Tag Archives: Travellers

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10.10.2014 European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) wants to foster the civil society integration of the Rroma

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EurActic (2014) reports on the plan of the European Economic and Social Committee to better foster the civil society integration of Rroma. It recommends that the governments and aid organisations of the European member states should provide more social housing for marginalised families and should improve the cooperation with the minority representatives. The evaluation of the integration efforts of the different countries varies considerably. While the committee gives very good grades to for example Finland, the assessment of the Romanian Rroma-policy is very mediocre. Valeria Atzori, the EESC Representative for Rroma issues, states: ““Roma are not travellers by choice. They are obliged to leave because they are thrown out of their settlements,” she said. “When they have houses, they stay.” This is one of the first EESC conclusions following visits to countries with Roma minorities over the last few months. EESC experts met with the Roma community, NGOs and national authorities in Romania, Bulgaria, Finland, and Spain. Through these meetings, the EESC aims at exploring civil society initiatives in the Roma integration process, and provide recommendations to EU institutions in November. According to Atzori, the situations vary considerably between countries. […] In Romania, the government still lacks political will to help the Roma, despite the creation of a National Agency for Roma Integration. NGOs and the Roma were defensive in their meetings with the EESC, and blamed both the government and the EU for not doing enough. Romania is also confronting deeply rooted stereotypes about Roma. Atzori said that due to a few Roma that are exploiting the system, a lot of Romanians believe that the minority deserves the deplorable situation they are in now.” What is not mentioned in the analysis is that the different EU-countries are dealing with very different conditions. The economic situation and political stability in the states are not equal, and difficult economic situations facilitate mechanisms of social exclusion. On the other hand, the will of political and civil society to integrate the minority is without doubt a critical factor to a better integration of the Rroma. In Mid-October, the European Economic and Social Committee will be rewarding eight organisations that have been particularly committed to a better social integration of the Rroma.

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03.10.2014 Rroma in Champs-sur-Marne: different notions of equality

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Kaps (2014/I) reports on immigrated Rroma in Champs-sur-Marne and Noisy-le-Grand, two suburbs, 20 kilometres north of Paris. In the cities, many informal settlements were created, which are not tolerated by Maud Tallet, the communist mayor of Champs-sur-Marne. Astonishingly, as a communist she has extreme views on equality, which categorically exclude any special treatment of immigrant Rroma. Since they have settled on private and on public land, she sees no reason why she should help them with services such as water or sanitary facilities. Rather, she demands their eviction. She also doesn’t foster the enrolment of the children, but hinders it: children of Rroma immigrants, such as those of Christian Bumbai, a Rrom from Romania, are usually only enrolled in school after the assistance by locals. Otherwise, it is difficult for them to attend school, because the Rroma families do not meet the minimum regulatory requirements, such as a permanent residency. Maud Tallet conveys very one-sided, stereotypical ideas about the Rroma minority: she calls them “travelling people”, who require empty space and enough trash containers, where bulky waste and household items can be found. She does not seem to understand that poverty and exclusion have nothing to do with the Rroma culture. Nor that Rroma are not travellers. Therefore, the mayor demands for equal treatment cannot be met by the immigrant Rroma and thereby, as a communist mayor, she creates inequality. Despite these obstacles, the portrayed Rroma families Bumbai and Lucan try to successfully integrate, to find work, to send their children to school, and to find an own apartment. In France, according to the Rroma Foundation, there are an estimated 100,000 to 500,000 Rroma. The majority of them is integrated, goes to work, speaks French and has its own accommodations. Many of them have lived in France for several generations. These invisible Rroma are not perceived by the media, the politicians, and the public, they are even denied existence. On the opposite side, there is a minority of the minority, approximately 17,000 recently immigrated Rroma, who get all the media attention, as in the report by Kaps. They live in informal settlements and are affected by extreme poverty, but also they only want to integrate, “to get out of the slum” (compare Kaps 2014/II).

News Schweiz

24.09.2014 Oberwinterthur: transit sites only for Swiss travellers is unlawful

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Hirsekorn (2014) reports on the reopening of the transit site in Oberwinterthur. Different journalists reported that the transit site was closed in late August due to strong hygienic issues. Primarily foreign travellers, above all, foreign travelling Rroma were made responsible for these issues. After maintenance work, the site has now been reopened, but only for Swiss travellers, as the police commander of Oberwinterthur, Daniel Beckmann, states. Therewith one enters a legal grey area, since a transit site only for Swiss travellers is unlawful according to various legal experts: “prohibitions of stay and separate sites for Swiss and foreigners remain legally contentious for several reasons: prohibition of discrimination I: the federal constitution guarantees equal treatment for all people (Art. 8, paragraph 2). No one shall be discriminated against, not because of his heritage or lifestyle. “Unequal treatment is appropriate only when there are serious objective reasons”, says Markus Schefer, professor of constitutional and administrative Law at the University of Basel. Whether these reasons are given with the Jeniche not using this site and the problematic hygienic conditions in Winterthur is highly questionable. Prohibition of discrimination II: according to the agreement on the free movement of persons (FMP), every EU-citizen must not be hindered or denied stay or entry into Switzerland. “As long as no congestion for transit travellers occurs, there is no problem”, says Fiona Wigger of the federal agency for culture. This is contradicted by Schefer: “If a traveller is part of the FMP, the site prohibition is a serious problem.” Prohibition of discrimination III: “Such an interdiction generalises in a serious manner”, said Schefer. If this leads to a collective judgment, the case is even more problematic. It feeds the suspicion that per se, they behave badly: “The result are pejorative stereotypes against a particular group.” Huber’s statement (2014) that a ban on foreign travellers does not violate the prohibition of discrimination is therefore incorrect. In addition, a general interdiction of foreign travellers contradicts the principle of proportionality. Andrea Egbuna from the Swiss Competence Centre for Human Rights (SCHR) states that therefore, in the event of problems, one must evaluate if individual travellers can be sanctioned with a deposit for cleaning costs, rather than cast a general suspicion on all foreign travellers. As has been repeatedly criticised by the Rroma Contact Point, the conflict concerning permanent and transit sites in Switzerland is a general problem of too few sites for travellers. This conflict is then fought on the backs of foreign Rroma who are instrumentalised as scapegoats for these general structural problems. That there are indeed such massive differences between foreign-travellers and Swiss Jeniche that make any peaceful co-existence impossible is doubtful. The claim that Rroma use no toilets and instead do their business outdoors is absurd. Particularly the Rroma have strict hygiene regulations, which is reflected in the tradition of ritual impurity. Moreover, it seems that the differences between Jeniche and Rroma are deliberately highlighted and exaggerated because of occasional conflicts. Most Rroma are sedentary and not travelling anyway.

