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05.06.2014 Further evictions in the Île-de-France

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Several papers report on further evictions of informal Rroma settlements in the Île-de-France. Thus, in Villebon (Essonne) a camp that was built on a former industrial site, was evicted. The settlement was home to between 200 and 250 people. Samu social tired to provide as many alternative accommodation options to those affected as possible. On the day of the evacuation, the majority of the inhabitants had already left. When, at half past six, the security forces arrived, only about fifteen people were on site. A Rroma charity organisation criticizes in particular that the future education of the children is put in question by the eviction. Sometimes, the children are accommodated up to 70 kilometres from their school. A young Rroma is even enrolled at the local university: “About fifteen children were enrolled in a special class, five children in the high school of Palaiseau and a adolescent was enrolled at the Faculty of Law”, said M. Peschanski. “This effort of the enrolment that was coming to fruition, was destroyed this morning”, he added” (France 3 2014). Previously, the residents of the settlement were trying to obtain a postponement of the eviction on part of the authority until the end of the school year. Around 900 people had signed a petition that was presented to the local prefect. Inconclusive. The evacuation was carried out as planned and more are imminent. Barré (2014/I) points out that since the last municipal elections, in which the Front National has increased its share of votes, the mayors are under constant pressure to act. The Rroma are made to scapegoats for social ills, by connecting them with fears. The reservations are also directed to the responsible politicians. Mayors who previously supported the Rroma were not re-elected or now behave hide their views on the issue. However, small integration projects have shown that the inclusion of some selected families with the active support of the communities delivers very positive results. However, these create envy of observers who disapprove special treatment for a selected group. Therefore, it is important to emphasize that all needy people have a right to support, regardless of their ethnicity. One should also cease to speak of a Rroma problem. However, at present, communication silence prevails. No discussions take place, but the eviction policy is continued uncritically (compare Barré 2014/II, Delin 2014, Francetv info 2014, Labreigne 2014, Le Figaro 2014, Monier 2014).

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05.06.2014 ECRI: Rroma in Romania still too much discriminated against

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RTS (2014) addresses the newest report by the European Commission against Racism (ECRI). This comes to the finding that the Rroma in Romania are still too much discriminated against. The commission’s experts deplore the persistent derogatory remarks by Romanian politicians, who maintain and sustain the negative public opinion towards Rroma. The segregation of Rroma children in schools is still a current issue. The report summarizes: “The law on the status of national minorities has not yet been adopted. Moreover, the 5% threshold set for the eligibility of candidates in local elections can hinder the ability of national/ethnic minorities to elect their representatives under the same conditions as the majority. Public insults and defamation on racial discrimination grounds are not prohibited under the law. […] Stigmatising statements against Roma are common in the political discourse, encounter little criticism and are echoed by the press, the audiovisual media and on the Internet. No effective mechanism is in place to sanction politicians and political parties which promote racism and discrimination. Significant hurdles hinder the implementation of strategies for Roma integration, such as the poor allocation of funds from the national budget and the ineffective coordination between the ministries. Furthermore, the impact of these strategies has never been evaluated. School segregation and discrimination towards Roma pupil remain a serious reason for concern” (ECRI 2014). The report criticizes in particular that the Rroma are accused of willingly not wanting to integrate. One also establishes a clear link between delinquency and the culture of the Rroma, what is clearly racist (compare Zonebourse 2014).

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30.05.2014 Persistent evictions in the Île-de-France

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Several French newspapers report on forced evictions of informal Rroma settlements in Île-de-France. Around ten settlements in Corbeil, situated on the Francilienne road ring, were evicted by the police forces and then destroyed by excavators: “Ten informal settlements, with about 300 people and situated in the middle of a junction of the Francilienne [traffic ring] and along this infrastructure, located in the municipality Corbeil-Essonnes and sited near the hospital Sud-Francilien, were evacuated on this day by the use of a court order and a municipal decree”, confirms the prefecture of Essonne. According to the organizations in support of the Roma, who were present at the sites, “numerous families preferred to leave at night, since they had been harassed by the police. Only a few dozen people remained” (Le Parisien 2014/I). According to the authorities, a “social diagnosis” was made and the needy were offered alternative accommodation options. However, this does not change the ongoing problem of regularly scheduled evictions that impede a successful integration of immigrant Rroma. In particular, children enrolled in school are disturbed by the evictions in their school careers. Laurent Lurton, from the Catholic aid of Essonne criticized in particular that numerous mothers with infants were affected by the forced evictions (compare Didio 2014, Essonne Info 2014, Libération 2014, Le Monde 2014, Le Parisien 2014/II, Le Républicain, Ménage 2014).

