Category Archives: Hungary

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31.01.2014 Rroma in Hungary are still taught segregated

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Le Point (2014) discusses the continuing segregation of Rroma in Hungarian schools. The article criticizes the ongoing discrimination against Rroma children by the Hungarian school system. Particularly outrageous about the segregation is, that it mixes ethnic categories with poverty. With this logic, a Rroma child is automatically mentally handicapped because he comes from a socially disadvantaged environment. Healthy Rroma children are attested disabilities based on flimsy arguments: “In this country of 10 million inhabitants, Roma make up about 8% of the population. One third of Roma children attend mixed schools, one third attend schools only for Roma, and one third is allocated to schools for the mentally disabled, according to unofficial estimates. There are no statistical studies based on ethnic criteria in Hungary.” The EU has repeatedly cautioned Hungary on its racist methods within the school system. Only mixed schools can ensure the integration of Rroma and educate all parties to become tolerant citizen.

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31.01.2014 The Hungarian Reformed Church, the Orbán government and the Rroma

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Wipfler (2014) addresses the question of the implications for Rroma from the partnership between the Hungarian Reformed Church and the Orbán government. The Reformed Church of Hungary shares many conservative values with the ruling party:  “The harsh criticism from the West on Viktor Orbán’s government is not shared in Hungary. This at least is the view of the reformed Bishop of Debrecen, Gusztáv Bölcskei. [ … ] Orbán represents “Christian values”, one cannot be opposed to that, explained Bölcskei. That Orbán took values such as fatherland, Christianity, family, loyalty, faith, love and national pride into the new constitution is highly valued and beliefs shared by many Hungarian Reformed.” Wipfler states that Antiziganism is widespread in the Hungarian Church. The exclusion of the Rroma from the majority of society is upheld and not fought against, even though the church should do so as a social actor. One reaction to this is an increased emigration to the West. Ethnic racism is particularly strong on the streets. Wipfler’s article is very critical of its subject, but neglects the fact that there are certainly also dedicated clergy who are committed to the integration of the Rroma (compare Wipfler 2014/II ).

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25.01.2014 Canada: A Hungarian Rroma Family that may be deported back is fearing for their security.

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The asylum case of a Rroma family from Hungary in Montreal continues to make the headlines. Facing an imminent deportation back to Hungary, the Horvath family fears for their safety in Hungary in view of the extreme racism against Rroma in that country and in view of the activities of rightist extremist such as Jobbik and the Hungarian Guards. In spite of what is being said by the Hungarian Government and by its Minister Balog, little has improved for Rroma.

Une famille de Roms qui doit être déportée craint pour sa sécurité. In Metro News Canada. 21.01.2015. http://journalmetro.com/actualites/montreal/706448/une-famille-de-roms-craint-pour-sa-securite/

Montreal Gazette: Roma family fearful of deportation to Hungary. In Politics.hu. 22.01.2015. http://www.politics.hu/20150122/montreal-gazette-roma-family-fearful-of-deportation-to-hungary/

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24.01.2014 Education against racism in Hungary

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Weil (2014) reports on the work of the young Rrom Joci Márton, volunteer of the foundation for informal education of Roma (UCCU, Roma Informális Oktatási Alapítvány). Márton attempts to sensitize adolescents on prejudices and challenge thought patterns by discussions in Hungarian schools. He has had to deal with insults during the short teaching sessions without taking it personally. A study on eurocentrism in Central Europe shows the link between lack of education and the responsiveness to racist concepts: “An existing relationship between the predisposition for discrimination and poverty is reported by György Csepeli, Antal Örkény, and Mária Székelyi in their 2000 study on ethnocentrism in Central Europe. It found that both those who live under socially and educationally poor conditions are more susceptible to discriminate others and that poor people are more often victims of discrimination. Times of crisis bring forth scapegoats and those who point their fingers at them.” Meanwhile, Márton pins his hopes on the integrating, bridge-building impact of education. The still existing segregated schools must finally be abolished and access of the Rroma to educational institutions steadily improved (see Budapester Zeitung 2014).

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24.01.2014 Rroma holocaust museum to be opened at the end 2014 in Hungary

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Radisic (2014) informs about the impending opening of a Rroma holocaust museum in the Hungarian city of Pecs. The documentation centre is the result of shared aspirations of the local mayor’s office and resident Rroma. The aim of the institution is to remind students and the public about the much-neglected genocide of the Rroma during the Second World War. Due to the largely oral traditions among the Rroma, the genocide is far from well documented. The estimated death toll rage from 220,000 to one and a half million dead: „West Germany recognized the Roma Holocaust in 1982, but formal recognition and marking of this Holocaust have generally proven to be difficult due to lack of recorded collective memory and documentation of the Porajmos among the Roma, a consequence both of their oral traditions and illiteracy, heightened by widespread poverty and discrimination in this day and age […].“

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24.01.2014 Discrimination of Rroma in Europe continues

