore, transfer of children from one class to another occurs only exceptionally and in justified cases ... because a class is a homogeneous whole and transferring children from one class to another would produce stress. ... The continuity of a group is a precondition for the development of a class collective ...’ Accordingly, the Constitutional Court cannot accept the following view of the appellate court: ‘The classes are formed when the children enter the first year of their schooling, not every year, and their composition changes only exceptionally. They become a settled whole which makes for work of a higher quality and it is not pedagogically justified to change them. Therefore this court, like the first-instance court, concludes that maintaining established classes did not amount to an unl