anti-racism – Page 2 – ERGO Network

Overdue action against racism by the European Union

PRESS STATEMENT

Overdue action against racism by the European Union

Brussels 23 September 2020: The European Coalition of Roma and pro-Roma organisations welcomes the adoption of an Action Plan against Racism by the European Commission, providing a framework to address structural racism in the EU, including antigypsyism.

The Action Plan recognizes the structural dimension of racism and the specific forms of racism affecting different racialised groups in Europe, including Roma. As such, it could become a key tool to support measures against antigypsyism as outlined in the upcoming Framework for Roma equality and inclusion, including in connection with National Action Plans against Racism to be implemented in all EU Member States. It also provides a more comprehensive approach to all forms of racism in Europe and could help to better address structural and intersectional forms of discrimination affecting Roma people.

Michael Privot from the European Network against Racism: “The fact the action plan recognises the reality of structural racism and provides a comprehensive approach to racism is a major step forward. The plan is also an important tool to build solidarity across racialised groups in the fight against structural racism. We now expect national governments to develop national action plans against racism that are closely connected to Roma inclusion strategies.”

“It is timely that Europe learns from its many failures in protecting the most vulnerable within our societies, including the Roma and Travellers, who remain amongst the most discriminated-against groups in Europe. They continue to suffer from unequal access to services in all areas of life, segregation in education and housing, forced evictions, criminalisation of nomadism, destruction of property and halting sites, police violence, hate speech and bias crimes due to structural and systemic antigypsyism”, stated Gabriela Hrabanova from the ERGO Network.

Isidro Rodríguez, Director of Fundación Secretariado Gitano, explains that: “This EU anti racism plan should be the keystone in mitigating the high rates of poverty and marginalisation of Roma triggered by rooted discrimination. For its implementation, it is essential to have Roma and civil society engaged in each Member State“.

“We are highly concerned with the damaging impact Covid-19 has had on Roma and Travellers communities and the increasing antigypsyist political discourse and police violence in the member states. With this action plan, the EU should set up stricter funding conditionalities and indicators that guarantee fundamental rights protection”, the European Roma and Travellers Forum stated.

Adriatik Hasantari, Director of Roma Active Albania underlined: “We expect that the Enlargement and Neighbourhood countries closely follow this action plan and develop national action plans to combat racism against Roma and protect fundamental rights more effectively.”

“OSEPI welcomes this ambitious initiative from the Commission to combat structural racism across Europe. The action plan includes important steps to provide institutional support for the longstanding work of civil society organisations, along with forthcoming legislation, funding and political commitment to the fight for racial justice. Together with the upcoming EU Framework on Roma equality and inclusion, the action plan could lead the way forward to fight anti-Roma prejudice and all forms of racism, strengthen the equality bodies, and implement equal treatment in the EU member states.” Heather Grabbe, Director of Open Society European Policy Institute.

Despite a number of positive legislative and policy developments in the past decade, many gaps and challenges remain in improving the application of the EU antidiscrimination law and adoption of relevant and useful policies regarding Roma and Travellers throughout EU Member States and Enlargement countries, such as the deeply rooted structural and institutionalised discrimination, the lack of adequate disaggregated data, underreporting of discrimination, lack of trust in authorities, low awareness of rights, a lack of means to access justice and a general lack of political will at national level. At EU level, mechanisms such as infringement proceedings to sanction governments against pervasive discrimination and segregation of Roma children in education have failed to correct the situation.

As Roma and pro-Roma NGOs, we look forward to the adoption of National Action Plans against racism by all EU Member States, Enlargement and Neighbourhood countries in order to effectively address racism against all racialised groups, including by legally recognising various forms of targeted racism, such as antigypsyism, antisemitism, islamophobia and afrophobia.

We also expect that direct links of the Commission Action Plan with all major EU policy developments in the area of equality, non-discrimination and social inclusion of Roma and Travellers are made. Notably, it should be linked to the upcoming Strategic Framework for Roma Equality, Inclusion and Participation, and the recently adopted European Parliament resolution on the implementation of National Roma Integration Strategies, demanding a legislative act for Roma. It is equally important that the situation of Roma in the Enlargement and Neighbourhood countries is not overlooked in the implementation of the Action Plan.

As we witness that changes in the laws and policies are not sufficient to improve the situation on the ground concretely and effectively, we call on the Commission to use a further reaching and more extensive approach and tools to address deep-rooted stereotypes, negative prejudices and antigypsyism against Roma and Travellers in order to enable a more adequate response from state actors, institutions and citizens at large. This would also require a more inclusive and non paternalistic approach by the Commission and its public servants towards civil society in its daily workings and consultation approaches.

Finally, we welcome the promise by the Commission to review its hiring and staffing policies to increase diversity within. We hope that this will lead to a fairer and more adequate representation of ethnic minorities, including Roma, in EU institutions.