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17.09.2014 “This Is Life Among the Roma”: stereotypical documentary about the Rroma

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The 10-minute documentary “Roma” by British filmmaker Sam Davis (2014) attempts to show the life of Rroma in Albania. Unfortunately, the movie does not create a differentiated picture of the minority, but reproduces numerous stereotypes: the Rroma marry at the age of thirteen or fifteen, claims an American missionary, and live in unbearable hygienic conditions, almost like animals. A local politician makes the statement that one can only integrate Rroma successfully if one takes into account their travelling lifestyle and gives them space to act out their traditions. This is complemented with recordings from a Rroma ghetto in Tirana. All this leads to a highly one-sided, distorted notion of the Rroma lifestyle. In reality, many members of the minority are integrated and not in slums. Many marry only as adults, not earlier than members of other ethnic groups. In addition, most Rroma are precisely not travellers, as the Albanian politician falsely claims. Poverty is not a cultural characteristic of the Rroma. Unfortunately, the highly aesthetic images cannot make up for these massive shortcomings in content. The Rroma are still heavily discriminated against, this fact is emphatically shown by the documentation. However, the portrayed life circumstances match by no means those of all Rroma in Europe or even in Albania, as Jake Flanagin (2014) of the New York Times incorrectly interprets: “Despite a millennium of shared history with Europeans, Roma remain one of the Continent’s most marginalised and underserved groups. A 2012 report jointly compiled by the United Nations Development Program and the European Union’s Fundamental Rights Agency found that only 15 percent of Roma adults surveyed “have completed upper-secondary general education, versus more than 70 percent of the majority population living nearby.” Similarly, less than 30 percent of Roma surveyed were employed in an official capacity at the time of questioning, and roughly 45 percent “live in households lacking at least one of the following: an indoor kitchen, toilet, shower or bath, or electricity.” What Flanagin does not mention is that the cited study only surveyed Rroma who live in neighbourhoods with a over proportioned amount of Rroma, which were usually already marginalised. Rroma living really integrated were almost not considered for the study (compare European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights 2013). However, in reality, Rroma belong to all strata of society and not just the lower class.

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05.09.2014 Stereotypes: foreign travelling Rroma as asocial groups

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Wissmann (2014) reports on problems with foreign travelling Rroma in Biel. A group of foreign travellers – most of them are Rroma, the author claims – have repeatedly and illegally occupied private grounds and properties. André Glauser, head of the city department of security, speaks of 20 to 30 groups of foreign travellers that stop in Biel every year. Although has Glauser points out that not all groups create problems, the statement of a “problem case with foreign travellers” remains: “For nearly two weeks now, the travellers have been playing a cat-and-mouse game with the city and private landowners. Meanwhile, they have already illegally occupied the sixth terrain. Again and again, they were asked to leave the grounds. But instead of leaving Biel, they just occupied a different site – parking spaces, premises, construction sites or road edges. At one site, according to Glauser, they even stopped passing vehicles for begging, which led to complaints. However, the city security chief does not want to generalise. There are groups that don’t create any problems, he states. Others, however, made the telephone lines of the police run hot. Residents and traders complained about waste, faeces or about the behaviour of the travellers. The former Bieler councilman and present FDP-great councillor Hubert Klopfenstein also speaks of an “unfortunately detectable increase in petty crime.”” The focus of the press and informants presented here is on extreme problem cases. They are not representative of all Rroma. Rather, it is a minority of the minority that stands out negatively. The arguments between Yeniche and Rroma due to permanent and transit sites, which are also implied in this article, are a Swiss nationwide problem, due to the fact that by far,  there are not enough sites for all travellers. Due to the presence of foreign travellers this problem is exacerbated and the competition discharges in the over-emphasis of ethnic and national differences. Most Rroma are sedentary anyway and not travellers. The cited FDP-great councillor Hubert Klopfenstein is therefore to agree with when he demands that the federal government must take care of the lack of transit sites. But also the journalists and politicians are challenged: they shouldn’t hastily assimilate problem cases of minorities’ members to a matter of ethnicity.

