Family wins housing
discrimination case
The Sadeghi family made the highest bid for a house in Fjellhamar, not far from Oslo, but the sellers opted to accept the next-highest bid. A state agency has ruled the Sadeghis were victims of discrimination. Somayeh and Anwar Sadeghi were relieved by the anti-discrimination decision. PHOTO: CARL MARTIN NORDBY |
"It's been important for us to prove that we were subjected to racism," Sapideh Sadeghi told newspaper Aftenposten on Friday.
The Sadeghi family now plans to consult an attorney to see what they'll do next. Under Norwegian law, they can claim economic compensation from those who violated a state law against discrimination.
The case marks the first time that a national committee charged with enforcing equality and anti-discrimination measures has determined that a prospective home buyer was discriminated against on the basis of ethnicity.
The Sadeghi family had been notified by real estate brokerage firm Notar that they'd submitted the highest bid for the house in Fjellhamar. The broker, however, called back a short while later and said they wouldn't be able to buy the house anyway, because the seller "didn't want any trouble" and decided to sell to the next-highest bidder.
The Sadeghis had offered NOK 10,000 more for the property, and neither the broker nor the seller would give them a clear reason why their bid was turned down. The Sadeghis filed a formal complaint, and the anti-discrimination commitee (Likestillings- og diskrimineringsnemnda) confirmed their suspicion that they'd been turned down on the basis of their ethnicity.
Committee leader Aslak Syse said the seller couldn't explain how acceptance of the next-highest bid might have been based on anything other than ethnicity.
Astrid Dalen
Amund Trellevik
Aftenposten English Web Desk
Nina Berglund
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