Head of state: Danilo Türk
Head of government: Borut Pahor
Death penalty: abolitionist for all crimes
Population: 2 million
Life expectancy: 78.8 years
Under-5 mortality (m/f): 5/4 per 1,000
Adult literacy: 99.7 per cent

Despite some efforts, the authorities continued to fail to restore the rights of people whose permanent residency status was unlawfully revoked in 1992 (known as the "erased"); they also failed to grant reparations to those affected. Discrimination against Roma continued.

Discrimination

The 'erased'

The authorities continued to fail to guarantee the rights of former permanent residents of Slovenia originating from other former Yugoslav republics. Their legal status had been unlawfully revoked in 1992, resulting in violations of their economic and social rights. Some of them were also forcibly removed from the country.

On 8 March, the National Assembly passed a law which aimed at retroactively reinstating permanent residency status to the "erased". The parliamentary and public discussion prior to the adoption of the law was marred by xenophobic statements by several parliamentarians.

On 12 March, the right wing parties filed a proposal with the Parliament to organize a referendum on the adoption of the new law. However, the proposal was eventually rejected by the Constitutional Court in June.

In July, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the authorities had violated the right to private and family life of eight applicants whose permanent residency permit had been revoked in 1992. The Court also found a violation of the right to an effective remedy, as the authorities had failed to implement two separate decisions of the Constitutional Court, issued in 1999 and 2003, related to the rights of the "erased".

In August, the CERD Committee recommended, among other things, that the authorities grant full reparation, including restitution, satisfaction, compensation, rehabilitation and guarantees of non-repetition, to all people affected by the revocation of their permanent residency status.

Roma

Many Roma experienced inadequate housing conditions, including lack of access to water, sanitation facilities and electricity. Romani settlements were very often isolated and segregated. Roma families were excluded from access to social housing programmes and faced discrimination when trying to buy property. Cases of verbal and physical intimidation and hate speech against Roma were common in local communities and they remained largely unaddressed by the relevant authorities. Remedies to challenge the discriminatory practices were inadequate and often unavailable.

In May, the UN Expert on Human Rights, Water and Sanitation concluded upon her visit to Slovenia that at least 21 Roma settlements did not have access to water and warned of the devastating consequences for these communities. She urged the authorities to undertake urgent steps to address the situation.

Similarly, in August the CERD Committee urged the authorities to challenge discrimination against Roma in different aspects of social life, including in the fields of education, housing, health and employment. It also recommended that the authorities undertake measures to completely eradicate the practice of segregating Roma pupils in the education system.

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