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The human rights organization Human Rights Watch (2014) published is “World Report 2014” on the discrimination of the Rroma in the European Union. The report notes that the Rroma are still victims of massive exclusion. They are the main victims of the significant increase in right-wing policies and politicians, together with immigrants and homosexuals. For Germany, this means that Rroma migrants are being confronted with strong prejudices and that the deportation practices do not verify the conditions and discrimination in countries of origin like the Kosovo. France has set a new record in evictions during 2013: around 13,000 Rroma were evicted from their informal settlements during the period of January to September. In Greece, Human Rights Watch critiques the continuing segregation of Rroma in public schools. Additionally, the Rroma are being illegally persecuted and monitored by the authorities. For Croatia, the organisation criticised the exclusion of Rroma from public institutions such as schools, hospitals and social institutions. In Romania, the Rroma are still victims of numerous evictions and are generally disadvantaged in public life. A particularly bad assessment befalls Hungary, when it comes to the integration of Rroma. The report notes: “Roma were faced also last year with discrimination and harassment. The mayor of the city Ozd in northern Hungary separated Roma settlements with an estimated 500 families from the public water network. In January, the European Court of Human Rights judged Hungary guilty of discriminating two Rroma students, because the authorities had placed them in special schools. In July, the court upheld the decision of a prohibition on the Hungarian Guard, an extremist group agitating against Jews and Rroma. In August, a Budapest court convicted four men for murder, who had been involved in racist attacks in the years 2008 and 2009, in which six Roma had been killed, including a child.” As long as the economic conditions in Europe remain poor, the Rroma face an unfavourable fate. They are the first to suffer from social ills. It is much to be hoped that the bad tradition of centuries-old discrimination against the minority will soon be consigned to history.

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24.01.2014 Rroma as victims of torture and racist violence

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Metro News (2014) examines the role of torture against minorities based on a publication of the organization Action des Chrétiens pour l’ abolition de la Torture (2014). The Rroma in Hungary continue to be victims of the actions of paramilitary, right-wing extremist groups, with the authorities alarmingly often closing their eyes to injustices: „Quant aux Roms qui ont subi des violences, ils n’ont quasiment aucune chance d’obtenir justice même quand ils disposent de certificats médicaux attestant leurs blessures. Les policiers refusent généralement d’enregistrer leur témoignage ou n’examinent pas sérieusement la plainte qu’ils ont déposée. De la même façon, les juges montrent de la mauvaise volonté à instruire ces affaires.“ [As for Rroma who are victims of violence, they have almost no chances to obtain justice, even when they have medical proofs of their wounds. The policemen generally refuse to register their testimonies or do not follow seriously the complaint they have registered. In similar fashion, the judges show bad will to instruct such complaints.]  In Greece, 20 % of the victims of violence by the authorities are Rroma, although they represent only 3.58% of the population. The number of crimes motivated by racial hatred against Rroma has also increased in Greece.

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24.01.2014 Rroma in Great Britain and the Schengen policies

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Clark (2013) criticises the Romanian government for its Rroma policies. From his standpoint, it is not appropriate that Romania criticizes the UK for its restrictive migration policy. Romania itself, he emphasizes, has large shortcomings in its policies concerning Rroma. The remark of the Romanian Rroma commissioner Damian Draghici that one should not be angry with Rroma beggars but rather be angry at bankers, Clark considers to be arrogant and as distracting from the abuses in Romania and Bulgaria itself: „Over the past decade municipal [Romanian] authorities have ethnically cleansed their city centres of Roma and relocated them to shanty towns on the fringes. In Cluj-Napoca, in a case which has aroused the interest of Amnesty International, 300 Roma people were moved to a site next to a landfill and chemical dump, where families have been made to share one room. […] The inevitable result is a westwards flow of Roma fleeing from discrimination and poverty. The EU’s open borders policy should be suspended until Romania and Bulgaria have improved living conditions for all their citizens.“ Clark fails to recognize in his analysis that there are no overnight solutions for the social ills in Eastern Europe. In addition, the integration of the Rroma is a pan-European task requiring a pan-state solution. Isolation is therefore clearly the wrong answer to social and political shortcomings.

The forced relocation of several Rroma families in Cluj-Napoca onto the site of a former chemical factory was judged illegal by the local court. The incumbent mayor was convicted  for having exceeded his authority in authorizing the relocation. The decision was welcomed by many organisations, such as the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) that had supported the action against the forced relocation (Ekklesia 2014).

An antithesis to Clark’s presentation is Kelley’s (2014) article in The Journal. It reminds about the prejudices, the Rroma genocide, the fear fostered by politicians and journalists: A flood of immigrants hasn’t come to Great Britain so far and the British voters have proven to be less anxious than some politicians and journalists prophesied: „A survey revealed 68% of Britons welcomed Eastern Europeans who work hard, pay taxes and speak English. And, according to Martin Keles, a spokesman for the Roma community in Newcastle, that is exactly what they intend to do. “We just want the opportunity to provide for our families,” he said.“ Kelley further emphasizes the strong institutionalized racism against Rroma in countries like the Czech Republic, Romania, Bulgaria and Slovakia. But not only in Eastern Europe, but in Europe as a whole, the Rroma have experienced a history of exclusion since their arrival in Western Europe in the 14th century. The human rights organization “A Living Tradition” conducted a survey among Rroma migrants on behalf of the council of Newcastle. It revealed that the Eastern European migrants are fleeing rampant racism in their home countries and appreciate the English educational institutions and the open society. Kelley’s article is a welcoming change to the many negative articles about Rroma and the European migration. His positive journalism helps to reduce prejudice and promotes the integration of the Rroma.

