Tag Archives: Discrimination

Italien News Westeuropa

Italian Textbook slammed for prejudice

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Italian Textbook slammed for prejudice

A court in Rome has found a publishing house that published a text book suggesting that „Gypsies“ were criminals, has been condemned for discrimination. This is a landmark case in Italy where these statements are all too often tolerated if not encouraged.

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22.02.15 Rroma, these unknown people whom we love to hate

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22.02.15 Rroma, these unknown people whom we love to hate

In Geneva, a theatre piece directed by Jérôme Richer questions the way we see Rroma. His show, oscillating between humour and seriousness serves many of the stereotypes on Rroma and their origins in the family and traditions. However, the actor and director mixes several topics in his presentation, speaking about travellers, speaking about Jenische, and the resulting picture, while coming from good intentions, misses the point. Rroma are clearly not as the gadže see them…

– Genecand, Marie-Pierre. Les Roms, ces inconnus qu’on adore détester. In: Le Temps. 19.02.2015. http://www.letemps.ch/…/Les_Roms_ces_inconnus_quon_adore_dé…

News Osteuropa Rumänien

22.02.15 Romanian Rroma and Exclusion

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22.02.15 Romanian Rroma and Exclusion

The Economist reports on a wall that was erected in the Romanian city of Baia Mare around one of its Rroma settlements. The economist cites poverty, segregation, education as some of the biggest hurdles faced by Rroma in Romania. Interviewing the town’s mayor, he reports that there is nothing discriminatory in the wall and states that the commune is investing in desegregated housing, and that one of the building in the settlement will anyhow be renovated, with its inhabitants being re-located. A NGO helping Rroma integration is blunter: People like the wall, and there is “latent racism” against Rroma.

– Romania’s Roma: The art of exclusion. In: The Economist. 20.02.2015.http://www.economist.com/…/21644532-wall-segregated-towns-r…

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22.02.15 A documentary on Rroma in Toulouse

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22.02.15 A documentary on Rroma in Toulouse

A young filmmaker Sahra Denard is currently making a documentary on Rroma migrants in the city of Toulouse. She is working with three Romanian sisters who live in an camp and will go with them in Romania, in their village of origin.

While the filmmaker wants to reduce stereotypes, the choice of subject contributes to re-enforce the general views on Rroma; Migrants from Romania or Bulgaria, poor, uneducated etc. On such a topic, the line between helping and damaging Rroma is a thin one to walk.

– Sarah Denard, un documentaire sur les Roms. In: La Dépèche. 19.02.2015. http://www.ladepeche.fr/…/2052220-sarah-denard-un-documenta…

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15.02.2015 Kosovo Refugees – German Calls for Action

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Following the sharp increase of people fleeing Kosovo to escape poverty and, in the case of Rroma, discrimination and outright racism, there are calls in Germany to be more stringent on theses asylum applications. Various measures have been suggested by politicians (Tagesspeigel) going to extraditing refugees also in the winter, as asked by politicians from the CDU (LNOnline). Some even deny that there is an issue in the country.

Politicians should be maybe remember, especially in Germany, that they recognised the country but also implicitly if not explicitly recognised the ethnic cleansing of minorities from the Kosovo. Ethnic states have no place in the 21st century!

– Simantke, Elisa; Monath, Hans. Streit um schnellere Abschiebung. In Der Tagesspeigel. 13.02.2015. http://www.tagesspiegel.de/…/fluechtlinge-aus…/11360670.html
– Streit um Asylbewerber aus dem Kosovo: Nord-CDU macht Druck. In: LNOnline. 13.02.2015. http://www.ln-online.de/…/Streit-um-Asylbewerber-aus-dem-Ko…
– Kosov ist kein Krisenland. Beate Merk im Gespräch mit Thielko Grieß. In: Deutschlandrundfunk. 14.02.2015.

 

News Osteuropa Rumänien

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.

News Westeuropa

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.

 

 

Frankreich News Westeuropa

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.

Frankreich News Westeuropa

01.02.2015 France: Evictions in spite of the Winter

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Normally, Republican France refrains from deporting migrants and from evicting illegal settlement in the Winter. This is no longer the case. Evictions continue, and the problem is being shifted from one community to the next. It is as if, one can argue, that the authorities want to maximise the exposure of the general population to poor migrants, guaranteeing an increased racism. This has to stop. Evictions this week, as an example occurred in Cannes and in Chellois.

Frankreich News Westeuropa

01.02.2015 France: Evictions in spite of the Winter

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Normally, Republican France refrains from deporting migrants and from evicting illegal settlement in the Winter. This is no longer the case. Evictions continue, and the problem is being shifted from one community to the next. It is as if, one can argue, that the authorities want to maximise the exposure of the general population to poor migrants, guaranteeing an increased racism. This has to stop. Evictions this week, as an example occurred in Cannes and in Chellois.

News Westeuropa

01.02.2015 Daily Racism: A dire view on the Austrian situation

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An Article in the “Standard” in Austria analyses the daily racism against Rroma that still exist 20 years after the attacks against this minority in Oberwarth. They explicitly state that as soon as an “invisible” Rroma, that is a Rroma who is integrated and does not says he is one, outs himself, he or she is immediately confronted to racism. The old stereotypes, stereotypes that have never really been accurate are difficult to eradicate.

