No. 07-00-230/2016-02  Date: 20 July, 2016

OPINION

The opinion was issued in the procedure following complaint from М.Р filed in the name and with consent of his son N.R. against the Municipality of Raška and the Municipal Council of Raška, on account of discrimination based on disability. The complaint states that N.R. is a child with disabilities travelling on the route Raška – Donje Jarinje as a secondary school student and that the Municipality of Raška has not provided him with the right to free transport to school. The declaration states that N.R. did not obtain a free monthly ticket which was granted to pupils and students by competition, because he did not fulfill the requirements prescribed by the Rulebook on granting free monthly tickets at the expense of the budget funds of the Municipality of Raška. It further indicates that the special decision of the Municipal Council of Raška, regulating transportation of children with developmental disabilities and other disabilities in previous years, was not adopted because “the election process started and the municipal commissions did not meet.” During the procedure, it was determined that the provisions of Article 159, paragraph 2, point 4 of the Law on Foundationss of the Education System stipulated that transport, accommodation and food for children and students with disabilities were to be provided out of the budget funds of a local self-government unit, regardless of how far their places of residence were from school. The Commissioner for the Protection of Equality expressed the opinion that, by failing to provide the student with disabilities free transport to school, the Municipality of Raška aggravated exercising the right to N.R. to education and full inclusion in the education system, thereby violating the provisions of the Law on the Prohibition of Discrimination and recommended the Municipality of Raška to take all necessary actions and measures within its competence to eliminate the consequences of discrimination against N.R. arising from failing by the Municipality of Raška to provide N.R. and all other students with disabilities with free transport to school in the school year 2015/2016; to make a written apology to N.R. for discrimination committed by failing to provide him with free transport to school in the school year 2015/2016 within 15 days from the date of receipt of the opinion with the recommendation; in the future, in the course of carrying out tasks under its competence, not to violate regulations on prohibition of discrimination.