Daily Archives: November 22, 2022

Ukraine, the War, and Roma

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This is not good in any way: Articles in the Ukrainian press about Roma being arrested while trying to cross the border illegally to Hungary. In each of the cases at hand, this concerned young men or even conscripts. This is bad as it gives the impression that Roma are not pro-Ukrainian, which is far from the reality, and even in one case, that they help people fleeing conscription.

Slovakia and Roma Ghettoes

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According to the Atlas of Roma Communities from 2019, up to two-thirds of Slovak Roma (300,000) live in segregated settlements outside or on the outskirts of villages, but also on a single street, in an apartment building or in a housing development within villages. In general, those settlements that are further away from the villages are in a worse condition. According to some experts, the settlements must disappear if the Roma from this environment are ever to integrate into society. “There is a lot of scientific evidence that segregation and ghetto life are incompatible with social integration,” says Marek Hojsík, who monitors Roma integration policies in EU states at the Central European University in Budapest.

However, settlements are not actually disappearing, but expanding. If a municipality or city with a Roma settlement builds apartments for Roma, according to SME findings, this happens directly in the settlements.

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