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28.05.2014 Adoption of Rroma children in England: child removal justified?

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Several British newspapers report on an adoption case, which raised quite a few tensions among those involved. The focus of reporting centres on the adoption of two young Rroma boys – two and four years old – by a homosexual couple. The media now hash over the opposition of the parents against the adoption of their sons by a same-sex couple. However, the resistance of the biological parents seems to have mainly to do with the fact that their children were taken away from them by the children welfare organisation. The child removal was justified by poor parenting: the older siblings of the boys are said to have missed school regularly and the children were too often left alone and beaten. This crucial point, the reasons for the child removal, is not discussed critically by the newspapers. In return, the opposition of the parents towards the adoption of their children by a homosexual couple is debated in detail and the impression is given that Rroma in general have something against homosexuals and their influence on children. However, they seem not so much concerned with the homosexuality of the adoptive parents chosen than with the removal of the children removal. The parents criticized in the court: “The Catholic couple, who are of Roma origin, argued their two young children would grow up alienated from their family and community. Taking the case to the High Court, they accused the local authority of social engineering by attempting to turn the children white and middle class. […] “If as expected our children will try to find us and their siblings and roots, then they will discover huge differences between our culture and the way they’ve been brought up,” they said in statements to the court.”” The context of the child removal should be discussed as critically in this adoption case as the homophobia attributed to the parents and their dislike of the English middle class. Since the parents are Catholics, the relationship of Catholicism and homosexuality must also be critically debated on and not only be seen in the context of Rroma origin. The statement of the parents that Rroma worldwide don’t recognise homosexuality is their specific viewpoint and does not represent the opinion of all Rroma in any way. Many enlightened Rroma have no reservations towards homosexuals. This raises the impression that the central problem – the child removal and its legitimacy – is not adequately addressed in the articles. The natural parents want to take the case to the European Court of Human Rights (compare BBC 2014, Berg 2014, Doughty 2014, Porter 2014, Simpson 2014).

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28.05.2014 School enrolment of Rroma children in France

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Moritz (2014) reports on the school integration program “Classes” in Lyon, which is fostering school attendance of Rroma children since 2006. The focus are children of families who have no fixed residence because they are living in illegal settlements. Through the strong promotion of French language skills, they are supposed to be successfully integrated into the French school system. To this end, they visit intensive courses of up to eighteen hours of French a week, with other foreign-language children: “The French school system is arranged to include foreign-language children. There are special French courses and also welcoming classes at secondary schools for children who have never been to school. Up to 18 hours of French per week, plus one hour of each of math, music, art and sports together with French students. The further integration into the lessons should then be individualized, depending on the language level of the students. Most of the students are children of immigrants from former French colonies – Algeria, Cambodia or Mali – only about a third are Roma, says Andrea Rölke. The citizen of Hamburg is a French teacher at the Collège Gabriel Rossetti where she supervises the lessons for non-native speakers.” However, a major problem remains the uncertain residence and living status of families from informal settlements. The continuous struggle to provide enough food and money degrades the importance of education. The ongoing evictions of settlements make it difficult or impossible to continuously attend a school at same place. Moritz emphasizes at the beginning of the article that the majority of the approximately 400,000 Rroma in France are integrated. The slum dwellers are therefore a minority of the minority. This is an important reference. However, it doesn’t really change anything about the problem of the continuing expulsion policy towards immigrant Rroma. Most of the immigration children will not attend a college, according to the findings of the school project. This is exactly what would be needed to break the vicious circle of exclusion and to enable successful integration.

