Do we have the need for separate laws on protection of special groups, in organization of MCIC and AOWM

Separate laws on protection of the most vulnerable groups of the society

In the legislative of Republic of Macedonia there is need of passing of laws that will regulate the protection of special groups, since it has been shown that the Macedonian state institutions do not possess efficient mechanisms that will secure the human rights for the most vulnerable groups in Macedonia.

This was the general conclusion from the panel for the issue of need for separate laws on protection of special groups, held in organization of Macedonian Center for International Cooperation (MCIC) and the Alliance of Organizations of Women in Macedonia (AOWM).

“ Until everybody is equal in our society, we will need laws that protect marginalized and vulnerable groups. Macedonia hasn’t brought the law for antidiscrimination, which generally means terminating all types of discrimination, but when this law is on the Parliamentary agenda, this doesn’t mean that other laws regarding other special groups should not exist and should not be brought. We certainly cannot allow a situation where everybody defines the society we live in as equal, but at the same time some groups from the society more equal than others”-this was said by Eleonora Petrova-Mitevska, the MP from SDSM.    

The procedure of the law for equal possibilities will find its place on the agenda of the Macedonian Parliament very soon, and it will regulate the relations between the genders.

“ The women are at least 50% of the total population in the society, but in some professions they simply cannot be found,”- said eka sme cija vo koja se izjasnuvame rskata gra|anska organizacija Mkoi Romite se prika`ani kako kradci i nerabotnici" pu{tat naSavka Todorovska, the president of AOWM. “ As an illustration, only 5% of the total number of managers are women, and the other 95% are men. This is due to the former education that women should be passive and men active. It is a fact that women are more present in the job fields that are less paid, as being the case of the textile companies or the education” added Todorovska. 

Aneta Jovevska, a high scientific cooperant in the Institute for social and politically legal researches, considers that the bringing of the law for antidiscrimination will not be sufficient.

“ The easier part of the procedure is the legal-formal part, the much more difficult part is the implementation of the laws in real life and the change in the citizens’ consciousness. Every society, which declares to be a democratic one, could be indiscriminating. In general many states declare themselves as democratic, but again we witness breaking of the human rights.”

Furthermore, the issue of equality or inequality of the genders is not the only shape of discrimination in the Macedonian society. We speak about public, but also hidden discrimination, also when it comes to the roma minority. The analyses have shown that roma minority is mostly undervalued by the police, by the administration clerks and in the education. Nevertheless, there are other situations when roma minority is belittled, a terrible, semi-hidden shapes of undervaluation, for example, refusing to serve roma customers in a restaurant, not allowing entrance into swimming pools, or also when roma people are presented as robbers and lazy, non-working people to the children in schools”, was stated by Muhamed Toci from the civic organization “Moon” from Gostivar.