News Schweiz

27.08.2014 Oberwinterthur: continuing conflict over transit site

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Herter (2014) spoke with Urs Glaus, president of the foundation “Future for Swiss Travellers”, about the continuing problems at the transit site of Oberwinterthur. The site was closed by the authorities on the weekend of August 23rd and 24th, due to the hygienic conditions which were unsustainable. The place is now being extensively cleaned and repaired. When and how it will be reopened is not yet decided (compare Eppenberger 2014, Hirsekorn 2014). Unfortunately, Glaus also spreads the opinion that some Rroma don’t use toilets for cultural reasons and that it would therefore be reasonable to establish separate sites for travelling Rroma. That problems with a minority of travelling Rroma are supposed to be solved by seggregated sites and not by an open dialogue is disconcerting. As Glaus himself states, there are only occasional travelling Rroma groups that cause problems on transit sites. Most of them adhere to the rules at the sites and stick to the hygiene standards. Therefore, Glaus demand for separate sites is difficult to comprehend. It means a concession to a nationalistic distinction between decent Swiss Jeniche and problematic “foreign” Rroma. However, disputes over transit sites and stands are a pan-Swiss problem, because there are by far not enough sites for all travellers. Due to the presence of foreign travellers, this problem is exacerbated and the competition degenerates in ethnic distinctions, which cannot be deemed to be objective. Foreign travelling Rroma are scapegoats in order to identify a clear culprit for all grievances. This does not do justice to the complexity of the problem. Most Rroma are sedentary anyway and don’t travel. Urs Glaus states: “Not all Roma leave dirty sites. But there are some groups that have a different cultural background, don’t use toilets for example, or do not want to be seen on the way to the toilet. Therefore, not all transit sites are suitable for the Roma, also the site in Oberwinterthur is not. […] Are shared sites for Swiss travellers and Roma conceivable? No, but this has nothing to do with discrimination, but with the different needs and experiences of Roma and Swiss travellers. Their origin and culture is different. In general, it is not end well if Roma want to stop on sites of Swiss travellers.” Of course there are differences between the Rroma and the Jeniche. But the demand for separate transit sites spreads false notions for the necessity of a segregation of the two groups, which cannot be in the sense of a modern, multi-ethnic society, which should rely on compromise and cooperation and not on isolation and separation.

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22.08.2014 Integration of immigrant Rroma-children in German schools

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Der Westen und Radio Ennepe Ruhr report on the integration of children from immigrant Rroma families in the public schools of Ennepetal in North Rhine-Westphalia. This is said to proceed in a largely positive fashion. According to the journalists’ estimates, the families were a part of those families that received media attention while living in the “Rroma house” in Duisburg and who subsequently  moved to Ennepetal. Around 30 adults and 80 children are now living in the worker housinf of a former metal factory. While it is stressed that the integration of the families has enjoyed top priority from the start and will be actively promoted by the community, one is nevertheless irritated by the fact that the children are not integrated into regular classes, but are rather taught in so-called “integration classes”. Of the 52 Rroma-children who were enrolled into these integration classes, in which their viability for the regular school is assessed, only six now will go to regular classes with the new school year starting. For those responsible for integration, this seems to be a success. However, from the perspective of a real integration, the segregated teaching of Rroma children is extremely problematic, as they can hardly socialise with other children. Anke Velten-Franke from the mayor’s office sees this differently: since Rrroma children are taught in the buildings of the middle and primary school, they were able to make contact with other children during school breaks, she states. It is to be hoped that the politician proves right. Principally, segregated schooling, especially in the context of negative experiences from the Czech Republic or Romania, where it is still widespread, should be seen very critically, since it fosters and maintains the discrimination and marginalisation of the minority. The focus on the recently immigrated Rroma families should not obscure the fact already now 110’00 to 130,000 Rroma are living integrated in Germany, many for generations. Their children are not taught segregated. In addition, Stefan Scherer commits a gross error in judgment when he reproduces without comment that the social workers of Ennepetal would share a fear with many other residents: “The Roma are not sedentary people. The fear to invest a lot of money and energy, and then they move to the next town or the next country is still present in Ennepetal” (Scherer 2014). However, most Rroma are not travellers and never were. The alleged wandering lifestyle is rather the result of their continuous expulsion, which was and is reinterpreted in a false analogy to a travelling way of life (compare Radio Ennepe Ruhr 2014).  

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20.08.2014 Stereotypes: foreign Rroma as an uncivilized horde

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Graf/Garne (2013) report on conflicts on the transit camping site of Oberwinterthur. According to the city police of Winterthur, unsustainable conditions prevail on the site: “Human faeces lie the walkway next to the landfill of Rietberg. Around the transit site for travellers, paths and the forest edge are used as outdoor toilets. Since July, complaints with the city police were frequently discussed, confirmed the deputy commander, Daniel Beckmann. For Beckmann it is obvious: “The current situation is unsustainable.” The site that cost 500,000 francs was inaugurated in the spring of 2013 with the guideline to offer space to the caravans to the Swiss travellers. Currently, the site does not meet this requirement at all, says Beckmann. Foreign Roma currently exclusively occupy the site. Swiss Travellers don’t find any space since other Roma immediately occupy every vacant parking space, he states. […] It is necessary to reinstall the initial purpose of the site and if possible without exposing oneself to the charge of discrimination.” The dispute over transit sites and longer term camping sites is a pan-Swiss problem, as there are not enough sites for all travellers by far. This problem is exacerbated due to the presence of foreign travellers, and the conflicts degenerates in racial distinctions that can’t be objectively verified: of course there are Rroma that are as described in the article, but these are not representative for all Rroma by far. Moreover, most Rroma are sedentary anyway. A priority of nationals on camping and transit sites, as also referred to by the city police commander, is not legal and would contradict international laws on equal rights. The insistence that foreign Rroma occupy “Jeniche sites” is therefore a prejudiced judgment that is not based on objective facts.

