The Hungarian government stands firmly against segregation and will continue to do everything for the integration of the Roma, Minister of Human Capacities Zoltán Balog said at the 14th May meeting of Anti-Segregation Roundtable, adding that the roundtable will remain the forum for discussing relevant issues.

Mr. Balog said that KLIK (the state institution responsible for the management of state schools) has never supported the re-opening the Piliscsaba school that has already been shut down and there is no pedagogic reason to allow the opening of “Roma classes”.

The roundtable was set up in 2013 at the initiative of the Minister of Human Capacities with the aim of recommending anti-segregation measures to the government based on the analysis of various educational situations. The roundtable has already produced some tangible results, such as the amendment of the public education law, hiring anti-segregation officers at the county-level KLIK offices and the initiation of maintaining direct contacts with large cities in order to tackle segregation.

The roundtable has also set up a separate working committee to combat segregation in public education which works with local authorities to devise appropriate anti-segregation measures and promote integration, and create an education system that is key to the integration of disadvantaged children.
Unlike the previous, dogmatic state policies, the current Social Inclusion Strategy adopted in 2011 is based on active cooperation with those affected. The Ministry of Human Capacities does not approach the creation of opportunities from an ethnic perspective, it rather attempts to assist all of those in need with the goal of integrating them and provide motivation for continuing their studies.

(Ministry of Human Capacities)