The owner of an apartment in Skopje evicted a tenant because she was a Roma woman and was being rude to the neighbors one day after she moved in properly.
A complaint has been submitted to the Commission for Prevention and Protection against Discrimination for committed discrimination based on gender, race, belonging to a marginalized group, ethnicity and family or marital status in the area of housing and access to goods and services.
According to the allegations in the complaint, the woman was looking for an apartment for her long-term accommodation through a real estate agency from Skopje.
"Vabotena at the agency offered her an apartment in Vlae, which they agreed that the petitioner should see." At the same time, it is stated that the owner of the apartment opened it for them, while during its review, the applicant was accompanied by a family friend.
In the continuation of the petition, it is stated that the petitioner stated that she liked the apartment already during its review, which is why they concluded a lease agreement with the owner on 13.10.2023, according to which the petitioner paid the lessor a rent deposit and another half rent for the current month , for a lease to begin on October 15th.
The petitioner as a lessee moved into the apartment on October 15, and the following evening around 11 pm she was contacted by the lessor who addressed her with the following words: "You have to leave the apartment, the other tenants are protesting because you are Roma".
The petitioner claims that such a statement upset her, and she replied that she had nowhere to go, she was sick with diabetes and asked about the reasons, to which the landlord replied that there was pressure from the other tenants to evict her," the complaint states.
The Commission for Prevention and Protection from Discrimination has determined direct intersectional discrimination based on gender, race, ethnicity, and family or marital status in the area of housing.