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25.05.2014 Integration of Rroma in France remains difficult

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Mouillard (2014) reports on a Rroma integration village in the Indre that was initiated by the former mayor in cooperation with the local aid organization Romsi (Rencontre Ouverture Métissage Solidarité à Indre). The flagship project, which shows mostly positive results, is now probably drawing to an end. The reason: at the last local elections, a populist candidate replaced the incumbent mayor. During the election campaign, he promised to take action against immigrant Rroma. At the same time, the integration project showed how they created positive experiences for all parties involved, by offering French courses, the enrolment of the children in school and other help. The employees of Romsi are particularly disappointed, since they are aware that integration is a long process that would be set back by the closure of the project: “For the activist of Romsi, the track record of the solidarity village still remains “positive”. “The children are enrolled in school, the rate of delinquency in the community has not risen. But people continue to talk [about it]. That is exasperating…” Jean-Luc Le Drenn [the former mayor] tries to remain optimistic: “To close this village would be really a failure. In any case, maybe the prefect will intervene to oppose to it? The experience works and the costs of the community are low.” A rather rare mix in France, where the about 18,000 Roma are often forced to wander from one camp to the next” (Mouillard 2014). A distinctive feature of the integration project is the finding that those who were actively involved with the Rroma, clearly show less reservations about the minority than those who only speak about the Rroma or are bothered about the sight of informal settlements. Director Sophie Averty, who made a documentary about the integration village in Indre, shares this insight. Of the original fifty families, only five could finally stay in the integration project, but in return were actively assisted in looking for a job, the enrolment of the children in school, and in learning French: “The hateful and violent suggestions, you heard them primarily during the arrival of the fifty Roma, above all when the parents of the children protested and spoke of the risks of transmission of scrabies and fleas … as if the little Frenchman had no fleas! […] Some people were very hesitant, often through ignorance. Those who complain are those who have never set foot into the village” (Mouillard 2014/II). The problem of integration projects that are specifically designed for Rroma is that they cause resentments about the special treatment of a specific group. It is therefore important to generally help people in difficult situations and not to talk always of a “Rroma problem” or the “Rroma question”. Such a focus fuels resentments among groups who are also in economically difficult situations, as one can see by means of the dubious success of the Front National, who repeatedly abuses the Rroma as scapegoats for general societal grievances in France. Consequently, Marine Le Pen calls for an isolation of France after the model of Switzerland. A very questionable development (compare Dumazert 2014, Le Monde 2014).

EurActiv (2014) draws a first balance in respect to the projected mass immigration of Rroma from Bulgaria and Romania. So far, no increase of Rroma in Île-de-France region could be observed, says Laure Lechatellier, Vice-President of the regional council. Due to fears of a mass migration to Western Europe, seven years of transitional provisions in 2007 were imposed on Romania and Bulgaria after their EU-accession. The free movement of workers since January 2014 now guarantees all Romanians and Bulgarians, including the Rroma, free access to the labour markets of the EU-member states. Because of structural problems, the Rroma have benefited only minimally from this opening: “The free circulation of workers has put an end to this system and opens another right: the one to enrol oneself at the employment office. But the population of Roma from Romania and Bulgaria on the Île-de-France has not yet benefited from this possibility, due to structural discrimination. In France, the anti-Roma sentiment has reached unprecedented levels. According to a study by the U.S. think tank Pew Research Center, 66% of French respondents declare a negative opinion towards the Roma.” EurActiv thus points to the important fact that for a successful integration of the Rroma, not only a legal but also a social and societal equality is necessary. Such a one is still far from a reality, due to the negative attitudes towards the minority.

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25.05.2014 Damian Drăghici: “The Rroma are not the problem, they are the solution”

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Avaline / Zacharie (2014) spoke with the Romanian Rroma-politician Damian Drăghici on the European integration of Rroma and the barriers to a successful integration of this minority. Drăghici sees the need for a broader education of the Roma, both in terms of school education as well as what social skills are concerned. However, he emphasizes that Rroma who are publicly visible and are incorrectly seen by many as representative of all Rroma, represent only a small minority of the minority. Many Rroma rather seek a successful integration and a better future for themselves and their families: The Rroma are therefore the solution for Europe, Drăghici states, their integration into the European economies means more workers for a rapidly aging society. Drăghici hopes that the marginalization of the minority will be a thing of the past in fifty years: “Damian Drăghici does not want to see the Roma as a problem. Despite the signing of an agreement with Manuel Valls, as he was the Minister of the Interior, the senator estimates that the situation “has not changed”. If he does, above all, question the “individualistic vision of the states towards the question”, he confirms that the marginalization of the Roma will be “far behind us in 50 years.” “No one will remember that previously to be Roma meant to be set aside.” The challenge remains not only to integrate the minority generally into the national economies, but to do so at all levels, in all sectors of the economy, and not only in construction or agriculture. It is to be hoped that Drăghici will be right with his very optimistic future prospect.