Graf, Michael/Garne, Jigme (2014) «Unhaltbare Zustände» auf dem Durchgangsplatz. In: Der Landbote online vom 15.8.2014. http://www.landbote.ch/detail/article/unhaltbare-zustaende-auf-dem-durchgangsplatz/gnews/99280218/

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13.08.2014 Gilles Bourdouleix sentenced because trivialization of the Holocaust

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Gilles Bourdouleix, wha was the mayor of Cholet in the department of Maine-et-Loire from 1995 to 2008, was sentenced to a fine of 3000 Euro for his statements trivialising the Holocaust against the Rroma. Therewith, the court of appeal of Angers confirmed the judgment of the criminal court, which had passed the sentence in January of this year, however this time not suspended. The judgment of the court reads: “With the public uttering in sufficiently audible voice to be perceived (…) his regret that the crimes against humanity perpetrated by the German authorities during the Second World War towards the travellers were not committed long enough, the defendant has in fact made ​​such a glorification” (Delève 2014). The prosecutor, who viewed the offense of glorification of crimes against humanity as proven, called for a prison sentence of 6 months on probation. During a confrontation with travellers that camped illegally on a field of his congregation, Bourdouleix announced: “Hitler may not have killed enough of them.” According to his own statement, the travellers had provoked him with the Hitler salute, which is likewise punishable. A journalist of the newspaper “Le Courrier de l’Ouest”, who was present at the incident, wrote an article about the events and published an audio recording of the statement on the newspaper’s website. Bourdouleix denied all allegations and threatened a lawsuit for defamation. The recording was a manipulated montage, he stated. Bourdouleix’ lawyer stated that they will appeal to the court of cassation. Bourdouleix was forced to resign from the UDI party in response to his Holocaust trivialisation. The maximum penalty for the glorification of the Holocaust is five years in prison and a fine of 45,000 Euros. Bourdouleix was additionally sentenced by the court to pay the organisations La Ligue des droits de l’homme (LDH), Mouvement contre le racisme et pour l’amitié entre les peuples (Mrap), la Fondation pour la Memoire de la Deportation, la Licra und la Fondation nationale des déportés et internés, who had filed the suit against him, one symbolic euro of compensation. – In most of the cited articles, as well as in the verdict, travellers are used synonymously with Rroma. However, most Rroma are sedentary. There are also other ethnic groups which have a minority of travellers, such as the Yeniche, who have European roots (compare 20 minutes 2014, Le Cain 2014, Libération 2014).

  1. 20 minutes/AFP (2014) Son dérapage sur les Roms lui coûte 3000 euros. In: 20 minutes Suisse online vom 12.8.2014. http://www.20min.ch/ro/news/faits_divers/story/29343403
  2. Delève, Elise (2014) Propos anti-Roms : Bourdouleix condamné en appel à 3.000 euros. In: France info online vom 12.8.2014. http://www.franceinfo.fr/actu/justice/article/propos-anti-roms-gilles-bourdouleix-condamne-en-appel-une-amende-de-3-000-euros-548821
  3. Le Cain, Blandine (2014) Propos anti-Roms : l’élu Gilles Bourdouleix condamné en appel. In: Le Figaro online vom 12.8.2014. http://www.lefigaro.fr/politique/2014/08/12/01002-20140812ARTFIG00122-propos-anti-roms-l-elu-gilles-bourdouleix-attend-la-decision-en-appel.php
  4. Libération/AFP (2014) Gens du voyage : le maire de Cholet Gilles Bourdouleix condamné à 3 000 euros d’amende. In: Libération online vom 12.8.2014. http://www.liberation.fr/societe/2014/08/12/bourdouleix-condamne-a-3-000-euros-d-amende-en-appel_1079498?xtor=rss-450
News Schweiz

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Zürcher (2014) writes about travelers and their fight for more places were to stay. For eleven years Swiss travelers have the right to have places to camp on the road or places for winter quarters. At the same time there is an acute lack of such places. There are twice as many people who want to use them as as there are places. This is known by everyone, and for this reason, the canton of Zurich started a concept called “Travellers in the Canton of Zurich”. This concept sis meant to find strategies to secure enough places. The author mixes this background with some very unfortunate stereotypes way. In his argumentation he refers to Maria Mehr, who fights for the rights for Jenisch people. Younger Jenisch are asserting their identity much more strongly than the older generation. Mehr sees travelling as an important element for the Jenisch’s culture: „The 71 year old Mehr likes, when besides her, also younger people engage themselves for the culture of the Jenisch. Since 1986, she travels with her caravan around Switzerland. She builds her small culture centre, gather other Jenish, Sinti, Roma around her, and shows the daily lifes of travellers to the visitors.” (Zürcher 2014) In his view travelling connects the cultures of Jenisch, Sinti, and Rroma, which is totally wrong. This is not the only stereotype he uses in his argumentation. For example he writes about big families and predicting the future with card reading: „The small, knotty women, who currently lives from her state pension, earns some additional money by reading cards, and beams whenever she speaks about her big family.“ (ibid.) In the same way he refers to Maria Mehr under the title „Travelling in the blood“, to connect the blood with travelling: „whether she sometimes has enough of the constant moves? «No, never» she answers: «I have this in the blood.»“ (ibid.). With his generalising title and his presentations, Zürcher  manages to present a genetically based argumentation. His whole article misses to inform the reader that only a very small part of Rroma and also the smaller part of Jenisch people travel.

