Daily Archives: February 8, 2015

News Eastern Europe Romania

08.02.2015 Meanwhile in Romania

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The Romanian television reports on the arrest of 19 Romanian Rroma in Milan for being procurers. They are reported to have trafficked Romanian women and forced them into prostitution. Again the criminal activity is clearly portrayed as an ethnic trait, fuelling the already strong racism against Rroma in Romania.

France News Eastern Europe News Western Europe Romania

08.02.2015 France: Some positive news …

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Not all news in France on Rroma is negative. In the north of France, an association helps Rroma to integrate, to obtain papers and find work. They follow Rroma, mostly from Romania who have been in the region for several years.

In Avignon, the state lodged some 30 Rroma in a camping after having been expulsed from their camp. Probably, the officials thought that as they are “travellers” a camping is the proper thing to do.

France News Western Europe

08.02.2015 French Evictions: 2015 started no better than 2014

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While the press ponders the reports from the ERRC and the LDH on the evictions of Rroma camps in France, these evictions, as apparent from other papers, continue in full swing. For example, about 100 Rroma were evacuated by the police from a former factory (La Marne) or in Loos, the polices “re-organised” Rroma camps (Voix du Nord).

Meanwhile, the Figaro reports on crimes committed by the “gens du voyage”, the French version of the term of “Travellers”. In this case, some Travellers are reported to have stolen an car with a baby on board and abandoned the kid on the side of the road. Following this, the police raided 6 camps. These camps have nothing to do with the illegal Rroma camps – these are camps with caravans etc. Once again, criminality is presented as a way of life and as part of the culture. In addition, the journalist is not quite sure of his terminology, using several different terms to denote the criminals he reports on.

News Western Europe

08.02.2015 Remembrance of victims of the Holocaust

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HNA reports on the research of a history teacher, Arndt Böttcher, who has been researching the history of a Rroma family in Battenberg, the Klein. The family settled in Battenberg in the 18th century and was deported to Auschwitz and other camps during the war. Many died but apparently 4 sons survived the horrors of the war.

Germany News Western Europe

08.02.2015 Foreign in one’s own country: Sinti in Germany

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MiGazin speaks about Ricardo Laubinger, a Sinto from Hildesheim, a town where Rroma are documented since 1407. His family lived there since generations and travelled during the summer to earn a living as a trader or handyman. He clearly says “We are German” and says that after all, his forebears lived there for the last 600 years!

News Western Europe

08.02.2015 Commemoration of the Attacks in Oberwarth

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An Article in the “Standard” in Austria speaks about the attacks 20 years ago in Oberwarth, and also about the Rroma who were deported to concentration camps during the war. Politicians attended the commemorations and spoke about a “peaceful coexistence”, something that is unfortunately still a dream, as an article of the same newspaper from a week ago showed.

France Italy News Western Europe

08.02.2015 Italy: An official says Rroma are good at sorting garbage

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An Italian social Policy councillor Francesca Danese, has suggested that Rroma in Italy should be hired to sort garbage, adding that they have the “skills to rummage through waste”.  We are not sure on which facts she bases her statement but are positive that it shows a total misunderstanding of the minority, and constitutes a racist act. This is not acceptable from a government official.

News Western Europe

08.02.2015 Two Rroma exhibited in an Art Gallery

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A contemporary art museum, the Malmö Konstall has an exhibition consisting of two homeless Rroma in a room begging. They are paid, and are not accepting any money from the visitors. The exhibition has been criticised by several organisations as being demeaning and as being an exploitation of human misery.

We would just say that in this particular case, the artist and the gallery have done their share to perpetuate age old stereotypes… This is clearly not acceptable.

 

 

France News Western Europe

08.02.2015 France expulsed a Rroma camp every third day in 2014

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The French Press reports on a report from the European Roma Right Center (ERRC) and the League for Human Rights (LDH) on the expulsion policies of the French state. According to them, France expulsed ca. 13’000 of the estimated 17’000 Rroma living in deplorable conditions in camps around the big French cities. Evictions occurred on average every third day. (Le Monde). L’Humanité adds that the state does nothing for an equality of chances for this population and denounces the underlying racism behind these policies. (L’Humanité). France Bleu notes that nearly 67% of these evictions were done in and around Paris. (France Bleu). The magazine Politis, on the same subject, notes that nearly 4 out of 5 people interviewed (around 100 people) were evicted up to 5 or 6 times. They stress that these policies are dehumanising and criticise that these evictions mostly occur around Paris. (Politis)

All journalists as usual missed the key point: The press only actually speaks about 17 to 20’000 Rroma in illegal settlement, and not of the overwhelming majority of Rroma who live in France and whose number is estimated at half a million.

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