by Florence Thibaut
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| from www.udine20.it |
As Europe is now celebrating the fall of its most emblematic wall and the victory of its core values, be it democracy, peace or freedom, others walls, physical or mental, remain and some more are getting built against Roma people to separate them from the rest of the citizens. After all these years, stereotypes and prejudices are still causing great damages in the life of thousands of Europeans easily seen as scapegoats. Anti-Gypsysm, exclusion, racism, fear of the unknown are the ingredients of this dangerous phenomenon that arises in countries such as France, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania or Slovakia.
In these challenging times for Jean-Claude Juncker and its disputed Commission, the lack of positive action towards Roma people can no longer remain. While setting his political goals for the five years to come, his ambition was to create a common area of Justice and Fundamental Rights for all. Tackling the Roma problem and bringing the public spotlight on the action of the governments should be absolute priorities. That is what defends the ERGO Network, an NGO that fights for better rights for the Roma community. Financed by the Progress Program of the Commission, its team organised last week a conference called “Wall Free Europe” in the European Parliament to draw the attention on this harsh realities.
Mugur Varzariu, Documentary Photographer and World vision Ambassador for Romania, explains: “the fall of the Berlin wall is an important anniversary for all of us. But where are we now? We have to go back in the days and understand what it meant for German people in those years. It is important for today’s understanding and idea of Europe. The biggest minority nowadays in the continent are Europeans! It is what we call the Roma apartheid. Everybody can see it, but no one wants to admit it. What we need for the EU is a common dream, and countries that stop hiding what people don’t want to see behind walls”.
The NGO based in Brussels also inaugurated a picture contest and launched an exhibition of the winner’s production. 25 strong images were chosen to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Wall.
European prisoners
An estimated 10 millions of Roma currently live in the European continent. There are too many cases of misunderstandings and lack of respect between the Roma and non-Roma citizens, leading to widespread stigmatization and violence. Many of them are not treated as equal citizens in their home towns because of this discrimination. “Walls are becoming stronger in my country. One of the roots of the reject is that gypsies are often seen as not human. To create an effective action, anti-gypsism should first be recognized as a certain form of racism. Then, we need politicians and activist with courage to change this long lasting catastrophe and take a stance. EU institutions also have a role to play in it to find common instrument against it and force Member States to do something”, said Loredana Rozalia, from Romania.
Among many obstacles, Roma people often suffer from low employment, housing problems, low education levels and serious health care issues. Sociologically excluded from public life as well as from education systems, Roma people are commonly seen as second class citizens.
The NGO based in Brussels also inaugurated a picture contest and launched an exhibition of the winner’s production. 25 strong images were chosen to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Wall.
European prisoners
An estimated 10 millions of Roma currently live in the European continent. There are too many cases of misunderstandings and lack of respect between the Roma and non-Roma citizens, leading to widespread stigmatization and violence. Many of them are not treated as equal citizens in their home towns because of this discrimination. “Walls are becoming stronger in my country. One of the roots of the reject is that gypsies are often seen as not human. To create an effective action, anti-gypsism should first be recognized as a certain form of racism. Then, we need politicians and activist with courage to change this long lasting catastrophe and take a stance. EU institutions also have a role to play in it to find common instrument against it and force Member States to do something”, said Loredana Rozalia, from Romania.
Among many obstacles, Roma people often suffer from low employment, housing problems, low education levels and serious health care issues. Sociologically excluded from public life as well as from education systems, Roma people are commonly seen as second class citizens.
As Lydia Gabcova from Slovakia summarizes: “it is easy to blame them for all the misery we face. There is a widespread idea that Roma are massively using social welfare, which creates even more hostility and rejection. Or only 1% of public resources are allocated for them! We first need to remember were all humans and treat the root of this fear”.
To solve the Roma problem once and for all, the community itself sould tackle it and empower its members. The role of our institutions is to watch and monitor what is done by the countries. It is now a problem that affects every citizen of the EU. “Thousands of Roma live this reality: no running water, terrible living conditions, no heating systems… We put them outside of the cities next to trashes. Real access to education, not only on paper, is the only possible solution. If you segregate children at school, they will be segregated for ever, concludes Mugur Varzariu. Roma citizens don’t have any role models to admire. Today they are still prisoners of abusive states. We need political courage and commitment from the EU. The accountability is on all of us ”.
To solve the Roma problem once and for all, the community itself sould tackle it and empower its members. The role of our institutions is to watch and monitor what is done by the countries. It is now a problem that affects every citizen of the EU. “Thousands of Roma live this reality: no running water, terrible living conditions, no heating systems… We put them outside of the cities next to trashes. Real access to education, not only on paper, is the only possible solution. If you segregate children at school, they will be segregated for ever, concludes Mugur Varzariu. Roma citizens don’t have any role models to admire. Today they are still prisoners of abusive states. We need political courage and commitment from the EU. The accountability is on all of us ”.
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