Daily Archives: December 31, 2014

News Western Europe

31.12.2014 The Pope and Rroma

Published by:

The pope urged Roma to “get a job” and to “integrate” into civic society. Speaking during a visit to a Roma community, the Pope told 40 Rroma: “Seek work and integration, without ever succumbing to despair. I greet you and I wish all good things for you. That you will always have peace in your families, that you have work, that you have joy.”

While we certainly greet the pope’s words, we would like to remind him and all who do not want to know, that most Rroma do have a job, are integrated and are living what can be said to be a normal life. They cannot say they are Rroma, because of the very strong prejudices and stereotypes that exist against this minority.

News Switzerland

31.12.2014 Swiss Government gives in: Jenische, Rroma, participate in the newly created commission

Published by:

The Swiss government – represented by the Swiss Federal Office of Culture (BAK) – recently incited representatives of Jenische, Rroma, Sinti, and generally travellers to kick off a task force on the preservation of minorities and their culture. While the plenary session effectively achieved some kind of parity and representation, the working group created to devise the policies and projects was overwhelmingly non minority. Only two representatives of Jenische Organisations were invited to participate.

Germany News Eastern Europe News Western Europe Serbia

31.12.2014 Serbia as Safe Country: Gall goes …

Published by:

Südwest Presse reports on the visit of Reinhold Gall, Interior Minister and SPD party member to Serbia following the declaration of Serbia as being a safe country. According to Gall, following his visit, no refugee is being sent back into the “void” as stated by critiques of this move.

During his visit, he spoke to Osman Balic, the president of the Liga Roma, a Roma NGO in Serbia. According to Balic, Rroma would go to Germany for economical reasons and Gall concludes that there are no real reasons for political asylum for Rroma from that country.

We would like to remind him that this is a bit like travelling to the Southern United States prior to the session war, and stating that no, there are really no reasons why black would want to leave. While not that extreme in Serbia, there is an extreme segregation that has increased a lot due to the nationalism of the Milosevic years. And while one cannot say that all Rrom from Serbia should get asylum, there is not yet a real good reason to declare that all are safe there.

Germany News Western Europe

31.12.2014 Prejudices against Rroma

Published by:

Milan Jaeger interviewed the social worker Sonia Böttcher in Frankfurt and quizzed here on her work and on Rroma generally.  She stresses that there are common and long lasting prejudices against Rroma that portrays them as poor, uneducated, dirty, etc. She states that while there are certainly Rroma who fit the picture, the majority of the population is certainly not like this.

Meanwhile, the Süddeutsche Zeitung interviewed Andreas Zick, a researcher from the IKG, Institute for the interdisciplinary research on  conflict and violence of the University of Bielerfeld on the fears of the general population in the face of a perceived increased number of asylum seekers in Germany. This in spite of the fact that Germany is not really taking more refugees in proportion to its population as compared to neighbouring countries.

The NZZ reports on the march of the Pegida and their fear of foreigners, refugees and other migrants. One of the main often unmentioned fears are the potential hordes of Rroma who may invade Germany to benefit from a liberal social system. That these hordes never materialised in the years since all EU citizen are free to move and settle in all Eu Countries is never actually stated. There are very few Rroma, according to all official statistics who settled in Western Europe following the free travel agreements in the EU.

  1. Jaeger, Milan. Vorurteile gegen Sinti und Roma. In Frankfurter Rundschau. 28. Nov. 2014. http://www.fr-online.de/frankfurt/roma-vorurteile-gegen-sinti-und-roma,1472798,29187018.html
  2. Schulte von Drach, Markus C. Vom Vorurteil zur Fremdenfeindlichkeit. In Süddeutsche Zeitung, 10. December 2014. http://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/fluechtlinge-in-deutschland-vom-vorurteil-zur-fremdenfeindlichkeit-1.2251706
  3. Lahrtz, Stephanie. Verängstigte und unverstandene Mitläufer. In Neue Zürcher Zeitung. 16 December 2014. http://www.nzz.ch/international/deutschland-und-oesterreich/veraengstigte-und-unverstandene-mitlaeufer-1.18445463
News Western Europe

31.12.2014 Paying for the Bride

Published by:

Another article in the UK Press referring to the allegedly common tradition of paying for the bride… In fact, only Vlax Rroma pay for the bride, but in traditional families, the bride receives the money as a guarantee and dowry that she will keep in any case.

Again, stereotypes and single cases are presented here as being the common factor among all Rroma.

News Eastern Europe News Western Europe Romania

31.12.2014 Migrant Rroma Abuse Welfare

Published by:

Another Rrom is presented in the UK Press as abusing social welfare and building himself a “mansion” for 60 thousand pounds that he managed to get from the UK. Looking at the picture of the afore said mansion, one can doubt whether the story is actually true, as in Romania, houses of this type are certainly cheaper than this.