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21.05.2014 Fire of Rroma settlement in Villeneuve d’Ascq

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In the night from 17th to the 18th of May, a Rroma settlement in Villeneuve d’ Ascq was the scene of a fire. Fourteen barracks were destroyed by the flames. One of the residents died in the fire. The fire had originated inside his hut. It is assumed that the incident is an accident: “The victim, whose age could not be clarified, passed away after a fire had started inside of his shack, at about two clock in the morning, in the night of Saturday to Sunday, the fire fighters stated [ … ] “It was not criminal, as it seems, but purely accidental. The man supposedly went to bed with a candle, Father Arthur Hervet, a priest from Lille who helps the inhabitants and was on location Sunday midday, told AFP.” Before the investigations are complete, one should not jump to conclusions. A special feature of the settlement of Villeneuve d’Ascq is that it is not illegal. The local Rroma live on the premises in agreement with the municipality of Lille. The settlement is equipped with running water and toilets. The children go to local schools (Le Figaro 2014, Hardy 2014, Libération 2014, RTL France 2014).

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21.05.2014 Once more: north migration is an economic and not a Rroma phenomenon

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Peters (2014) reports on Rroma in Sofia and Berlin. She portrays the famous image of marginalized Rroma below the poverty level, for which the conditions in Germany represent a major development step, even if it is only by receiving a minimum wage. Thereby, she characterizes a fairly accurate picture of the economic causes of migration, but mixes these too imprudently with ascribed characteristics of the Rroma. Although she also mentions the large proportion of well-qualified immigrants and the discrimination against Rroma in Germany itself, she only covers these issues very marginally. The reductionist, defamatory statements of the Bulgarian deputy prime minister, Zinaida Zlatanova, are cited as evidence for the strong marginalization of the Rroma in Bulgaria, what is identified by Peters as the main reason for the northern migration of the minority: “Bulgaria is home to many different ethnic groups. We have problems only with Roma”, says Zlatanova. “And these problems exist in every country that is home to Roma. This is not a Bulgarian problem. In France, Hungary – the same.” The exclusion of Roma children in ghettos and their own schools? “We should not tear the Rroma from their natural environment. Better they go to segregated schools than never.” Whether Germany benefits from identifying the phenomenon “poverty migration” as a “Rroma problem”, is very questionable. Also in Germany the Rroma are exposed top exclusion. The exclusion of the Rroma must not be concealed that is out of question. However, the marking of migrants as Rroma migrants creates more problems than it solves. The Rroma want to integrate and not undergo special treatment, which excludes them additionally. This only creates new resentments, as can be read in Peters’ own assessment: “We must take care of the Roma, who come to us”, says Giffey [councillor for education in Neukölln]. The dilemma is this: If you do that – then more and more come.”

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14.05.2014 Eviction of Rroma camps in Roncq

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Lefebvre (2014) reports on the eviction of two illegal Rroma camps in France in Roncq. A group of about forty people were quartered in a former school. They had to leave their accommodation at the insistence of the police. On the location, a building project will start. For lack of alternatives, the evicted will stay in the street for the near future, within sight of the former school. The vehicles and caravans that some residents had available were confiscated by the police. The eviction took place in the early morning. The second camp that was cleared consisted of makeshift assembled barracks that were destroyed by excavators after the eviction. The approximately fifty people from both camps had found shelter at the current location after the eviction of settlements in Lille Sud, Croix and Roubaix. A negative event overshadowed the current location: at the exit of the camp, a car driver overran a small Rroma girl who died. A few days later, a funeral march with the participation of Rroma and residents took place: “The forty persons, among them twenty children and infants, found themselves without a roof and means of transportation on the road, next to the former school. Some members from associations came to help them every day and found them severely at loss to find them a new home for the umpteenth time. “There are three infants, five children are less than three years old. We have no means of locomotion, all will sleep in the street until the authorities meet their obligations”, said Louis Minne, one of the breadwinners of the family Lingurar. At around five o’clock in the afternoon, the Roma start to pitch up the first tents, under the gaze of the still present police.” The evacuation of the camp of Roncq is typical of the continuing expulsion-policy towards immigrant Rroma. On several occasions it was pointed out that the systematic expulsion obstructs a long-term integration and deteriorates the hygienic and sanitary conditions of those affected. Consequently, the reactions to the evictions turned out very differently. While some welcomed the drastic measures by the mayor of Tourcoing, representatives of the French Human Rights League had harsh words against the expulsion of the Rroma and denounced the action as an act of demagoguery (compare Rebischung 2014).

