Al-Jazeera report examines Czech Roma plight

A television report by the international news channel Al-Jazeera has cast a critical eye over the experiences of many Roma in the Czech Republic. In a report on its English-language network that lasted for more than three minutes, the area of Beroun, just west of Prague, came under the spotlight. The report alleged that Roma children with no discernible handicaps were nonetheless being sent to so-called special schools, and that this practice was undertaken to ensure the continued segregation of whites and Roma. The report concluded by reflecting that education was the likeliest and strongest path out of poverty for many Roma. An Education Ministry representative was interviewed in the report and conceded that there were problems – he pointed to a bill being prepared by the government to address the issue school segregation, but conceded that attitudes in the government often reflect those found among the non-Roma Czech public.