in the 21st century, and also ratified the Istanbul Convention in 2016, violence against women occurring in the private sphere remains an issue. Romania was convicted by the ECHR in 2017 for its failure to act. Right to education Romania has been criticized for its failure to enforce the right to education of certain social groups, namely rural children and Roma children, notwithstanding the fact education in Romania is compulsory until the 10th grade (usually corresponding to age 16 or 17). Segregation of Roma children in schools, which is illegal, continues unofficially in some schools, and in 2017 the NGOs ERRC and Romani CRISS urged the European Commission to launch an investigation into the segregation of Roma children in schools. The access of children who live in rural areas to education is another area of concern: their situation becomes very problematic after the eighth grade (the last grade of middle school/gymnasium corresponding to age 14–15) because children must change schools to go to high school, and many villages do not have high schools, and therefore parents must make arrangements for their children to commute to the nearest locality or for the child to move there, which is difficult, and as a result many children abandon school (despite the fact that education is compulsory until tenth grade). In one study, a third of rural school children said they planned to drop out of school after eighth grade. Background of human rights in Romania Romania at the turn of the 20th century was a very progressive country and had strong human rights roots: it was, for instance, one of only seven countries in Europe to have abolished the death penalty during peacetime. However the image of Romania was later tarnished internationally by severe violations of human rights during successive dictatorship systems: that of Ion Antonescu during World War II; and the following communist Romania regime which included executions of political 'enemies' in the 1950s, and later on, the infamous natalist policy of Nicolae Ceaușescu, with its resulting abuse of unwanted children in Romanian orphanages, as well as the extreme control of everyday life through practices such as phone bugging, and other abuses of the communist Securitate. Human rights improved greatly after the Romanian Revolution. See also Crime in Romania LGBT rights in Romania Romanian orphans Abortion in Romania Environmental racism in Europe References - Romania External links Censorship in Romania - IFEX