There are not enough camping sites for Travellers in the UK, resulting in tensions when they pitch camp in other areas.
The fact that some travellers want to settle near a landmark in Yorkshire doesn’t bring the best in the UK press. Stereotypes galore.
A Labour councillor in the UK made a comment on social media stating that “Hitler had the right idea” about travellers.
He certainly has turned his brain off at some point.
– Labour councillor denies Facebook Hitler remark. In: BBC News. 08.04.2019. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-47853418 [link-preview url=”https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-47853418″]
Bad …
– Spanish police brutally end street fight between Roma travellers with vicious kicks, punches and baton charges in shocking footage taken in a busy Madrid square. In: Daily Mail. 09.04.2019. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6902755/Spanish-police-break-vicious-fight-Roma-travellers.html [link-preview url=”https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6902755/Spanish-police-break-vicious-fight-Roma-travellers.html”]
The canton of Berne is setting aside quite a bit of money to create a permanent camping site for travellers in Villeroltigen. Good, except that they segregate between “Swiss” and “Foreign” travellers. And the SVP, the populist right wing party already stated that they would do a referendum on the topic.
– 3,3 Millionen Franken für ausländische Fahrende. In: Tele Bärn. 13.03.2019. https://www.telebaern.tv/telebaern-news/33-millionen-franken-fuer-auslaendische-fahrende-134205439?utm_source=shared-facebook&fbclid=IwAR2P9OnGYhvOIxFBNmx9nCOzjU1tFOfRMqlH2qAhVGUrkRe2fSWMUmI7DLk [link-preview url=”https://www.telebaern.tv/telebaern-news/33-millionen-franken-fuer-auslaendische-fahrende-134205439?utm_source=shared-facebook&fbclid=IwAR2P9OnGYhvOIxFBNmx9nCOzjU1tFOfRMqlH2qAhVGUrkRe2fSWMUmI7DLk”]
The Church of England is making efforts to help Roma and travellers. Well, better late than never.
– Church of England urged to make land available to Gypsies. In: The Guardian. 22.02.2019. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/22/church-of-england-urged-to-make-land-available-to-gypsies [link-preview url=”https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/22/church-of-england-urged-to-make-land-available-to-gypsies”]
An article on the perennial Swiss issue of sites for travellers with a mention of the fact that Roma are still not recognised in that country (but Sinti are) …
– Mehr Halteplätze für Fahrende. In: Der Bote. 19.02.2019. https://www.bote.ch/nachrichten/schweiz/mehr-halteplaetze-fuer-fahrende;art46447,1157032 [link-preview url=”https://www.bote.ch/nachrichten/schweiz/mehr-halteplaetze-fuer-fahrende;art46447,1157032″]
How the city of Bristol is trying to force travellers out of caravans and into houses and flats.
– Road to nowhere: Bristol’s hidden housing crisis. In: The Bristol Cable. https://thebristolcable.org/2019/02/road-to-nowhere-bristols-gypsy-and-traveller/ [link-preview url=”https://thebristolcable.org/2019/02/road-to-nowhere-bristols-gypsy-and-traveller/”]
Announcement for the Romani woman conference March 25-27.
– 7th International Roma Women’s Conference: SAVE THE DATE! In: Council of Europe. https://www.coe.int/en/web/roma-and-travellers/-/open-call-for-the-7th-roma-women-conference [link-preview url=”https://www.coe.int/en/web/roma-and-travellers/-/open-call-for-the-7th-roma-women-conference”]
The story of a young Romni in School in the UK.
– “We the youth must never give up the fight for Roma equality”. In: The Travellers’ Times. 07.02.2019. https://www.travellerstimes.org.uk/ytt/news/2018/02/we-youth-must-never-give-fight-roma-equality?fbclid=IwAR3Ws_-zv41P3ms9WQ0SkHBP7rQ0qhOUJ-EeB38RWSWU1MIZdf8vqIyORwU [link-preview url=”https://www.travellerstimes.org.uk/ytt/news/2018/02/we-youth-must-never-give-fight-roma-equality?fbclid=IwAR3Ws_-zv41P3ms9WQ0SkHBP7rQ0qhOUJ-EeB38RWSWU1MIZdf8vqIyORwU”]
An editorial on how the UK TV presents Roma and Travellers.
– Patronising and totally false: my despair at TV about Gypsies. In: The Guardian. 11.02.2019. https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/feb/11/patronising-and-totally-false-my-despair-at-tv-about-gypsies-a-very-british-history-bbc [link-preview url=”https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/feb/11/patronising-and-totally-false-my-despair-at-tv-about-gypsies-a-very-british-history-bbc”]
More on the plans of the UK government to criminalise illegal camping by travellers.
– Why the government has a ‘lazy and populist’ approach towards unauthorised traveller sites. In: Environment Journal. 08.02.2019. https://environmentjournal.online/articles/why-the-government-has-a-lazy-and-populist-approach-towards-unauthorised-traveller-sites/
– Travellers say they ‘live in fear’ as government plans tough new powers for unauthorised encampments. In: Get Surrey. 08.02.2019. https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/travellers-say-live-fear-government-15797230 [link-preview url=”https://environmentjournal.online/articles/why-the-government-has-a-lazy-and-populist-approach-towards-unauthorised-traveller-sites/ “]
A new plan in the UK foresees the possibility of jailing travellers for setting up illegal camps.
REALLY???