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27.06.2014 Swiss travellers: competition and racism

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Fuchs (2014) reports on the problems and hardships of travelling Swiss Yeniche. The focus centres on the experiences of Gérard Mühlhauser, the spokesman for the Swiss travellers’ movement. Mühlhauser criticizes the acute lack of permanent camping and transit sites. He states that the extensive use of existing sites by foreign Rroma, aggravates the lack of space. Once more, culturalising and generalising arguments are presented. These arguments make the Rroma responsible for all problems related to the lack of space and the lack of hygiene in certain stand and transit sites. Foreign Rroma are once again made scapegoats for social ills and problems that all involved parties are responsible for, and are not just caused by a specific ethnic group. That the sedentary population shows reservations against travellers should not be reduced to suspicions towards Rroma but rather generally towards all travellers. Mühlhauser, as well as Fuchs, who largely adopts his reasoning,  with their accusations against foreign, travelling Rroma, makes it to easy for themselves: ““We have a major problem, this is the transit travellers”, says Gérard Mühlhauser to the “Rundschau”. […] The foreign Roma are found throughout Switzerland. “They go on sites without authorisation, on Yeniche sites, they usually leave chaos and dirt. Therefore, one site after the other shuts down”, says Mühlhauser. Roma fiercely contradicts this. The Rroma priest Father Stefan states: “There are good and bad ones. But this is not a question of whether one is Swiss.” Among the Swiss travellers there are racists. Nowhere else in Europe foreign travellers would be denied access to certain sites. Here in Switzerland, there is a sign: when foreign people are on it, they need to get away and must clear space for the Swiss. That’s not right”, says Stefan. That makes him sad.” The criticism of Father Stefan is important. That there are stand and transit sites, which are available only to one specific ethnic group, the Yeniche, is unjust. The preference of nationals over foreigners contradicts accepted laws on equal treatment people of all nationalities. Such reasoning, which massively exaggerates the differences between the ethnic groups and negates similarities, is extremely patronising and creates racist values of desirable and undesirable and therefore valuable and less important people.

That living together with fellow men can cause problems cannot be denied. We all know quarrels with our neighbours, work colleagues and even with friends. However, these problems should not be judged according to ethnic criteria, which is unfair. Disputes with our fellow human beings have something to do with individual behaviour, with social structures and power relations that create conflicts. To reduce these to ethnicity is stupid, and does not do justice to the complexity of the social and individual problems behind it.

Therefore, the Swiss federal government should provide enough permanent and transit camps, which would defuse the competition for those sites. Racist reasonings are applied in the competition for resources for the few sites, which is not particularly astonishing. It is the same reasoning that is also used in the competition for jobs or apartments, and was applied by the SVP during the campaign for the mass immigration initiative. However, we all sit in the same boat, and form part of the same planet. Unfortunately, economic competitiveness also promotes racist attitudes among numerous people. This must be overcome and common solutions must be found. A first, important step in this direction was taken this week. The Swiss federal council has announced that it will establish a working group under the leadership of the department of the interior that will addresses the concerns of Swiss travellers. The foundation “Zukunft für Schweizer Fahrende will receive more funding. However, the foundation is controversial even among Yeniche themselves, as they feel their concerns are taken to little into account. For years, they have pointed out that there is an acute lack in permanent and transit sites. Applications for new sites are often rejected at the community level (compare 20 Minunten 2014, Blick 2014, Neue Luzerner Zeitung 2014, Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen 2014). It should be stressed here that almost all Rroma resident in Switzerland, between 50,000 and 80,000, are sedentary and well integrated

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20.06.2014 Nancy and Bastia: Several Rroma accused of child trafficking

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Le Point (2014) reports on the arrests of several suspects accused of being involved in the trade of infants. The ethnicity of the suspects is stated to be that of French travellers, the babies however are said to be Rroma. Whether the author of the article uses the terms interchangeably or whether he means a different ethnicity is not evident. The accused are supposed to have smuggled infants from Corsica to France and sold them in Marseille and Ajaccio. Only inaccurate information is available about the exact background and motives of the events. One of the biological mothers is said to have given birth to her child under a false identity to facilitate a resale. By making the ethnicity of the accused explicit, something anything but obvious, the article suggests that the offense is a Rroma cultural peculiarity. This is much more the matter of extreme behaviour by some individuals. Something that is not stressed at all. With this, all those Rroma who are living blameless lives are discredited. The phenomenon of child trafficking, as repeatedly portrayed in the media, has to be critically reviewed, as scientific social studies demonstrate. These refer to the prevalence of criminal explanations of human trafficking over the perspective of the people involved and their backgrounds (compare Ortoli 2014, Oude Breuil 2008, Oude Breuil et al 2011). 

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18.06.2014 “It is time for historians to write Romani history into the mainstream”

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Taylor (2014), an historian at the Birkbeck University in London, talked about her new book “Another Darkness, Another Dawn: A History of Gypsies, Roma and Travellers”. At the beginning, she addressed the intense politicization and instrumentalization of Rroma by politics and journalism. The Rroma are once again made to scapegoats for all social ills and abused in political debates about immigration, debates that are dominated by fear mongering.

