Bulgaria is continuing its policy of demolition of “illegal” Rroma houses. This time, it is in Varna. There has to be a better solution!
Based on a complaint of Rroma residents in Bulgaria against the placement of electricity meters (several metres above ground), the ruling on indirect discrimination from the European Court of Justice has a wide impact. An overview of the impact!
Around 40 Rroma from Romania and Bulgaria are currently camping the castle’s park. This is common in France, with the illegal camps, but is definitively new in Germany. To be watched.
The French newspaper Liberation followed a young Rroma Child from Bulgaria and his family over a period of 6 months, documenting the illegal camps, expulsions, the social housing, etc. A face to the current plight of ca. 20’000 Rroma in France.
Bulgarian protesters from the village of Garmen deposited a petition in Sofia with 720 signatures against the postponement of the demolition of illegal building in the village. These protesters want all Rroma houses destroyed immediately.
A shame, and a solution should be found to regularise these houses now.
Some news of the camps in France: In Bagnolet, near Paris, Bulgarian Rroma buried a man and his daughter who died during a fire; in Roubaix, in the North, activists take 60 Rroma to the sea; in Loos, also in the North, an article about the street with a prison, a Rroma camp and an unused land; while in Vaulx-en-Vélin, near Lyon, cohabitation seems to be difficult; and finally the MRAP (Mouvement contre le racisme et pour l’amitié entre les peoples) denounces what they deem a “real harassment” of Rroma in Lyon.
A lengthy feature article of the BBC on the tensions and issues in the village of Garmen, in Bulgaria.
A new book about the Bulgarian Rroma migration to Italy called “the Silent Migration” was recently published in Italy. The article and book reviews the situation of these migrants in various parts of Italy.
A worthy read!
The European court of Justice has issued a warning against the Bulgarian electricity company which installed electric meters at a height that renders them inaccessible, this in a predominantly Rroma part of Dupnitsa. According to the court of justice, this constitutes “ethnic discrimination”.
In a further escalation of the conflict in Garmen, around 150 residents from Garmen staged a protest in Sofia to request the demolition of 120 “illegal” Rroma houses in their village.
This escalation of an already festering problem will not resolve anything, and is providing ammunition to populist politicians on the overall minority “issue” in Bulgaria.
This has to stop!
According to the Council of Europe, and this in spite of what populist politicians claim, there has been no “invasion” of Rroma from Bulgaria and Romania since citizen from these countries have been granted free circulation within the EU. The Council of Europe criticises the “unfounded” numbers cited by the press in the migration debate in several European countries, such as the UK, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy.
We wholeheartedly agree!
The OSCE has been urging Bulgaria to halt the evictions of Rroma in the village of Garmen. Gerge Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODHIR) also added: “Politicians should lead by example and refrain from anti-Roma rhetoric to gain support from the electorate.”
We agree wholeheartedly!
Another report on the village of Garmen where houses were destroyed last week. The families continue to live in the houses and refused social assistance as a protest for their evictions.
A long article on the village of Gramen in Bulgaria where ethic tensions came to a boil a while back and on which we have already reported.
A US State department report on Bulgaria notes the increased prejudice against Jews and Rroma as well as the increasing number of incidents related to ethnicity. The press, according to the report, describes Rroma and other minorities in “discriminatory and abusive language”, thus contributing to the issue.
Scary…
Switzerland just signed an agreement with Bulgaria providing 8 Mio Swiss Francs to the municipalities of Burgas, Ruses, and Sliven to further Rroma (and other minorities) inclusion, centring on education and basic health care. In view of the more and more extremist views of the general population towards minorities and Rroma in particular, this in a country that used to be tolerant, one wonders whether this is the right approach.
Rroma in Plovdiv asked for the resignation of the minister of health in Bulgaria because of his xenophobic statements. In one of these, he compared Rroma to “stock” and to “horses”.
Interesting article about the situation of Rroma in Bulgaria and their increasing victimisation and isolation based on observations on the Rroma Mahala (neighbourhood) of Iztok in the city of Pazardjik.
A summary of the events and latest developments in the rising tensions in Bulgaria and on the increasing instrumentalisation of Rroma among rightist parties.
According to the Novinite News Agency of Bulgaria, the continuing ethnic tensions in Bulgaria show that politicians are good at doing nothing. The article gives a good summary of the issues, the views of the various groups on the Rroma situation in Bulgaria. That this has changed in recent times is unfortunate. Rroma were quite well integrated in Bulgaria.
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