Knight (2014) from Gentlemen’s Quarterly takes an ambivalent position concerning the debate about immigration in Europe. On one hand, he propagates the idea of an impeding exodus of impoverished Rroma to Great Britain, on the other, he acknowledges their discrimination. He describes Rroma living in the streets of London, having to cope with very modest incomes. Again and again they are asked by the authorities not to beg and to no longer sleep on the streets. Knight sums up: „Courtesy of the ever-expanding European Union, the UK, and London, are finally waking up to one of Europe’s biggest embarrassments: that after the better part of a thousand years, our continent still does not know how to live at peace with its largest ethnic minority.“ Contrary to the generalising statements in the title, Knight recognizes that British society knows next to nothing about Rroma and that one cannot predict how many Rroma will come to the UK. The statistics on immigrants do not capture ethnicity. Knowledge about the Rroma remains dominated by many unknowns and wrong stereotypes. When Knight quotes a local resident of Bryanston Square, the landlady reproduces racist stereotypes and generalizations, even though her parents are said to be immigrants. She expresses the absurd image of culturally related crimes and otherness of the Rroma that they don’t want to integrate and deliberately choose a life in illegality. In the following paragraph Knight acknowledges that his presentation at the beginning of the article cannot hide is his derogatory attitude towards Rroma. He uncritically restates notions about organised begging, child prostitution, human trafficking and begging networks and qualifies the Rroma as having criminal habits: „Ever since, officers have wondered about the level of organisation within the group, and whether it is connected with more serious crimes, such as human trafficking or child prostitution. Hierarchical networks of beggars and street thieves – run by Gypsies, for Gypsies – have been on the rise in big European cities for the last decade: in Rome, in Milan, in Paris, in Madrid. London is a logical next target. Having spent day after day with the Gypsies this summer, I find they are never more than a few hours from their next visit from the police or their next arrest for begging.” His investigative journalism is biased and unreflective. He limits himself to what he could personally observe on the street and mixes it with crude culturalisations. The short trip to Romania is characterized by the common misery images that are often repeated in the coverage on Rroma: Large families crammed together in one two rooms and minor teenagers already being married and having kids. Knight quotes a Romanian historian, Viorel Achim, who no longer sees the future of the Romanian Rroma in training and the building of an educated, integrated middle class, but in emigration to Northern Europe. The therefore agrees with the predictions of conservative apologists, who warn of a mass migration to Western Europe. Knight cites a Rroma from Botosani: „You are going to be seeing a lot more of us in the future,“ says Manix. „We’re going to beg, do whatever we can. Anything to escape.“ Romanian Rroma commissioner Damian Draghici is particularly critical of NGOs who haven’t used the money entrusted to them. The next few paragraphs revolve around the prosperity gap between Eastern and Western Europe and whether this will result in strong migration movements. The fact that the opening of the border to other Schengen countries such as Poland and Hungary didn’t result in any mass migration is not assessed in any way. Knight communicates stereotypical notions of smuggler gangs and clan chiefs who tie off money for the adaptation to the new place and exploit poorer Rroma systematically: „You have to pay. You know from the outset. […] Everyone is controlled.“ At the end of the very long article, one impression dominates: A feeling of distrust from the journalist towards his informants, the Rroma.

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24.01.2014 The Focus magazine propagates the mass exodus from Romania and Bulgaria

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Dometeit/Lehmkul (2014) report from Romania. Armed with dubious facts they argue that there indeed a mass migration to Western Europe and especially Germany is taking place. They portray poorly trained Rroma in western Romania who hardly earn a living and see their future opportunities in Western Europe. According to the authors, all Rroma that have a reasonably decent life have been abroad for a shorter or longer period of time: “When the labor markets in the EU open at the beginning of the year, everyone will go”, predicts Stefan and grins. “Then we will all meet like on a huge wedding party.” The big goal: North Rhine-Westphalia. Tens of thousands of Romanians and Bulgarians migrate annually. 30’000 people from the two countries came in 2012 (comparing to 18 500 people emigrating). 2013 there will be even more immigrants, the Ministry of Labour, Integration and Social Affairs of North Rhine-Westphalia predicts.” Dometeit/Lehmkul totally ignore that the statistics, as has already been discussed several times, count seasonal workers and therefore are massively exaggerated. That all Romanians and Bulgarians living in poverty will migrate to Germany is very unlikely, as the expansion of free migration to Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland has already shown. Masses of immigrants didn’t show up. Dometeit/Lehmkuhl provide a highly one-sided picture of Rroma. Those who have become rich are immediately associated with illegal activities: “On the so-called rose park there are palaces Roma clans have built through business in Germany. Most of them are empty, the shutters are lowered. Two or three times a year the families come to celebrate. Then the Porsches and Ferraris show up. Two years ago, the police raided some of the villas at the request of the German prosecutor’s, based on suspicions of tax evasion, money laundering and human traffeking.” Such reporting is simplistic and patronizing. Dometeit/ Lehmkuhl completely ignore that there are well integrated, upright Rroma

This one-sided perspective is shared by the Schweizer Magazin (2014). The online newspaper favors polemical generalizations and simplifications: “Sinti and Roma, as well as other social welfare benefiters from Romania and Bulgaria – the two poorest countries in Europe – are ready to flood Germany and to enrich themselves with the social benefits. Only the economy may approve, since every immigrant from these poor countries depresses the wages and thus complicates the lives of all Europeans and only increases the profits of the companies.” To designate the Rroma people generally as social welfare benefiters is racist and stupid. Much more need not being said about this.