In addition, this article perpetuates a view that all Rroma are poor, are poverty migrants, and as such, abuse our “generous” western welfare. This is far from being the case, as even in the UK, there are many invisible and integrated Rroma who do not fit this pattern.

Last but not least, the use of “Roma Gypsy” clearly shows the lack of knowledge and intellect of the journalist who wrote these words.

Hungary News Eastern Europe

31.12.2014 Jobbik’s Vona claims not to deny the Holocaust

Published by:

In an interview with Hungary Today, Gabor Vona, the leader of the extreme rightist party “Jobbik” claims to be moderate, and not to be against Jews and Rroma. This interview goes against many other speeches where he or other people from his party advocated the eradication of all Rroma, requesting Jews to leave, and so on. In the interview, he belittles the impact of the guard, a paramilitary arm of Jobbik that marches through Rroma communities and even Jewish neighbourhoods with raised Nazi salute.

This interview doesn’t at all reflect the true nature of the party nor the actual policies they try to enforce, for example by removing Rroma from neighbourhoods, as in Nyiregyhaza.

France News Western Europe

31.12.2014 France: Segregated classes for Rroma

Published by:

The movement against racism and for the friendship between people (Mrap) has denounced the creation of a segregated class for Rroma children in Bron (close to Lyon) for the children living in an illegal camp there.

We cannot stress enough that segregated classes and segregated education is an absolute no go. This has proven to be the way to create an underclass rather than to integrate people.

France News Western Europe

31.12.2014 France – Between Expulsions and Integration : The Expulsions

Published by:

Again, and this in spite of the usual republican reprieve over the Winter period, the French authorities expulsed migrant Rroma from illegal camps in various places. Le Monde reports about these blanket expulsions, from Le Havre to Saint Denis (Le Monde, 28 Nov.); and more articles report on other expulsion such as in Saint Denis (Libération Dec. 12); in Bobigny, the Rroma who were expulsed of their camp have “vanished” (Le Monde, 29. Nov.); In Stains, Rroma are being forced to leave, and this, in a communist town where one could expect a bit more tolerance (Liberation, 18 Dec.); in Haubourdin as reported in la Void du Nord; and in Champs sur Marne, Rroma left their encampment prior to an announced eviction.

These evictions do not resolve any issues. They just displace the problem from one location to the next. And in addition, the press, by just reporting on these Rroma, who, by all accounts make up roughly 15 thousand people of the more than 150 thousand living and integrated in France, give a very biased and dangerous picture of the minority and play in the nhands of populists and extremists.

France News Western Europe

31.12.2014 France – Between Expulsions and Integration : The Integration Attempts

Published by:

While expulsions are going on, there are nevertheless some efforts in France to try to integrate the migrant Rroma who are currently living in ghettoes at the outskirts of the major cities of that country. For example in Tourcoing, the Church is inviting to a debate on Rroma and their place in Society. The priest who initiated the debate stress their exclusion and lack of integration.

Meanwhile, RTL reports on the successful integration of more than 400 Rroma, 219 of them minors, in the region of Lyon. This article is one of the few so far in France showing that integration of these Rroma is feasible, in spite of what Valls stated last year, namely that Rroma cannot be integrated. (RTL)

In the department of Essone, a group of volunteers is working to integrate Rroma and is fighting the current expulsion policies of the French state. (Essonne Info)

While this is true of the minority of Rroma who are migrants and part of the current migration issue in France, there are many more Rroma in that country who are integrated and live “normal” lives. These should not be forgotten in this debate.

Hungary News Eastern Europe

31.12.2014 Bishop of Vac bemoans the situation of Rroma in Hungary

Published by:

In his Christmas mass, Miklós Beer, the bishop of Vác bemoaned the prejudices against Rroma in Hungary as well as their current situation. He even showed understanding for Rroma who steal to feed their children. His homely is remarkable as generally the Hungarian views on Rroma are more extreme. The entire text can be seen on YouTube and a very good summary is given in Hungarian Spectrum.

Aladar Horvath, a Rrom and an activist wrote a very good article entitled “Protest, Fight, or Flight” on the current prospects of the Rroma minority in Hungary. He denounces the forthcoming cuts of social benefits that will lead many Rroma, especially in the countryside into further poverty, hunger, and despair. This is a situation that no one in Western Europe seems to want to see, but is the reality for a large group of Hungarian Rroma.

rroma.org
en_GBEnglish (UK)
de_DEDeutsch fr_FRFrançais en_GBEnglish (UK)