OPINION

The opinion was issued in the proceedings regarding the complaint of AA, filed against BB, ŽŽ of the Municipal Committee of the VV party, due to the statement in which he called the members of the Vlach national minority “Indians”. BB completely denied calling the members of the Vlach national minority “Indians”, pointing to the professional cooperation he had with the complainant and his surprise at the complaint’s allegations. The person against whom the complaint was filed also pointed to the circumstance of the passage of time from the moment when, according to the complainant, he called the members of this national minority “Indians” until the moment the complaint was filed. As BB added, four months after the moment when, according to the complainant, he called the members of this national minority “Indians”, the complainant proposed him for a member of the Municipal Council. The Commissioner for the Protection of Equality stated that the complainant’s motives to seek protection before this authority certainly do not affect the decision on the merits of this legal matter. As the Commissioner pointed out, it is clear that the described life event took place more than eight months ago and that the procedure was initiated only after certain relations between BB and AA were disturbed. However, according to the opinion of the Commissioner, this is not too long a period of time due to which the interest in legal protection would be lost, while all other circumstances do not point to the conclusion that the event did not occur. During the proceedings, the Commissioner took into account the statement of a witness who asserted that when entering the bus, he heard BB say: “Fuck the country run by the Vlachs – Indians and Gypsies”. Bearing in mind that the allegations in the complaint were confirmed by the witness statement and applying the rule on shifting the burden of proof, the Commissioner issued the opinion that AA expressed a position that insults the dignity of members of the Vlach national minority and creates a humiliating and insulting environment for them, which violated the provisions of Article 12 of the Law on Prohibition of Discrimination. BB was recommended to send AA a written apology and not violate the provisions of anti-discrimination regulations with his statements in the future.

COMMISSIONER FOR THE PROTECTION OF EQUALITY

Brankica Janković