The Baltische Rundschau (2014) strengthens fears of a mass immigration from Eastern Europe. The article is openly racist and speaks of social parasites and brown rats who are supposedly coming from Serbia to plunder the German welfare state: “After the wave of Roma who migrate as official EU citizens from Romania and Bulgaria to the German welfare state, more and more Gypsies are now coming from Serbia. However, these do not use the “privileged” status as EU citizens to flood the labour market and welfare system, but make use of the German asylum law. In 2013, the asylum applications from Serbia increased by 40 percent, almost all asylum seekers are Roma.” The Rroma Contact Point has stated very often that the prognosis of a mass immigration to Western Europe is wrong. Moreover, not all immigrants automatically become welfare cases. A reduction of the west migration to the case of the Rroma is racist and ethnicizes poverty problems.

The right-wing populist platform unzensuriert.at (2014) is even more racist. It propagates the concept of a culture war and the collapse of the German welfare state. The pretentious statements are one-sided, distorted, highly selective interpretations of the real situation. The platform forecast an additional influx of 200,000 Romanians and Bulgaria to Germany for the current year: “The city of Duisburg is paying dearly for the unrestricted immigration of Roma clans. For the year 2014, the city administration predicts additional costs of at least 12 million Euro for the “integration” of immigrant Gypsies from Romania and Bulgaria. Meanwhile, some 10,000 Roma live in the Ruhr city. Entire neighborhoods such as Duisburg-Rheinhausen are firmly in the hands of the Gypsies. Germans, but also guest workers from Turkey and former Yugoslavia living here for many years, already feel as strangers.” With such polemical statements unzensuriert.at does intellectual arson and endangers social peace. Such xenophobic statements have nothing to do with freedom of speech and freedom of the press. 

A differentiated and liberal attitude towards the immigration debate is taken by Maike Freund (2013). She argues for complexity and rationalism concerning the predictions of a mass immigration: “Who goes through Neukölln in Berlin or the northern city of Dortmund, knows that such scenes or similar belong to the reality in Germany – but they are only one part of the truth. Because the numbers say: there are many highly educated immigrants, also from Romania and Bulgaria, and Germany relies on these professionals.”

Mappes-Niediek (2014) speaks of the conflicting reactions to the polemical predictions about the mass immigration from Romania and Bulgaria. Thus, ethnic Romanians and Bulgarians often separate themselves from the Rroma in response to the Western European criticism: “That’s not us, that’s the Roma: This is still the first reflex when some of the German and British debates over poverty migration spill into the Rumanian and Bulgarian public.” Mappes-Niediek criticizes that a poverty problem is turned into an ethnic problem by distinguishing between ethnic Romanians and the Rroma. After the collapse of the socialist system, the ethnic Romanians were given back the possessions of their ancestors, who had been collectivized. Since a large part of the Rroma had possessed nothing before socialism, they emerged as losers from the change of system: “Only the Roma got back nothing because their grandparents hadn’t possessed anything. They moved into the slums, from which the poverty immigrants of today emerge. This allows both the German and the Romanian public to keep the poverty problem a Roma problem – which it is not. If there were no Roma, there would not be any more jobs.” The migration debate is also dominated by a double standard: one hand, one likes to get the well-trained professionals for the German economy – especially doctors – on the other hand one wants to keep out the less well-off.

Antiziganism researcher Markus End criticizes the term “poverty migration” as being negatively charged and equated with Rroma in the public debate. The Rroma are discredited as being lazy and social parasites. End criticizes this depiction and reminds one of the integrated, invisible Rroma: “They were sweepingly referred to as lazy and welfare scroungers. It was said that they are noisy, produce garbage, and are prone to crime. People who follow the media regularly have learned that Roma are poverty immigrants. [ … ]. In the debate, Roma are represented as strangers, even though many have being living in Germany since generations. Also that there are educated and uneducated Rroma, rich and poor, is totally neglected in the debate. The term Roma is used almost synonymous with poverty, crime or waste.” Liberal journalists are also spreading antiziganist stereotypes, even though they welcome the immigration of skilled workers. A liberal journalist from Die Welt compares well-educated, ethnic Romanians and Bulgarians with criminal, antisocial Rroma, producing a value list of welcomed and unwelcomed immigrants. End comes to the conclusion that the coverage of the Rroma is the most biased of all minorities (Grunau 2014).

