Contributions

Marina Dimitrova Stefanova
Sofia, Bulgaria
marine@ibn.bg

ROMANY PUPILS. NEED FOR A LONG TERM ACTION

 

The radical changes in the political and social life in Bulgaria after XI. 1989 brought as a result separation of our country from Russia. Some phrases as "political pluralism", "free market" and "economic initiative" appeared in the everyday language.

This new situation leads to the real opportunity of turning the state into a model of a democratic one. This was firstly grounded in the Preamble of the new Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria from 1991

" ...pledging our loyalty to the universal human values of liberty, peace, humanism, equality, justice and tolerance... to create a democratic law-governed and social state."

In our case the definition "social" means not only "relation between people living in communities" but brings one more sense - a state that cares for its citizens and tries to create a society based on the principles of freedom, equity and welfare. Thus we re-discover the idea of establishing the basic social relations in every stratified community in the highest will of the legislators in order to assure the proper further development of the community as a whole.

This process of transforming our value and economic system evoked the need of one more reform - that in the area of the education.

It is already known that the educational structure is the cultural support of society and it is responsible for saving, keeping and handing down the knowledge and norms which build the moral and the intellectual basis of the social heritage.

Society was always identified with its school. That is why the school neither enforces obedience nor presses someone's view on. It only reproduces the existing relationship expressed with the power of one dominant culture that silently affirms what must be thought. In fact questions about the reproduction of the existing social inequity and discrimination, if such exist, are a real phenomenon and for them Burdyo blames the school - "the school is an institution reproducing the class inequity in society'.

These common positions cannot be directly put into use in Bulgarian society right now because in periods like insecurity wins. The result is: absence of clear position about the problems of contemporary education both from state and citizens. Thus the problem with the discrimination stays open for discussion. What are the real facts?

The present Romany population in Bulgaria overcomes 800 000. They divide themselves into four main groups:

  1. Kokalari - stock-breeders;
  2. Kaldarashi - pickpockets;
  3. Zanaiatchii - craftsmen;
  4. Turkish Romans - traders.

These four groups live separately and have different customs. Only two of them send their children to school at all (Turkish and zanaiatcii). By religion these two groups are evangelists. We will not analyze their culture but the only thing we should look at is their style of living. It differs totally from the Bulgarian one and the main areas are:

  • Idea of living for the day;
  • absence of practice in long-term planning;
  • lack of property or ethnic memory.

This is due to their ethnic heritage but it contradicts to the main idea of studying expressed in Art. 14, National Education Act 1998: "assuring … normal physical and mental development of children and pupils… ". The Romany children from all groups grow physically earlier then the Bulgarian ones ( some scientists say it is due to their body temperature which is higher than the East European one and their growth reproduces the hothouse effect). That is why at the age of 12 they got married. The period of education includes eight years of studying the mother's or father's craft. We cannot see any individual development at all. Thus the cultural picture keeps unchanged from centuries and one ethnic group cannot progress till reaching the level of a nation.

Now we can summarize the main reasons for not studying - lack of home control and evaluation of the school knowledge.

This leads to diminishing the inquiries of the teachers themselves. Why? Because Bulgarian education is secular, free of charge but compulsory up to the age of 16. (See Art. 6, 7, 8 of National Education Act) And when a Romany girl is 13 years old she should stop studying but if she has not finished the basic three levels, she should leave school totally illiterate (without any reading or writing skills). So the teachers help them pass without objective marking their skills. Thus the state cannot say it does not care for its citizen's education. This is not separate fact but presents the practice as a whole. Now we put the questions: Where to look for the discrimination? Who are its real victims - Bulgarians or Romans? The question is open for discussion.

Looking at the origin of the discrimination we shall see its legal regulation in Art. 6 of the Bulgarian Constitution which says:

(1) All persons are born free and equal in dignity and rights.

(2) All citizens shall be equal before the law. There shall be no privileges or restriction of rights on the grounds of race, nationality, ethnic self-identity, sex, origin, religion, opinion, political affiliation, personal and social status or property status.