From a historical perspective, Taylor states that until today, Rroma are not part of the official historiography. However, Rroma are not granted separate history either, rather, they are ascribed an existence in a timeless bubble untouched by modern life. Taylor wants to overcome this deficiency with her book, and wants to complement the official, popular history with the history of the Rroma. She does it by connecting important historical upheavals, such as the emergence and decline of empires, wars, political upheavals, the expansion of the state of law, enlightenment and social crises with the history of the Rroma and examining mutual influences: “If exploring the history of Romani peoples was a way of holding up a mirror on the societies in which they lived, it was also a salutatory lesson that it is naive to believe in a progressive view of history: things don’t always get better, especially if you belong to a stigmatized ethnic group. […] Carrying out the research for this book showed how the enslavement of Gypsies coexisted under the Ottomans with remarkable cultural diversity and autonomy; how branding, mutilations and ‘gypsy hunts’ occurred at the same time that Gypsies established themselves across Europe and the Americas; and how despite developments in education and attitudes toward minorities across modern Europe and the U.S. has failed to bring anything like active acceptance of the place of Romani peoples within its societies.” Taylor’s book seems to be an interesting, new contribution to the historiography of the Rroma, even though one cannot critically assess her book with her own review. Her book should be read with a critical attitude, as many scientists and Rroma experts, despite their good intentions, reproduce and maintain false information about the Rroma.

  • Taylor, Becky (2014) It’s Time Historians Get Past the Stereotype of Romani Peoples and Write Them into History. In: History News Network online vom 15.6.2014. http://hnn.us/article/155822
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11.06.2014 Appleby Horse Market: positive stereotypes for once prevalent

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Several British newspapers report on the annual horse market in Appleby. Around 10,000 Rroma from all over Europe come together in Appleby to groom their horses, present and trade them. It is striking that for once, neither stealing nor begging Rroma are mentioned, but rather, positive aspects such as the attractiveness of the horses and the ritual of washing them are highlighted. However, it is also striking that travellers, Irish Travellers and Rroma are once more amalgamated, although Irish Travellers and other travelling communities are not the same as Rroma. Only a fraction of the Rroma is indeed travelling. In addition, the stereotype of Rroma as fortune-tellers is conveyed. Arkell (2014) states: “Gypsies from around Europe descended on the Eden Valley for the annual event, where traditionally travellers parade their horses before potential buyers, racing them at high speed along the ‘mad mile’ before cooling them down with a dip in the River Eden. The fair, which runs until next Wednesday, is the largest and one of the oldest of its kind anywhere in Europe, attracting 10,000 gipsies and 30,000 visitors each year. […] Gipsies come from around the world to meet friends, conduct business, and trade horses, while visitors come to admire the animals and visit the market stalls, palm readers, and fortune tellers” (compare Faratin 2014, The Northern Echo 2014, Williams 2014).  

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28.05.2014 No new transit site for travellers in Leisach

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Several Austrian daily newspapers report on the failed project of a new transit site for travellers, which are usually mistakenly equated with Rroma in the articles. Most Rroma are not travellers, but are sedentary. Furthermore, other ethnic groups, such as the Yeniche, also have a minority of travellers. The new transit site failed because of the high costs due to the necessary adaptations, as well because of a stop of the ground planning in Leisach. In addition, the project manager, regional minister Christine Bauer, was criticized for not directly seeking dialogue with the mayor, the deputy mayor or the council of Leisach. The owner of the property in question will continue to receive travellers on his site despite the negative decision. A commendable attitude, as he had to cope with hostilities of many other residents. No representative of the community participated to the press conference: “The landowners was praised by [Bauer] for his great civil courage” – even in the face of harsh headwind that was blowing against him in this sensitive issue – to openly advocate for travellers. Holzer also assured to continue to provide Roma, Sinti, and Yeniche families with a transit site for their caravans if asked for. In legal terms, nobody can prohibit him to do this, said the regional minister. Baur stated: “It should not be understood as defiance, but as an act of human solidarity” (Kleine Zeitung 2014). Again it must be stressed that travellers and Rroma are not synonyms, and therefore one should not speak of “travelling tribes”. Only a minority of the Rroma are travellers, some of them only seasonally (compare Egger 2014, Kurier 2014, ORF 2014, Reichkendler 2014, Tiroler Tageszeitung 2014).

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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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09.05.2014 Foreign Rroma as an uncivilized horde