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17.01.2014 Rroma and the Street Prostitution in Basel

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Laur (2014) explores the street prostitution in Basel. Again, as told earlier about the now closed Zurich Sihlquai, the prostitutes are said to be of mainly Rroma origin. How the author got this information remains unclear. Rroma are a minority of about 800,000 to a million members in Hungary. The identification of ethnic membership is anything but easy, as the case of the blond Rroma girl in Greece has shown. Furthermore, not all members of the minority speak Rromanes. The Rroma membership of the portrayed women has therefore to be critically questioned. Laur states: “Many of these prostitutes come from Hungarian Rroma families. They are usually prepared early for their future profession. An evil fate and yet they appear externally unbroken on the road in Basel [ … ] . None of them moans, not feeling victimized. They do sex work because they see no alternative.” Discussions about Rroma and prostitution are often performed in conjunction with terms such as clan structures or forced prostitution. By stating that it is poverty that leads the portrayed women into prostitution, Laur may be closer to the reality than the estimates of support agencies and the authorities. These ascribe the prostitutes usually a victim status, which neglects the factor of poverty: “As you sell your muscle strength, you can also sell your body”, says Peter Thommen, a bookseller at Rheingasse and connoisseurs of the scene. To get upset about it or to moralize doesn’t bring anything. But he finds the prices scandalous, they are much too cheap. Exploitation can be found in other industries such as in the construction industry or in agriculture too. Furthermore, there is a lot less excitement than about prostitution, while the scandal is in fact the same.” However, when seeing prostitution as a form of work, one should be cautious not to trivialize dangers as the infection with deadly diseases and psychological damages.     

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01.11.2013 Rroma and Poverty

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Mappes-Niediek (2013) takes a look at the overall European situation of Rroma. According to a study by the Soros Foundation Discrimination of Rroma is not the main problem but their blatant poverty is: “Poverty is the main problem, not the discrimination, the researchers found: Of more than a thousand Roma respondents in the four countries, 76 percent in Italy and 66 percent in Spain  felt discriminated against. In Romania, however, there were 40 percent and 34 percent in Bulgaria. In Hungary, where right-wing gangs terrorise and hunt Roma, Roma hardly migrate to western EU countries.” So poverty is an equally important factor in the preventing attending school or to a doctor visit. That discrimination and poverty are not in fact directly related is doubtful. Mappes-Niediek counters the German hysteria about a mass immigration of Rroma from Romania and Bulgaria: Most Rroma remain in their country in spite of poverty.

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01.11.2013 Rroma in Hungary

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Gorondi (2013) reports on a project in north-eastern Hungary, where many Rroma live. In the village of Bodvalenke, Rroma artists from all over Europe have contributed to the production of 33 murals on the outer walls of village houses.  The subjects of the paintings cover both Rroma folklore and religious representations. The aim of the campaign is to strengthen both the self-confidence Rroma  as well as to attract tourists to the small village characterised by high unemployment. The Rroma, according to Gorondi, were particularly affected by the economic crisis: “The Roma have been hit particularly hard by the economic and financial crisis starting in 2008 in Hungary. During the communist era, which ended in 1990, they had mostly guaranteed low-skilled jobs. But since then, many Roma, including those in a village close to the Slovakian border, have had a hard time finding their place in a more competitive society. Half of the residents in Bodvalenke are younger than 18 years, and most of the adults are unemployed and live more badly than well on government support.” The idea of the murals comes from the activist Eszter Pásztor. However, the project is not without controversy. The mayor of the village would much prefer proper jobs. That the murals really will attract tourists is to be hoped, but probably doubtful in view of the widespread prejudice against Rroma.

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25.10.2013 Rroma Between France and Romania

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Delage / Tepeneag (2013) report on a residential project in the Romanian Tinca, a project supported by the municipality of Lyon with 300,000 euro. The aim of subsidised housing for local Rroma is to help them integrate into the labour market. Lyon follows the whishes of the French government to prevent the Rroma migration to France. However, accommodation does not solve the problem of high unemployment among Romanian Rroma, hence their lack of social integration which can only be successful be bridged with a commitment from both sides. Delage / Tepeneag summarize: “Ainsi, pour ce centre imaginé par des ONG françaises et roumaines, et qui accueillera bientôt les Roms les plus démunis de Tinca, Lyon a investi près de 300.000 euros. “Cela va permettre de leur assurer l’accès à des douches, à des lave-linges, pour qu’ils puissent se présenter décemment à d’éventuels entretiens d’embauche, ou à l’école pour les enfants”, explique à BFMTV Monica Suciu, de la Ruhuma Foundation” [Thus, for this centre imagined by French and Romanian NGOs, and which will soon welcome the poorest Rroma in Tinca, Lyon has invested about 300,000 euro. “This will allow them to access to showers to washing machines, so they can look decent for possible job interviews or at school for children”, Monica Suciu, of the Foundation Ruhuma told BFM TV.] France Info (2013) adds that there is a will to build a dignified existence on site among the Romanian Rroma. Often this is very difficult because of the access to the labour market is very restricted. The Romanian Rroma policies, according to the statements of Rroma in Tinca, are ineffective.