Similar is the content of Art. 4 of the National Education Act 1998:

(1) All persons are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They shall be entitled to constantly heighten their education and qualification.

(2) Restriction or privileges based on race, nationality, sex, ethnic and social status shall be inadmissible.

The law says so but when ready groups of marks, knowledge, forms and style of thinking exist (first formed in the family), and educational system uses fictitious justice and transparency, children begin to think that the reality is the only one possible and that their position is what they deserve it to be.

Real discrimination does not exist in Bulgarian society but the specific attitude is a reality. It includes avoiding constant contact or relationship with Romans which is due to their lack of values or existing of ones that do not correspond to ours. This does not lead to conflict situations in general but some separate dislikes are real facts (especially when Bulgarians are victims of pickpocket or fraud). This is an ordinary situation.

An argument for the existing equity is the fact that Romans in Bulgaria have an official alphabet. It was written by a Roman called Manush Romanov. Unfortunately nobody uses it because they do not need it. But if they want to study it, they have this opportunity:

Art. 8
(2) Pupils whose mother's tongue is not Bulgarian shall have the right to study their mother's tongue in the municipal schools under the protection and control of the state.
Bulgarian Constitution

Art. 36
(1) The study and use of Bulgarian language shall be a right and obligation of every citizen.
(2) Citizens whose mother tongue is not Bulgarian language shall have the right to study and use their own language along besides the compulsory study of Bulgarian language.
National Education Act

At the end of this short presentation we must decide what is important and how to continue. Discrimination in its pure sense does not exist but education in its present form is not applicable to them. There are two ways of solving the problem:

  • To close our eyes (This means to leave the story which will be ok because in Bulgarian society we see only negative population increase. On the other hand every Romany family has 4 - 6 children. This will save the country from future ethnic conflicts which otherwise seems inevitable.)
  • To make some changes.

The last opportunity looks a little bit hazardous but the development cannot be fulfilled without risking. The more so as already in the early eighties the idea for the school undergone some basic changes.

The objective need of evaluation of the education according to its practical use appeared and the result was assuring adequate behaviour which can be useful in the real life. The authoritarian role of the teacher leading to misunderstanding and lack of trust from the students has transformed into communicative-transforming-correcting one. Henry Plackrose described the functions of the "new school" - an institution that answers to the needs of the society and acts not only as a study center but as a center for support and a part of the society. These new ideas of a school that assures knowledge; development of critical qualities; evaluation of the personal skills and talents brought as a result alternative in the forms of education and free choice in the subjects studied. This aimed to prepare the youth for full social realisation, adaptation and mobility. The legal resume of this whole tendency in the sociology can be found in Art. 15 of the National Educational Act:

  1. Formation of free, moral and enterprising personalities, respecting the laws, as well as any other individual's rights, culture, language and religion;
  2. Satisfaction of any individual interests and needs, and acquisition of broad general knowledge.
  3. All students' opinion between alternative opportunity for training and vocational qualifications in accordance with the students' potential and the schools elected by them.

The last clause of this Article opens an opportunity to create an alternative type of education for the Romany population. It can turn into a new chance for them but the question is what the prize would be. Although its potential the new "Romany school" may not be discriminative or bring some privileges but we cannot be sure that the results will lead to their successful development. In the world history we can find examples for degenerated schools leading to discriminatory attitude (Negroes in USA) or attempts for destroying an ethnic group (successful in USA - Indians, unsuccessful in the Turkish empire - enichars).

This facts make me think that the only way to help the Romany population in their development as an ethnic group is not to disturb their cultural and historical genesis. Real discrimination does not exist in Bulgaria and as far as this is the only thing that does matter now, Romans live their life unmolested here (they have representatives in the parliament and the local authority). The government makes everything possible to assure them normal living giving them jobs and apartments. The problem is that they do not want to use the opportunities. This does not mean to leave the question without further discussion but to think twice before doing anything at all.

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