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The latest article of the Weltwoche by Alex Reichmuth (2014) claims a feud between Swiss Yeniche and foreign, travelling Rroma. However, Reichmuth argues with such absurd evidence that he actually refutes himself. At the beginning of the article, he states: “The camp Augsterich in Kaiseraugst, Aargau, is hidden between a main road and the railway line. […] Behind bushes there is a small gravel area: the so-called cleansing place. Here, foreign travellers, who because for cultural reasons don’t use toilets, do their businesses. […] Augsterich is the only place in Aarau, which is open to foreign travellers. In the summer, it is mainly used by French Roma, who usually stay for a few days or weeks. […] With the place, it was intended to prevent the chronic wild camping by foreign travellers in the lower Frick Valley, and related problems such as waste and faeces.” Reichmuth applies a highly reductionist reasoning, by presenting the foreign, travelling Rroma as a wild horde. To ascribe them a cultural alterity that prohibits the use of toilets, due to individual extreme cases, is totally absurd. Hygiene, on the very opposite, has a very high priority among Rroma, as it is reflected in the tradition of ritual purity. Most Rroma, as Reichmuth also states for the Yeniche, are not travelleres. By repeatedly talking of asocial, unhygienic Rroma, the article conveys the impression that this is a cultural feature of the Rroma, what is false and racist. In addition, the terms “foreign travellers” and “Roma” are largely used interchangeably. The enemy stereotype is also confirmed by the interviewed Yeniche: “The social control works. But it upsets them that the population does not distinguish between Swiss and foreign travellers. Fatal for their reputation was a Roma wedding in the Lower Valais two years ago, says one of the Yeniche. At that time, about 400 foreign travellers illegally occupied a field, threatened the landowner with death and left a terrain strewn with garbage and faeces.” Foreign travellers are also held responsible for the hesitant creation of new camping places, because reservations under of the local population are said to be large. In places where only domestic travellers stop, as in the canton of Aargau, extensions and new camps are said to be much easier to realise. Jörg Hartmann, from the building department of Aargau, supports this racist view. More eyewitnesses are cited to document the bad experiences with foreign, travelling Rroma. These experiences interpret single events in an ethnic and racist context. In addition, they automatically take for granted the suspicious fact that the foreign travellers are Rroma. How they identify the ethnicity remains unclear.

Reichmuth takes a completely different viewpoint. Authorities as lobbyists are accused of sugarcoating and moralizing the real problems, as is Stéphane Laederich, director of the Rroma Foundation: “Think about whether you really need to wirte “Roma” each time, recommended Stéphane Laederich […] in a journalists magazine”, or whether it would be possible, for example, to denote people as Romanians or Hungarians.” Reichmuth interprets this recommendation as an invitation to cover up nuisances. Rather, Laederich wants to protect the reputation of the majority of the Rroma, who are living integrated and unobtrusively in Switzerland. This invisible Rroma are denied their existence by the Weltwoche. Instead, it presents a minority of problem cases as general cases and requires a rigorous implementation of the mass immigration initiative for foreign travellers, what is said to help the Swiss travellers.

The issue is addressed more diplomatically in the Tagesanzeiger. There, representatives of the new Yeniche protest movement “Movement of Swiss Travelers” have their say. These emphasize that the distinction between Yeniche and foreign Rroma is important for their reputation, because the views of their minority has declined in recent time: “While the Swiss travellers use chemical toilets and showers in their caravans, the foreign travellers prefer a meadow for their business. “We do not want to be racist”, says [Silvan] Waser. But the Roma, who travel through Switzerland in large groups of cars and leave the places in a mess, harm the image of the Swiss travellers. “We are tired of being responsible for something which we did not do.” A minority who argues against another minority, that’s disconcerting. And not all are of the opinion that one should do this. “The Roma are travellers like us, they have wives and children and are looking for places to stay” say some women later” (Schmid 2014). The biased distinction between integrated Yeniche and asocial, foreign Rroma can be found in numerous other articles. They also spread prejudiced knowledge as objective facts or point to this very fallacy (compare Ferraro 2014, Fuchs 2014, Jecker 2014, Waldmeier 2014, Wanner 2014).     

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11.04.2014 “Who are the Rroma living in Switzerland?”

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Boullé (2014) spoke to the Lausanne photographer Yves Leresche, who has dealt with Rroma living in Switzerland for several years. Leresche deconstructs four common stereotypes about the minority. (1) The Rroma are all the same: false. Rroma belong to diverse groups such as the Sinti, the Gurbeti, the Arlii, the Lingurari, the Ursari, the Kalderasha etc., who pursued traditional occupations in earlier times, to which their group name often refers. Leresche terms the Jeniche wrongly as Rroma. From a political point of view – concerning the prejudices against the minorities – this may be useful, because  they share a history of exclusion and persecution. In terms of migration history, language and traditions however, there are striking differences between the two ethnic groups. The Rroma are from India and the talk Rromanes, originating from Sanskrit. The Jeniche however derive from European folk groups that were starting to travel in the wake of social upheavals and speak the language Jeniche, influenced by Yiddish and other old European languages.

(2) Rroma are all beggars: also wrong. Leresche distinguishes four different groups of Swiss Rroma: The invisible, who have been living in Switzerland integrated and unobtrusive for decades, sometimes generations. Very few know that they are Rroma, because they keep their identity a secret. The travellers; the stereotypical notion that all Rroma are travellers refers to them. However, they represent only a small percentage of the Rroma. In Switzerland primarily the Jeniche are travellers, and also of them only a small percentage. Rroma are often equated with asylum seekers. While this is true sometimes, many have been living in Switzerland for a long time and have a definite residency status. Leresche also points to refugees from the Kosovo, which present the most recent migration movement of Rroma to Western Europe. Finally, with European Rroma, Leresche refers to migrants from the EU-countries. He makes aware of the economic immigrants among them, but far too little stresses that the predicted mass migration from Southern and Eastern Europe is a political issue.

(3) The Rroma come to us, to enrich themselves: also wrong. The Rroma seek an alternative to their often precarious living conditions in Southern and Eastern Europe. They want a normal life, a job, a good education for their children. Unfortunately, some of them lack good qualifications, what makes the integration into the labour market more difficult. Leresche doesn’t stress enough that the begging Rroma usually have nothing to  with criminal begging networks, as it is often claimed by the police, but beg because of lacking alternatives.