Delpla (2013) takes a critical look at the French Rroma policies. He criticises the dominant practice to return Rroma to their reported country of origin. On the one hand one ignores the massive discrimination in countries like Hungary or Romania – now also France – and on the other hand, the fact that they are a European transnational minority and therefore, have no particular homeland. What must be sought is a pan-European integration of Rroma and no back and forth between different  a minority status in nation-states: “La solution du gouvernement français est de renvoyer les Roms non nationaux dans leur pays d’origine, en expliquant que c’est à ces pays d’origine de s’en occuper – avec des fonds européens. C’est une mauvaise idée, car, dans ces pays d’origine, les Roms sont victimes de racisme manifeste […] Il faut traiter ce problème au niveau européen, à la fois parce que les Roms sont le peuple le plus transeuropéen et parce que les solutions nationales ne marchent pas.”[The solution of the French government to send non-French Rroma in their countries of origin, explaining that this is for their country to deal with – with European funds. This is a bad idea, because in the country, Rroma are victims of overt racism […] We must deal with this problem at European level, both because the Rroma are the most transnational people and because national solutions do not work.]  Delpla also argues for making the Rroma citizen of Europe only and not members of a specific state. This would strengthen the EU’s role in the enforcement of their rights massively according to Delpla.

Bouclay (2013) in his article for Valeurs Actuelles pokes fun at the efforts of the community Romeurope. The collective in his brochure simply blends out the prejudice against the Rroma on issues such as begging, theft and prostitution. According to Bouclay, the Rroma are receiving proportionally too much support: “En réalité, loin d’être une communauté soumise à la vindicte de Français xénophobes, les Roms sont soutenus par de puissants lobbys. Le collectif Romeurope compte une quarantaine d’associations financées par l’argent public. Sans viser à l’exhaustivité, un rapide florilège de leurs subventions suffit à donner le vertige.” [In fact, far from being a community subject to the condemnation of French xenophobia, Roma are backed by powerful lobbies. The Romeurope account forty associations funded by public money. Without aiming to be exhaustive, quick flurry through their subsidies is enough to make you dizzy.] He paints a very one-sided picture of support funds distributed to present the French Rroma policies in a good light. The actual points of discussion of the current debate remain virtually untouched.

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18.10.2013 Rroma Debate in France

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The ruthless expulsion of a fifteen year old Gypsy girl to Kosovo, a girl who lived with her family for five years in France, drew added attention to the migration policies of that country. The girl was picked up during a school trip by the police and taken directly to the airport. The uncompromising internal politics of the interior minister Valls has led to severe tensions within the Socialist party. Many exponents of the party have accused President Hollande to continue a policy similar to that of his predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy and to tolerate Manual Valls as a “sarkozy like prefect”. Meanwhile in Paris, a demonstration with a few thousand participants demonstrated against the deportation of Leonarda Dibrani and French immigration policies (Lehnartz 2013). In an interview with Euro News (2013) Dibrani suggests that Kosovo is not her home now. Her whole life, her future, is in France. She does not understand the migration policy of the socialist government. In spite of the controversial policies, Manuel Valls remains the most popular minister  of the Socialist party according to surveys. The right-wing National Front has seen a massive increase of voters in recent months.

Despic – Popovic (2013) trace the historical context of the relationship of Kosovo and its Rroma, a theme of greater public interest in the background of the expulsion of Leonarda Dibrani. She notes that before the Kosovo War in 1999, about 100,000 Rroma lived there[1], today there are still around 30,000. Unemployment and exclusion are daily occurrences. Rroma are regularly accused of having collaborated with the Serbian regime, because several Rroma buried the victims of the Serbian army as gravediggers. With the recognition of Kosovo as an independent state in 2010, many exiled Kosovars, including many Rroma have been forced to return to Kosovo. The deportees, among them many children, often do not speak either the two official languages ​​of Kosovo (Serbian or Albanian), rendering inclusion in the school system more difficult. In addition, access to the labour market and to health care is far from assured for minorities. The UN High Commission for Refugees and Amnesty International, have called for a permanent international protection for Rroma.

Atlantico (2013) takes a critical look at the social integration of Rroma in Kosovo. Since independence in 2008, Kosovo has been criticised by human rights organizations for its violation of the rights of minorities. Discrimination, its resulting poverty, and internal displacement are widespread. Wanda Troszczynska of Human Rights Watch states: “Les pays européens renvoient les gens les plus vulnérables du Kosovo vers une situation de discrimination, d’exclusion, de pauvreté et de déplacement à l’intérieur de leur propre pays d’origine.” [European countries send most vulnerable people back to Kosovo towards a situation of discrimination, exclusion, poverty and travel within their own country.]

Le Carboulec (2013) adds that the deportation of Leonarda Dibrani and her family to the highlights whole question of dealing with asylum seekers in France. Is it appropriate to “surgically” to identify and remove people without papers? The Rroma are therefore once again the focal point of French politics with regard to the treatment of minorities, undocumented migrants and foreigners in general.

Akerman (2013) and thirty other people take the French society made a statement in writing in Mediapart about Manuel Valls’ statements about Rroma. The signatories state their great concern about the denigration of Rroma by the French Minister of the Interior and demand a more respectful handling of the members of this ethnic minority. She herself, as a lesbian, and also gay, bisexual, transsexual or transgender have always had to justify their identity of course wrongly so, in the course of their biography. The Socialist Party should not degenerate into a mere appendage of the UMP but must rely on its socialist values: “Les problèmes roms ont des noms parfaitement connus et nullement originaux : ils s’appellent droit au travail, droit au logement, précarité, stigmatisation, honte et pauvreté. Ce n’est pas nous qui sommes idéalistes, c’est ce gouvernement, son ministre de l’Intérieur, son Premier ministre, et celui qui les a nommés, qui sont racistes.” [Roma problems are well known and not original: they are called right to work, right to housing, insecurity, stigma, shame and poverty. It is not we who are idealistic, it is the government, the Minister of the Interior, the Prime Minister, and he who appointed them, who are racist.]