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09.05.2014 Lawsuits against NPD because of harassment and demagoguery

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Gensing (2014) reports on a complaint by the Central Council of German Sinti and Roma against the right-wing nationalist National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD). The occasion is the announcement of a panel discussion of the party, to which it wanted to invite Heinz Buschkowsky, Thilo Sarrazin and Romani Rose to discuss the immigration of “criminal East Europeans”. Rose never agreed to his participation in such discussions and forbids himself any contact with the right-wing party, which is why the Central Council has filed a lawsuit: “The Central Council filed complaint because for harassment to the public prosecutor against the Berlin state chief [of the NPD], Sebastian Schmidtke, who signed the letter. With the public promotion of the alleged discussion, the NPD untruthfully conveyed the impression that there is actually a contact between the Party and the Central Council, the complaint reads. This suggests the assumption that Rose was actually ready to discuss with the NPD on their racist slogans, which is absolutely not the case.” Gensing interprets the action of the party as an attempt to catch media attention, so far without success.

Schmidt (2014) reports a further complaint against the NPD by a German Sintiza. In Würzburg, on numerous locations one could find posters with the slogan “Money for grandma instead of for the Sinti and Roma”. The Sintiza Perla S. filed a complaint on demagoguery. In Würzburg, the posters were then removed, but not because of a verdict of the courts. Several administrative courts on the contrary approved the posters, on the grounds that they do not openly incite discrimination against Sinti and Rroma. Perla S. contradicts this decidedly. The racism against the minority is still widespread: “Perla S. […] knows what discrimination is. “Already in school I was treated with hostility”, she says, “Hitler forgot to gas you, the children said to me.” This hurt the Sintiza. Especially because in her environment “some older people” live “who lived through the Holocaust.””

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09.05.2014 Integration support in Ennepetal loaded with prejudices

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Scherer (2014) reports on the advice on integration of the association “future-oriented support” of Duisburg in Enneptal. It had been invited by the local working group in order to get advices on integration of immigrated Rroma. Unfortunately, in this case also, the prevailing habit is to talk about Rroma, but not with them: “A major issue will be schooling. “The test will reveal which children have already been vaccinated, which have ever been to school and what type of school is fitting”, says [mayor] Wilhelm Wiggenhagen. For the enrolment of about 50 school-age children, there are also first thoughts and considerations. Integration classes – which do not exist in the Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis so far – could be a solution […] A concern is: the Roma are historically not very sedentary people. “In the worst case, we therefore take a lot of money and personnel for children, who after a few months live in a different country”, says the mayor of Ennepetal.” Wiggenhagen assessment mixes two different phenomena. One is the stereotypical view that most Rroma are travellers, which is wrong. The other is the migration to Germany because of societal and economic reasons. This migration has nothing to do with a travelling lifestyle. The article also conveys a picture of Rroma who are difficult to integrate, when the association “future-oriented support” speaks about the necessities of clear rules for the immigrants: “What the Roma need, are clear rules and consequences, if these are not adhered to.” Here, once more characteristics that are the result of poverty and lack of education, are mixed with cultural features (compare Scherer 2014/II).

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07.05.2014 Marseille: The importance of education for a successful integration

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La Provence (2014) reports on the work of teacher Jane Bouvier in Marseille. The teacher is committed to help Rroma children from the slums of the city to enrol in school. The hurdles are numerous, but it is important not to give up quickly, Bouvier states. Bouvier had to seek new accommodations after families were evicted from their homes. She must convince parents of the importance of education for their children and perform the administrative necessities. The children live in conditions that are not exactly conducive to a concentrated learning. Nevertheless, Bouvier is trying to promote them as good as possible. Another problem is teasing on the part of the students: “Resident in a caravan but visiting his cousins in the slums of Plombières, Santiago, 9 years old, testifies in his own words: “At school, there are some who are very nice, and some who are very angry. They tell us: You are Romanians and you rummage in the garbage cans. If I tell it to the teacher, Mohamed and Mourad grab me. Sometimes the girls say them they should cease to annoy us. They say: “He is like us, he is a man and if his family rummages in garbage cans, that is not your problem.””

