No. 07-00-532/2017-02  Date: 9 March, 2018

OPINION

The opinion was issued in the procedure following complaint from К.S. on behalf of her minor daughter S.S. against the Foundation M.T.G.B. on account of discrimination based of her property status. In her complaint she stated, among other things, that her daughter S.S.  applied for a grant for talented secondary school students at the competition open by the Foundation MTPG on 31 October, 2017, and that one of the conditions for the competition was for a young talented person to be a student of a secondary school founded by the Republic of Serbia. She stated that on account of such stipulated conditions in the competition, her daughter could not exercise her rights, bearing in mind that she was a student of a grammar school which founder was a private person. The complainant pointed out that one of the key reasons for the student S.S. to get enrolled in a private grammar school was that this school allowed her to coordinate her highly demanding school and sports activities, and that her school, due to her top sporting results, granted her a scholarship by reducing the tuition fees. In the declaration by the Foundation, M.T.G.B, among other things, is stated that, given the goal of the Foundation M.T.G.B. consists of providing assistance to talented pupils and students with lower material status, the competition stipulates the condition that only students of secondary schools founded by the Republic of Serbia can compete, while students from private secondary schools are not covered. It was pointed out that the conditions of the competition for granting the  funds to talented secondary school students from the territory of the city of Belgrade in 2017, stipulated precise and detailed criteria, among which, in addition to talent, success in education and excellence, there were also socio-economic status, as well as belonging to a vulnerable social group. During the procedure, the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality analyzed whether the setting of the conditions for the right to participate in the competition for granting the funds to talented secondary school students from the territory of the city of Belgrade in 2017 only provided to talented secondary school students founded by the Republic of Serbia was in violation of imperative regulations prohibiting discrimination and binding on everyone. The analysis showed that the selection board of the Foundation M.T.G.B. did not consider the application of the student S.S. because she did not fulfill the condition prescribed by the competition since she did not attend a secondary school founded by the Republic of Serbia. Also, it was established that this requirement was prescribed on the basis of the assumption of the Foundation M.T.G.B. that the families of students attending private secondary schools were of good material status. Therefore, the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality believes that the Foundation M.T.G.B, by imposing the conditions that only the students of secondary schools founded by the Republic of Serbia could participate in the competition, placed the student S.S. in an unjustifiably unequal position on the basis of the presumed personal characteristic – property status. Therefore, the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality gave an opinion that by prescribing the conditions in the competition for granting the funds to talented secondary school students from the territory of the city of Belgrade in 2017 that the candidates were regular students of secondary schools founded by the Republic of Serbia, violated the provisions of Article 6 in connection with Article 8 of the Law on the Prohibition of Discrimination. Therefore, the Foundation M.T.G.B. was recommended to take all necessary actions and measures aimed at eliminating the consequences of discriminatory treatment of the complainant, as well as not to violate anti-discrimination regulations in the future competitions for providing assistance to talented pupils, students and persons who stand out in scientific and creative work and in the performance of other tasks within its competence.