Francis Chouat (2013), the mayor of Evry takes a position in Le Monde on Valls controversial statements. As mayor, his perspective requires him to take pragmatic solutions about the concerns of his citizens. In the case of Rroma, this means that one must looks straight at the truth. Chouat believes that most of the Rroma living in the illegal settlements live in conditions of exploitation or as part of mafia networks. They therefore have virtually no power to act own or are involved in criminal activities: “La vérité, c’est d’abord la réalité regarder en face. Ce sont les conditions de vie dans les campestratus ment, totalement indignes, les enfants en danger, souvent exploites – comme beaucoup de femmes – par of réseaux mafieux. Ce sont aussi les vols et les Trafics organisés. […] La vérité, c’est donc dire que le claire ment of démantèlement campestratus ment est un impératif. Un pour les impératif Riverains comme pour la roms dignité of populations.”[The truth is, first look at reality. These are the living conditions in the camps, totally unworthy, children at risk, often exploited – like many women – by criminal networks. There is also the trafficking and organized theft. […] The truth is it clear that dismantling these settlements is a must. An imperative for local residents as to the dignity of the Roma population.] Chouat aligns himself to a governmental police way of looking at Rroma, to the eviction of camps which he thus legitimises. The possibility that the Rroma living in camps might simply settle there because of poverty and lack of alternatives is negated. Instead questionable ideas about intra-ethnic clan structures and relations of exploitation are dished to legitimise intervention.

Mouillard (2013) addresses the question of where the EU’s 50 billions earmarked for the Rroma integration went. On one hand, the EU support is divided into three pots: the European Social Fund, the European Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund. From these three funds in turn only a fraction will benefit Rroma. The actual expenditure for the integration of Rroma is difficult to track because the French Household Statistics do not work with ethnic categories. The integration projects named by Mouillard thereafter refer to travellers, people living in ghettoes or marginalised ones as in the case of housing projects. Another problem lies in the fact that EU countries only use a fraction of their assigned money from three funds effectively: “Mêmes faiblesses en Hongrie, où 40% des fonds sont dépensés, ou encore en Bulgarie (20%). Une précision tout de même : cet argent n’est pas perdu. Il retourne dans les caisses de Bruxelles, au titre de la règle du «dégagement d’office.»” [Same weaknesses in Hungary, where 40% of the funds are spent, or in Bulgaria (20%). Accuracy though: the money is not lost. It is returned to the coffers of Brussels, under the rule of “decommitment.”] Another problem lies in the administrative and organizational hurdles, making the access to the funds more difficult.

[1] This figure represents only the visible Rroma. Rroma were very well integrated in Kosovo and often confused with the Turkish minority. The real number was around 250-300,000. Less than 30,000 still live in Kosovo.

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11.10.2013 European Integration of the Rroma

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The Voice of Russia (2013) reports on the EU program ROMACT, in which Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Romania, and Slovakia participate, a program that is mainly intended to promote social and economic integration of the Rroma. Upon these EU plans, Russia’s Minister of Nationalities Vladimir Sorin announced that the Rroma’s lack of economic integration is mainly due to their travelling lifestyle. He reproduces misconceptions – most Rroma being sedentary – but above all, he trivializes the fact that the travelling way of life was the result of social exclusion. From an economic perspective, the 12 million European Rroma represent a largely untapped “worker reserve” that need be tapped. That the will of the European population is also necessary in addition to a better integration into the education system and the labour market, is easy to forget (Iskenderow 2013).

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04.10.2013 Day of Dignity of the Rroma and Sinti

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The 6th of October is the European day of the dignity of the Roma and Sinti. For the first time now Austrian representatives of the minority participated in the action. On this occasion, Romano Centro and fellow SOS organised a rally that will be held in Vienna next to the Burgtheater. Among others, Miklós Rafael, who was the victim of an arson attack in Hungary, will be speaking to the participants of the meeting. The Austrian Press Agency summarises the social context of the rally as motivated by the increasing hatred of Rroma in Hungary and the Czech Republic: “The rally is not randomly taking place close to the Hungarian Embassy. Especially in Hungary, the last years developments are more than questionable: arson and murder series, discrimination in all areas of life and marches of the radical right in Roma settlements have already brought many Hungarian Roma to leave the country. The current developments in the Czech Republic, especially the parades of right-wing groups also create a climate of fear that prompts Roma / Romnja to leave their homes.”  That discrimination against Rroma also takes place in Austria itself, should not be neglected (Austrian Press Agency, 2013).

