Tamás Gyöngyösi, centre, receives a special scholarship to attend police college from the local police in Derecske, Hungary. (OSCE/Andrzej Mirga) 52 children. The day brought together representatives of participating States, intergovernmental and international organizations, and representatives of Roma civil society from various countries. ODIHR facilitated the participation of 15 Roma at the event. Discussions covered a wide range of issues, including the extent and nature of non-participation of Roma and Sinti children in early education, the main obstacles for their parents to enrol and support their children’s participation in early education, measures taken by the responsible authorities to address these obstacles, and lessons learned and good practices developed to foster the enrolment and participation of Roma and Sinti children in early education. As a follow-up to Ministerial Council Decision No. 6/08, ODIHR prepared and distributed a questionnaire focused on the enrolment and participation of Roma and Sinti children in early education among participating States and civil society organizations. The information collected allowed ODIHR to start preparing an overview of the situation in the OSCE area and to identify obstacles, main challenges and effective current initiatives. A consultation meeting was organized by ODIHR in March, bringing together education experts from various governments and civil society organizations to discuss opportunities for co-operation and ways to support the implementation of the Ministerial Council Decision. ODIHR also organized a workshop in December, focusing on the production of a brochure and video spot to raise awareness among Roma communities and the relevant authorities of the importance and benefits of early education. Contact Point for Roma and Sinti Issues ODIHR, together with the Council of Europe’s Education Division, continued an educational initiative launched in 2008 to develop a website dedicated to the genocide of the Roma in World War II. The website is designed to provide schools, universities, civil society, relevant state authorities and the general public with easier access to information about the Roma and Sinti wartime experience. The website will be launched in 2010 and will be operated by ODIHR and the Council of Europe. There is a limited amount of literature and teaching material on the experience of Roma under the regime of the Romanian dictator Ion Antonescu during World War II, including their deportation to what was then called Transnistria. In April 2009, in conjunction with the Elie Wiesel National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust in Romania and Romania’s Ion Cioaba Foundation, ODIHR published a book combining the oral testimonies of 12 Roma survivors with a substantial collection and analysis of archival documents illustrating the systematic persecution of Roma under the Antonescu regime. Enhancing Participation in Public and Political Life Despite an increase in the participation of Roma and Sinti in public life in recent years, participation in elections, particularly among women and young people, remains disproportionately low. ODIHR continues to support efforts to encourage Roma and Sinti to take ODIHR Annual Report 2009