– CAMP CRACKDOWN. Travellers could be jailed for setting up unauthorised camps under new plans from Home Secretary Sajid Javid. In: The Sun. 07.02.2019. https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/8370697/travellers-jailed-illegal-camps-new-plans-sajid-javid/ [link-preview url=”https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/8370697/travellers-jailed-illegal-camps-new-plans-sajid-javid/”]
There seems to be change in the air. For the first time, politicians were condemned for racism against Roma. In this case, the leaders of the youth fraction of the SVP, the rightist populist party in Switzerland were condemned for a cartoon against Roma travellers.
A first, and hopefully, this will slow down these kind of actions.
– «Kritik ist erlaubt, aber mit Augenmass». In: Der Bund. 14.01.2019. https://www.derbund.ch/bern/kanton/chefs-der-jungen-svp-bern-wegen-wahlplakat-verurteilt/story/20109238
– Roma-Organisation und GfbV begrüssen Verurteilung der Jungen SVP Bern wegen Rassismus. In: GfbV. 14.01.2019. https://www.gfbv.ch/de/medien/medienmitteilungen/junge-svp/ [link-preview url=”https://www.derbund.ch/bern/kanton/chefs-der-jungen-svp-bern-wegen-wahlplakat-verurteilt/story/20109238 “]
Basel opened a new camping site for travellers recently, and thus closed the old provisional site. Well, not quite … Seems that some travellers were allowed to stay there.
– Zoff um ehemaligen Fahrenden-Platz. In: Tele Basel. 03.01.2019. https://telebasel.ch/2019/01/03/zoff-um-ehemaligen-fahrenden-platz/ [link-preview url=”https://telebasel.ch/2019/01/03/zoff-um-ehemaligen-fahrenden-platz/”]
An unrecognised minority in Scotland in spite of its long presence there. Studies in the Irish Travellers have shown that they too form nowadays a distinct ethnic group, even though their history is shorter. So 900 years should be sufficient …
– The last “acceptable” prejudice. In: The Overtake. 27.12.2018. https://theovertake.com/~beta/scottish-travellers-in-crisis/ [link-preview url=”https://theovertake.com/~beta/scottish-travellers-in-crisis/”]
Better not be Rom or Traveller in the UK if you want to go to a pub …
– Gypsies and Travellers ‘regularly’ face discrimination in pubs, says charity. In: Morning Advertiser. 10.12.2018. https://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Article/2018/12/10/Gypsies-and-travellers-regularly-face-discrimination-in-pubs-says-charity [link-preview url=”https://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Article/2018/12/10/Gypsies-and-travellers-regularly-face-discrimination-in-pubs-says-charity”]
Roma and travellers associations have filed a complaint against the police in the Netherlands for discrimination. They accuse the police of portraying them and handling them as a criminal organisation.
– Travellers file police complaint against mayors for discrimination. In: Dutch News. 10.12.2018. https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2018/12/travellers-file-police-complaint-against-mayors-for-discrimination/ [link-preview url=”https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2018/12/travellers-file-police-complaint-against-mayors-for-discrimination/”]
The EU doesn’t approve the way Switzerland is treating its Roma minority. The EU reciew of the 4th Report by Switzeralnd on the Framework Agreement for the Protection of National Minorities is scathing on Switzerland. Amongst others, it says Switzerland needs to take concrete actions against racism and hate speech; improve the infrastructure for travellers; cease discrimination of foreign Roma travellers; tell Switzerland that their criteria for recognition of the Roma minority need to be reviewed; and asks the country to stop racial profiling…
Welcome to the “cradle of democracy”…
The Geselschaft für Bedrohte Völker Press communiqué: https://mailchi.mp/0d3d78fe0120/medienmitteilung-gutachten-des-europarats-zeigt-handlungsbedarf-zur-situation-von-jenischen-sinti-und-roma?e=107f67f2cd
And the EU Report: https://www.eda.admin.ch/dam/eda/de/documents/aussenpolitik/voelkerrecht/4-gutachten-schweiz-schutz-nationaler-minderheiten-31.05.18_de.pdf
And the whole overview from the Swiss administration: https://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/de/home/aussenpolitik/voelkerrecht/internationale-uebereinkommenzumschutzdermenschenrechte/rahmenuebereinkommen-europarat-schutz-nationaler-minderheiten.html [link-preview url=”https://mailchi.mp/0d3d78fe0120/medienmitteilung-gutachten-des-europarats-zeigt-handlungsbedarf-zur-situation-von-jenischen-sinti-und-roma?e=107f67f2cd “]
After many years, the city of Basle in Switzerland finally opened a camping site for travellers in the city.
It took time!
– Nach langem Hin und Her: Basel-Stadt weiht ersten fixen Standplatz für Fahrende ein. In: BZ Basel. 29.11.2018. https://www.bzbasel.ch/basel/basel-stadt/nach-langem-hin-und-her-basel-stadt-weiht-ersten-fixen-standplatz-fuer-fahrende-ein-133782286
– Platz für Fahrende. In: Basler Zeitung. 30.11.2018. https://bazonline.ch/basel/stadt/platz-fuer-fahrende/story/21578188
– Erster Fahrendenplatz in Basel-Stadt eröffnet. In: Smopo. 29.11.2018. http://smopo.ch/erster-fahrendenplatz-in-basel-stadt-eroeffnet/ [link-preview url=”https://www.bzbasel.ch/basel/basel-stadt/nach-langem-hin-und-her-basel-stadt-weiht-ersten-fixen-standplatz-fuer-fahrende-ein-133782286 “]
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