  • Österreichische Presseagentur (2013) Respekt für Roma und Sinti! – Kundgebung am Sonntag. In: Österreichische Presseagentur (APA) online vom 4.10.2013.

http://www.ots.at/presseaussendung/OTS_20131004_OTS0007/respekt-fuer-roma-und-sinti-kundgebung-am-sonntag

 

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04.10.2013 Rroma in Hungary

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Verseck (2013) discusses again the Rroma murders in Hungary: The relatives of the victims are still inadequately compensated and live in poor conditions. Because of the lack of understanding about missing empathy for the members of the victims family, an anonymous donor from Frankfurt donated a sumptuous tomb for the slain Rroma. In addition, at the urging of civil rights activists, the Hungarian official investigation has announced new investigations into the whereabouts of accomplices involved in the killings which have still not been arrested.

Koob (2013) gives a chronology of the practiced exclusion and discrimination against Rroma in Hungary. He notes that many Rroma leave Hungary or already left because of the situation there since the arrival of the Fidesz Party to power has deteriorated massively. Many Rroma in Hungary are still being segregated and have to overcome serious obstacles in accessing the labour market and education. The minority protection laws are often reinterpreted through the judicial repression of Rroma and the implementation of European Rroma strategy is exploited to exclude Rroma from government subsidies: “For the 13 recognised Hungarian minorities, an extreme discrimination, whose standards are constantly shifting, is normality. This is supported by several judgments in which Roma were sentenced for violence against “ethnic Hungarians”, and with reference to the laws established to protect minorities, the so-called hate crime legislation. Another example are Fidesz’ magnificent inclusion promises on the national implementation of the European Roma framework strategy besides a tremendous forced labour regime and in the context of harsh sanctions countless Roma as non-Roma who are excluded from any government support.”

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20.09.2013 Disputes Between Rroma and Residents in Salzburg

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Clashes between local residents and travelling Rroma in Anthering (Flachgau) and Bischofshofen (Pongau) generated resentment in Austria and encourage the uncritical reproduction of distorted perceptions about Rroma. In Bischofshofen, young people organised via Facebook and subsequently visited travelling Rroma and provoked and insulted them. Police prevented further escalations. A few days earlier in Anthering a farmer tried to chase illegally camping Rroma by splashing them with manure (The Press, 2013). Once more, specific cases become precedents that are applied to Rroma as a whole. Most Rroma are not travellers at all and never were involved in any many illegal activities. Reporting such incidents is part of a tradition of one-sided coverage of Rroma: These reports are in many cases related to crimes or other negative events, which has led to the entrenchment of a negative public image. The proposal by the Greens immigration responsible Martina Berthold to provide an available camping spot for travelling met with strong criticism. There is no real need for it. That the article promotes racist attitudes towards Rroma can be inferred from the comment column. It reads as: “That the R & S [Rroma and Sinti] settlements in Hungary are located several kilometres away from the urban areas has reasons – ask the Hungarians why this is so. And remarkably – this is not new, this is older than the Nazis, but it has apparently proven to work. And proven things you should not be given up!” (Salzburg_24 2013).

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06.09.2013 Segregation of Rroma Children in the Slovak and Hungarian Education Systems

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The Standard (2013) discusses the continuing segregation of Rroma children in Slovak schools. According to a recent report by Amnesty International, 43% of Rroma children are taught in ethnically segregated classes. The Slovak government is responsible for this situation by that tolerating or even promoting segregation practices. The government defends itself by pointing out at the usually very poor Slovak spoken by Rroma, making a separate teaching a necessity. Critics, however, see this as an excuse to comply with the wishes of ethnic Slovaks to teach their children separately from those of the Rroma. Individual judgments, as in Prešov in October 2012, are a sign of the will of a dedicated group within the country to abolish segregation. Currently though, this still seems to be the common practice.

Pester Lloyd (2013) points out in a recent article about similar practices in Hungary: The opening of a new public elementary school was only announced by personal invitation solely to parents of Magyar origin. Rroma parents were intentionally excluded from the welcome letter. The County Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok has, according to the Pester Lloyd, the highest segregation rate in the country. Numerous court decisions condemning ethnic segregation of children in primary schools have changed nothing on the prevalence of this practice. The authors also condemn the distorting representations of the Hungarian Rroma politic by Hungarian Members of the European Parliament: Livia Jaroka, the Fidesz Roma representative in the European Parliament, talks about the immense progress in the integration of the Rroma. But whether this has indeed improved, needs to be critically examined. The Pester Lloyd points out to an issue that is given too little attention: To what extent integration programs actually bear fruit is very little researched and documented. What counts is the public statement that something is being done.

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30.08.2013 Aftermath of the Rroma murders in Hungary

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Verseck (2013) discusses the political aftermath of the Rroma murders in the context of the trials in Hungary. He notes that with the demands of civil rights activists and lawyers, for the first time, there are good prospects for effective compensation of the members of the families of the murdered Rroma. The Hungarian Minister of Human Resources, Zoltan Balog, announced to want to compensate relatives, as the Hungarian State carries a responsibility for the crimes committed. Balog, alluding to the still controversial circumstances, indicates that the Hungarian secret service monitored several of the perpetrators until shortly before the deeds, but for unknown reasons then stopped their investigation. Also, it took a disproportionately long time until the Hungarian authorities recognised the murders as being racist acts and ordered an overall investigation. Rroma activists like Aladar Horvath welcome the efforts of the Hungarian government to finally work out the events of the years 2008 and 2009. After the events, no public official ever took position on the victims.

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