The European Roma Rights Center recently reported that the United Nations Committee against Torture has found the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) in violation of the provisions of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. The ruling came in regard to an incident that took place in Danilovgrad, Montenegro in 1995. Responding to rape accusations by a non-Roma girl against two Romani youth, a mob of several hundred non-Roma burned down or otherwise destroyed an entire Roma settlement in the town. The 65 men, women and children displaced by this action are still living in severe poverty; many Roma were fired by their employers following the incident. No steps were taken to prosecute or punish those responsible, and the police were reported to have stood idly by while the destruction took place. The UN committee faulted the Montenegrin authorities for the law enforcement officials' failure to “provide adequate protection against racially motivated attacks”, among other charges.