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02.05.2014 Germany wants to declare Serbia, Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina safe countries of origin

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Several German newspapers reported on the pending draft bill of the federal government to declare Serbia, Macedonia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina to be safe countries of origin. The new legislation would allow to process asylum applications from these Balkan states within a week, what according to critics would clearly happen at the expense of individual cases. Many journalists believe that the vast majority of the applicants coming from the Balkans – in 2013 there were more than 20,000 – are Rroma. How they obtained this information is not discussed any further. In its statistics, according to the law, Germany only records the national but not the ethnic affiliation. Since 2009, for citizens of Serbia, Macedonia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina there is no visa requirement: “The right to asylum in Germany is awarded only to few of them – last year there was a total of three. 120’070 immigrants from the Balkans have tried to sue for the right of asylum in court. 39 Serbs, 26 Macedonians, and 17 Bosnians were then allowed to stay. In nine cases out of ten, the asylum applications of this clientele are “obliviously unfounded”, the authorities argue. Therefore, the federal government wants to declare these three Balkan countries as “safe countries of origin”” (Käfer 2014). With the new legislation, the federal government would lo longer have to justify why it rejects an application for asylum from the three countries. It assumes no profound persecution and exclusion of Rroma in Serbia, Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. A very different notion is communicated by human rights organizations and left-wing politicians: Rroma in the three countries are still heavily discriminated against, both by the authorities and regarding the access to the labour market, schools, and health care. This view is also supported by several reports, such as the last activity report of the European Commission about the national Rroma strategies (Europäische Kommission 2013). The UN refugee agency criticizes the German Federal Government for focusing too much on the topic of political persecution, and thus neglecting discrimination against minorities and human rights violations. Tom Koenigs, former UN special representative in Kosovo, also emphasizes that the classification of nations as safe countries of origin comes at the expense of individuals who are de facto victims of persecution (Armbrüster 2014). Refugee fates are fates of individuals and have to be treated as such, he states, thus securing the protection of those who are actually in need of help. The Rroma Contact Point shares this viewpoint (compare Gajevic 2014, Geuther 2014, Rüssmann 2014, Schuler 2014, Südwest Presse 2014, TAZ 2014).

Ehrich (2014) furthermore points out that the declaration of Serbia, Macedonia, and Bosnia- Herzegovina to safe country of origin gives the states wrong signals regarding their minority policy, since they are also candidates for the membership in the European Union: “Apart from the consequences for individual Roma who actually need asylum, the declaration of the countries as “safe countries of origin” harbours a threat to Europe. Serbia and Macedonia are already official candidates for EU-membership. Bosnia-Herzegovina is a potential candidate. Declaring these states “safe countries of origin” could destroy incentives to improve the situation of Roma in these countries.”

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02.05.2014 Eviction policy continues in France

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Several French newspapers report about the ongoing evictions of illegal settlements. In Bègles, a suburb of Bordeaux, a community of about sixty Rroma were evicted from a former industrial area. The eviction was carried out at the request of the landowner, the real estate company Aquitanis, which will build houses on the abandoned land. The displaced Rroma were offered temporary accommodation, but most of them rejected it. The eviction endangers the school enrolment of about a dozen children, whose further school career is called into question. A representative of the organization ‘Right to Accommodation’ (Droit au Logement) justifiably criticized that the evictions will only solve local problems, but nothing would change for the concerned people in the long term. In Grasse, a house occupied by immigrant Rroma was cleared by the police, and several inhabitants had to be carried away by the police (France Bleu 2014/I, Lebaratoux 2014, Nice-Matin 2014, Sud Ouest 2014/I).  