(4) The Rroma do not stay for a short time, but forever. In this stereotype, Leresche differentiates far too little between invisible and visible Rroma. He merely indicates that Rroma who migrate seasonally only come for a few months to beg. Because after some time, political and police resistance starts to form, begging becomes unprofitable after one to two years. Here it must be added, that only a small part of the Rroma are begging. The majority of the Swiss Rroma is integrated and pursues a normal work. In addition, the idea of the lucrative nature of begging is false, as recently Jean-Pierre Tabin has shown in his study.

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11.04.2014 Rroma as an enemy stereotype

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=On the occasion of the international Rroma day, numerous international newspapers report about the continuing marginalization of the Rroma minority in their countries. For Germany, Jakob (2014) notes that according to the latest research of historian Wolfgang Benz, the Rroma are ranked behind social groups such as the Jews or asylum seekers, concerning popularity. The purpose of such a popularity-scale can and should be questioned. Apart from the mirroring existing prejudices towards certain social or ethnic groups, no real benefit for combating prejudices can be drawn from this. However, this viewpoint is contradicted by Jacob, who states in reference to the study by Wolfgang Benz: “The study by Benz created on behalf of the anti-discrimination agency shows how deep prejudices about Roma and Sinti are rooted in Germany. Benz said it reassures him that the vast majority of the respondents (91 percent) consider integration services a good suggestion for a better coexistence with Sinti and Roma. 63 percent called for stronger minority rights, the study states”. That these sociological statistics will be followed by true actions, is much to be hoped. The aid programs are not devoid of  prejudices, as another part of Benz study shows: 80% of respondents are in favour of a fight against welfare abuse, 78 % speak out to take against crime among the Rroma (Protestant Press 2014). The enemy image of the Rroma is therefore anything but irrelevant, and is still deeply rooted in many peoples’ minds. As a result, many Rroma keep their identity secret. Wolfgang Benz confirms this in a radio interview, in which he addresses the invisible Rroma of Germany: “In fact, Sinti and Roma are living in Germany since a long time, completely integrated. No one recognizes them. Some of them are part of the boardrooms of large industrial companies. They pursue ordinary bourgeois professions and they do not make themselves visible. They fear discrimination. One doesn’t allow them to integrate and then one is claiming that they do not want to integrate” (Polland 2014).

The creation of an EU-fund dedicated to the Rroma, that would not have to be refinanced by the member states, as with the existing funding, is not only met with approval. Rudko Kawczynski, of the European Roma and Travellers Forum (ERTF), speaks out against the creation of such separate fund. This would only foster the resentments against the minority that already are considerable. Rather, an awareness of injustice among the governments in question has to be created, he states, so that they finally take decisive actions against the discrimination of the Rroma (Jacob 2014).

On the occasion of the Rroma Day, a cultural week in Berlin is held under the slogan “May we, that we are!” The program includes concerts, theatre, films and panel discussions. The culture week is organized by the Hildegard-Lagrenne-Foundation, which aims to promote education, integration and social participation of the Rroma in Germany (Dernbach 2014, rbb 2014).

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02.04.2014 Insidious racism in France

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Several French newspapers report on the latest publication of the National Commission for Human Rights (CNCDH). The commission concludes that racism in France is in overall decline, but that it has become more insidious, subtle and sneaky as a result. Christine Lazerges, the president of the commission, concludes: “In the long view, racism in France decreases, the time of the riots is long gone, but the racism that is propagated today is much more insidious and no longer limited to the extremist edges. It pervades all strata of society.  […] The scapegoats today are particularly Rroma, who are stigmatized, including from the government, and then the Arab Muslims.” Whether the time of racially motivated riots actually belongs to the past may be doubted. Marches of right-wing groups against ethnic minorities such as the Rroma regularly take place in several Eastern European countries. The results of a recent survey, mandated by the commission, makes clear that negative stereotypes towards the Rroma are persisting in the minds of many people. 85% of the thousand respondents said that they believed that Rroma often exploit children and 78 % that they live of theft and the black market. In addition, the suspicion towards anti-racism actors is said to be significant. The commission recommends to continuously foster the education of the population, because it has been shown that there is a clear link between educational alienation and racism. The commission’s authors acknowledge that the Rroma are a heterogeneous group and are not belonging to a homogeneous culture or a single religion. However, they mistakenly assume that the Rroma live in France only since the early 20th century (CNCDH 2014: 201). However, they appear in France in early chronicles since the beginning of the 15th century. Tassel (2014) emphasizes the particular context in which the book is published. On the weekend of March 30th, the right-wing nationalist National Front, which bases significant parts of its policies on xenophobia, achieved a new high in the electorate. In addition, a new Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, has been inaugurated. He is notorious for his repressive policies towards the Rroma. The commission also emphasises the distinction between visible and invisible Rroma, a differentiation that has been fostered by the Rroma Foundation for quite some time: “Only a small minority of the Rroma define themselves in this way – between 15,000 and 20,000, who generally originate of a recent immigration from Bulgaria and Romania – live in a very large uncertainty, that means in the slums. The others are not “visible” and do not live in a state of extreme poverty. The vast majority consists of Gens du voyage, an estimated 350,000 people” (CNCDH 2014: 201-202). This view is contradicted by Tcherenkov/Laederich (2004: 4, 513), who make a clear distinction between travellers of European origin and Rroma. The latter are almost invariably not travelling and belong to the groups of the Manouche, Sinti, Gitans, Kaldersha, Lovara and Yugoslav Rroma (20 minutes 2014, La Croix 2014, CNCDH 2014, Tassel 2014, Vincent 2014).

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