Frankreich News Westeuropa

25.01.2015 The case of the dead Rroma baby in France:

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In a further development in the case of the dead Rroma baby in France, Jacques Toubon, in charge of the defence of the rights, stated that the order of the mayor denying the burial of the baby was illegal. He added that this constituted a discrimination. That Toubon, a rightist politician not know for his love of minorities in France says such things is a sign of progress, albeit a slow one!

Frankreich News Westeuropa

25.01.2015 UK Commissioner Eric Pickle looses a case against Rroma in the UK

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London Green Belt Commissioner Eric Pickle lost a landmark case against two Rroma. The judge stated that Pickle’s department breached both human rights and equality laws in denying Rroma to pitch in the green belt. This case highlight the current policies in England but also in France of evicting Rroma settlements, even, if in this case, these existed for generations.

Frankreich News Westeuropa

14.01.2015 France and Integration: Yes, Rroma Can be Integrated

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In an editorial, the Huffington Post advocates the acceptance of migrants and minorities in France, stating that they contributed to the enrichment of the country and that they contribute to cement the idea of Europe. De Gouyon calls for people to fight against racism anf eork towards the integration of Rroma.

However, again, as usual, Rroma are reduced to the migrant part of the population, to the 10 to 15 thousands who live in Ghettoes and camps on the outskirt of the big French cities. There are more Rroma than that in France (and elsewhere).  Stating that the problem is limited to these 15 thousand people is a great first in France, a country where the discussion on immigrations often takes an irrational path, and where one could easily get the impression, reading the press, that there are millions of Rroma migrants. There are very few, this is a fact worth stating!

De Gouyon Matignon, Louis. Oui, les Roms sont intégrables. Huffington Post. 6 January 2015. http://www.huffingtonpost.fr/louis-de-gouyon-matignon/oui-les-roms-sont-integrables_b_6417666.html

Frankreich News Westeuropa

14.01.2015 Rroma Baby burial in France

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A Rrom baby died in France over the New Year and was denied burial in the town of Champlan. The mayor of that town, who in the meantime claims he has not prevented the burial, has been unanimously condemned by the press and politics, among which, Prime Minister Valls. Vall, who, as we have repeatedly written in this blog is himself not beyond populist racism, for once stated this was an insult to France.

We hope that this insult to France doesn’t stop at dead Rroma and that the living ones will also be allowed to stay.

Meanwhile, the young Maria Francesca was buried in a neighbouring town… May she rest in peace.

Frankreich News Osteuropa News Westeuropa Rumänien

14.01.2015 Nicolas Dupont Aignan … Is ignorance an excuse?

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Interviewed by Metro News on January 5th, the Mayor of Champlan, Essone (France), Mr. Noicolas Dupon Aignan stated “Rroma should be in Romania”. This clearly show that his understanding of the subject   is limited if not non-existent. We do wish that people who obviously have little if any understanding would rather simply avoid the subject rather than blabber the same platitudes and stereotypes as have already been heard for ages.

Roma are not Romanian, although there are Romanian Rroma, and not all Rroma are uneducated migrants begging in the street… Please take note.

Frankreich News Westeuropa

31.12.2014 France: Segregated classes for Rroma

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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.

News Westeuropa

31.12.2014 Paying for the Bride

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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 Westeuropa

31.12.2014 The Pope and Rroma

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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.

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05.12.2014 Administrative court of Münster: Serbia not a safe country of origin for Rroma

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Die Zeit (2014) reports on a recent judgment of the Münster administrative court. When assessing the application for asylum by a Serbian Rroma family, the court reached the verdict that Serbia does not constitute a safe country of origin for the Rroma minority. The judges justified their judgment, among others, by pointing out that unsuccessful asylum applicants can expect to be criminally prosecuted upon return. Thereby, the court also questions the new law, which declares Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina but also Serbia to safe countries of origin. Several administrative courts had agreed to the asylum applications of Romany families in the recent past: “The administrative court (AC) of Münster questions the constitutionality of the new asylum reform of the federal government. The judges granted an urgent application for asylum by a Serbian Roma family, and stopped their imminent deportation, said the AC. The court has thus set itself in conflict with the federal government, which declared the Balkan countries Serbia, Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina to safe countries of origin in November. The AC wants to clarify now in main proceedings, whether the law should be submitted to the federal constitutional court for review. When declaring a state to a safe country of origin, the legislators must make an overall assessment of the significance of political persecution conditions in the relevant country. Decisive are the criteria prescribed by the constitution. The legislator maybe did not sufficiently comply with this regarding the Serbian Roma and the negative Serbian emigration requirements. Moreover, the legislative history did not show that the decisions of administrative tribunals were taken into account. For instance, the administrative courts of Stuttgart and Münster upheld the urgent complaints of Serbian asylum seekers in a variety of cases.” Rroma are not politically persecuted in Serbia. However, that does not mean that they are not exposed to repeated discrimination in everyday life. Particularly the Rroma already economically marginalised. The assessment of the individual case should always be favoured against a reductionist assessment of the social situation in a country. Rroma have been provably integrated in Southeast Europe for centuries – as, Ottoman tax registers, among others, show ­ and form part of all strata of society and professions. However, since the Yugoslav wars and the strengthened nationalism, Rroma increasingly face discrimination. Furthermore, there is the mentioned law of the Serbian criminal code that threatens asylum applicants with criminal prosecution upon return (compare Prantl 2014).

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