De Francesco (2014) reports on the eviction of three Rroma-settlements in Cran-Gevrier and in Annecy, in the Rhône-Alpes region, close to the Swiss border. The authorities carried out the evacuation in response to a court order from March. About 150 people had to leave their homes. The action was once again criticized by the organization ‘Right to Accommodation’, because it subverts and complicates the integration efforts of the Rroma. The local politician Anne Coste de Champeron justified the eviction with the untenable conditions in the camps. Politicians repeatedly use this reasoning to justify the many evictions. The fact that it is not the welfare of those affected, but the maintenance of order policy  that has priority, is most often concealed. For a long-term, successful integration of Rroma, tolerance and support of illegal settlements is desirable (compare France Bleu 2014/II).

Le Creurer (2014) reports on displaced Rroma after an eviction in Nice. The affected Rroma have no intentions to return to Romania, as is the wish of the French authorities. Rather, they want a future in France. Without integration in the labour market and appropriate training, this will be only difficult to achieve. The efficiency of the mentioned integration programs has been hitherto fairly little critically discussed in the media. The approach seems to be more promising than to simply evict the Rroma from one place to the next. Noël Mamère , the mayor of Begles, also wishes a long-term and collective solution for the integration of Rroma. However, for this purpose a collective policy of all the suburbs of Bordeaux is required (compare Sud Ouest 2014/II).

Several French newspapers moreover report on the eviction of two Rroma settlements in Saint-Denis. The European Rroma Rights Centre had filed complaint against the eviction at the European Court of Human Rights: “The ERRC referred to two articles of the European Convention on Human Rights (3 and 8), to appraise that the present eviction is a “degrading and inhuman treatment” and that it “undermines the right to a private and family life”” (Sterlé 2014). The court called the French authorities for information about the conditions of the evacuation, the future accommodation of the displaced persons and the dimensions of the expulsions. The prefecture of Saint-Denis replied that they applied the usual social diagnoses and offered the affected alternative housing. For Manon Filloneau, from the European Rroma Rights Centre, the intervention of the court is a success, despite the lack of consequences. It shows the interest of the court for the situation of the Rroma in France (see Breson 2014, Le Point, 2014, Sterlé 2014).

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30.04.2014 Discriminatory views about Rroma in Romanian politics

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Bird/Candea (2014) inform about institutionalized racism in Romanian politics. Discriminatory attitudes towards members of the Rroma minority are common in all political parties of the country, they state. As a starting point they take a racist joke of the social democrat Dan Tudorache, who is said to have written during a winter storm earlier this year, that it was so cold that he had seen a “gypsy” with his hands in his own pockets. Rroma activist Ciprian Necula condemned Tudorache’s statement in the media, but was in turn confronted with a lot of negative comments. Rroma politician Damian Draghici announced on the occasion of the incident that Romanian politicians showed no skills or awareness about discriminatory statements: “When you are five years old and you put your hand on the oven, you know it burns,” he says, making a comparison, “but if you have never put your hand on the oven until you’re 30 years old – you will get burned at 30. […] What is necessary, he argues, is to educate such people about what discrimination means.” Bird/Candea see the situation more realistically than Draghici. They state that it is immaterial whether behind discriminatory remarks one finds naivety or bad intentions. What is crucial is the marginalization and degradation of the minority in the political and social everyday life, as the National Council Against Racism confirms. The pejorative attitudes towards Rroma are taught to the ethnic Romanians from an early childhood and repeated regularly, the authors state: “Prejudice is recycled from generation to generation and ingrained in Romanian children at an early age. In Romanian playgrounds it is common to hear elders tell their children they should behave or “the gypsies will come and kidnap you” and, if they have paint or mud on their face or hands, that the infant is “dirty like a gypsy.”” The segregation of the Rroma in the schools, in the labour market and in the residential districts of Romania continues to be present, Bird/Candea confirm. It is time to finally end this. This includes the better education of the general population, which allows to reduce prejudices which are based on ignorance.

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18.04.2014 Pully – Canton Vaud: racist police control of Rroma

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Favre (2014) reports an unauthorized police control of four Rroma families on a private estate in Pully, in the canton of Vaud. The owner of an apartment building had provided parts of his house to four immigrant Rroma families, upon a request of the organization Opre Rrom. Because neighbours complained about begging, the police conducted identity checks with the families. But since they conducted the control on the private property of Mr. Norbert Guillod, the owner of the house without having a permit for the action, the police made themselves liable to prosecution: “Norbert Guillod had responded to a request of the organization Opre Rrom. “Otherwise, these people would be on the street. That would have been a real shame: the children are enrolled in school and work well”, explains Norbert Guillod, who will host them until the end of the school year. […] “They have intervened because of several complaints of the neighbourhood, who were disturbed by the fact that these Roma were begging. At least it is forbidden to this extent”, replies Dan-Henri Weber, their commander. He also presents a different version of the facts, claiming that the people were controlled on the street, because they corresponded to the descriptions by the angered neighbours. They are said to have subsequently prompted the police themselves to follow them to their apartment, to look for their identity cards. This report is disputed by the parties concerned, which state that the police had knocked on their door.” The Lausanne lawyer, Jean-Michel Dolivo, points out that the police could list any offense following their control. The action was thus clearly discriminatory.

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16.04.2014 Rroma: “Education as the key to success”

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Müller (2014) takes a critical look at the relevance of education in Romanian Rroma families. The importance of education is give to little attention in many Rroma families, the young Rromni Andreea from Buzau, in South-eastern Romania states. Poverty obliges Rroma children to help their families from a young age within the household and at work: “My community thinks that you cannot take up any prestige profession such as teacher or doctor as Roma anyway. They cannot imagine that you can reach a good position with education. They have come to terms with being the outsiders in society. – Only one third of Roma children in Romania graduate, according to estimates by NGOs. The vast majority remains without a chance, because the children are living in poor neighbourhoods, where they have to help at home, instead of going to school.” The problem lies not only in the lack of awareness about the importance of education, but also in the strong discrimination against Rroma in the labour market as wells as in the education system. Thus, many Rroma get assigned to unskilled labour despite having graduated, because they are marked as “unreliable and slow” due to racial prejudice. Therefore, education alone cannot stop the exclusion of and discrimination against the Rroma, but it is an important first step towards greater self-determination and recognition.

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12.03.2014 Roma and the European migration policies

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Döhner (2014) reports on the European migration regulations, on the basis of a tragic individual case. Irijana Rustemi is born in the Kosovo in 1978. At the age of three the Rromni immigrates with her parents to Croatia. In 1993, they come to Germany. Because of massive family conflicts with the family of her ex-husband, who feels provoked by the new partner of Rustemi, she and her family flee to Denmark for 22 months. This exit becomes a calamity for the family: “If refugees enter Germany over a “safe third country”, they can not apply for asylum here, but only in the country over which they have entered.” Now the large family is facing deportation into the Kosovo, although all children of Rustemi are born in Germany and go to school there. Rustemi had previously received a residency permit on humanitarian grounds, but it was cancelled due to the departure to Denmark. In Denmark their asylum application was rejected.

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12.03.2014 Segregation of Rroma in European schools

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Fontanella-Khan (2014) reports on the continued segregation of Romany children at European schools. She starts with a cursory overview of the almost exclusively repressive policies of European governments towards Rroma. She is decidedly against the often used argument that Rroma don’t show any will to integrate on their side: “Often, segregation is blamed on the Roma themselves, whom many accuse of not wanting to integrate due to a “nomadic culture.” However, an insidious form of segregation, happening within the educational system, belies this simplistic view.” As reported last week by CBC News, segregation of Rroma children is particularly strong in Slovakia: 65-80 % of children enrolled in special schools for slow learners are Rroma. The methods of analysis as well as the selection for such tests are extremely controversial. If the children are allocated to a special school, they will never have the opportunity to attend a University. Another problem, according to Fontanella-Khan, is the deficient implementation of court decisions against segregation. A verdict that was asserted by the European Court of Human Rights in 1999, changed little about the segregation of Rroma children in the Czech Republic. To end the exclusion of the Rroma from the educational institutions requires more than court decisions: “This raises the point that deep, structural changes to society cannot happen through the judiciary alone. What is required is the involvement of Roma civil society. The problem is, it barely exists.” Fontanella-Khan sees the reasons for the weak formation of the Rroma civil society in the changes that happened in reaction to the EU-accession of Eastern European countries. Many international donors and activist groups withdrew their funds after EU accession and discontinued their activities, since it was assumed that the EU would support the emerging Rroma NGOs. However, this said to have never happened. As long as the Rroma don’t start to form their own civil rights movement, law professor Jack Greenberg states, there will be no significant change.

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