Members signatories:

European Roma Grassroots Organisations Network (ERGO Network)

European Network against Racism (ENAR)

European Roma Information Office (ERIO)

European Roma and Travellers Forum (ERTF)

Roma Active Albania (RAA)

Phiren Amenca International Network

Fundación Secretariado Gitano (FSG)

Roma Entrepreneurship Development Initiative (REDI)

Central Council of German Sinti and Roma

Open Society European Policy Institute (OSEPI)

For further information, contact:

Jamen Gabriela Hrabanova, ERGO Network: g.hrabanova@ergonetwork.org, Tel: +32(0)489 97 47 53

Roma part of #BlackLivesMatter

Roma part of #BlackLivesMatter

On 25 May 2020 George Floyd, an African American man, was killed by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mass protests in response to his death quickly spread across the United States and internationally in a joint mobilisation against police violence and structural racism. Across the world, people have started to take down statues of colonisers and racist figures. A global Black Lives Matter movement is surging alongside wider anti-racist movements in an attempt to restore centuries of injustice, killings and oppression of people of African descent, but also institutional and structural racism and discrimination of all ethnic and racialised minorities.

As ERGO Network we stand with the Black Lives Matter movement and we say it loud and clear: In Europe, Black and Brown Lives matter! We hope that everyone now protesting on the streets takes this into account in their political demands as well as in their own everyday lives.

Structural racism and discrimination against ethnic and racialised minorities are deeply rooted in European societies. Across the EU, people of African descent, Roma, Muslims, Jews and immigrants face widespread and entrenched prejudice and exclusion. Racial discrimination and harassment are common place.

Roma in Europe are more likely to live in poverty than the majority population, have a higher risk of unemployment and have poorer health – as tragically seen during the Covid-19 pandemic. They are exposed to racism by their co-citizens (with, in some countries, one third to half the population not wanting to work with Roma colleagues according to a Fundamental Rights Agency survey), and more often victims police brutality. Just in the last couple of months, 14 year old Gabriel Djordjevic was severely beaten by police in Paris, 5 Romani children between 7 and 11 were beaten by police in Slovakia, approximately 20 Romani men and women were beaten by police in Romania and a young man during a police control in the Netherlands.

The pandemic exposed the racial bias of the police even more: Between March and May 2020, Amnesty International documented cases of militarized quarantines of ten Roma settlements in Bulgaria and Slovakia. This disproportionate restriction on freedom of movement that selectively targets ethnic minority groups, without evidence that they represent an objective threat to public health or security, imposes an unnecessary and disproportionate burden on this group and amounts to discrimination.

It is regrettable that 70 years after the adoption of the European Convention of Human Rights and subsequent international and EU standards on equality and anti-discrimination, minorities continue to be racialised, harassed, attacked and killed in Europe because of their innate characteristics. It is scandalous that the EU and national legislative frameworks and state institutions fail to protect them and to educate themselves and the majority populations about historical facts, diversity, compassion and living together as equal human beings.

Looking at the construction, priorities and progress of the European Union, it is safe to claim that European leaders have prioritised economic growth over the protection of the most vulnerable groups in our societies and over ensuring equity of wealth and wellbeing across the world. The strong awakening, protesting and mobilisation of the majority population in times of a global pandemic to the persistent racism and dehumanization and consequences of colonialism, slavery and historic oppression such as the Holocaust is an unprecedented moment in the history of humanity. It speaks to the urgency with which world and European leaders need to take corresponding unprecedented steps to bring about fundamental changes in our society. Only with systemic change can we set up a social contract that ensures justice and equality for all, prioritizing those most marginalised and oppressed to date.

Since the start of the protests, many political figures in Europe have spoken out in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. While we appreciate condemnation of police violence in the US, the EU leadership has not said or done enough to acknowledge and address structural racism and racist police violence in the EU against ethnic and religious minorities. As quoted in the Financial Times on 3 June 2020, European Commission Vice-President Schinas went as far as saying “I do not think that we have issues now in Europe that blatantly pertain to police brutality or issues of race transcending into our systems.” This is a slap in the face of all victims of police violence in Europe, including many Roma. Member of the European Parliament Pierrette Herzberger Fofana set the record straight when she had the courage to publicly talk about her personal experience with racist police violence at the Gare du Nord in Brussels just a few days after Schinas’ comment.

Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana | Photo credit: European Parliament Audiovisual

In a rushed action, the European Parliament adopted a Resolution on anti-racism protests (2020/2685(RSP)) on 19 June. It shows that public pressure can work and that the Parliament sees an urgency to react, but failed to appropriately address structural racism in Europe. The title of the resolution is related to the US protests following the death of George Floyd, without a clear intention and focus on structural racism against all racialized minorities in Europe, triggered by events in the US. An immediate reaction and a resolution by the European Parliament requesting an unprecedented response by the European Commission and EU Council like in the case of Covid-19 is still necessary; therefore such a resolution should have focused primarily on EU Members States, Enlargement and Neighborhood Countries and involved Roma and other anti-racist civil society and racialized minorities in drafting it. Structural and institutional racism cannot be tackled without listening to those suffering under it. When it comes to its ambitions, the resolution is asking for an European Anti-Racism Summit, a comprehensive strategy against racism and discrimination and an EU Framework for National Action Plans Against Racism, the creation of a EU Council mechanism for equality and an interinstitutional task force to fight racism and discrimination at EU level.

Following the adoption of the resolution, the all-white European Commission held an internal debate on racism and decided that an “Action Plan to address racial discrimination and Afrophobia” would be prepared by Commissioner for Equality Helena Dalli. While we believe this is a too low of a bargain for racialized minorities, we truly hope that this Action Plan on paper will really be followed up by REAL Action – not just by the EU institutions but also by its Member States and adhering countries, and that it will be prepared in close consultation and at equal level with ALL racialized minorities, including Roma, and CSOs.

Here are some of our recommendations to the EU institutions and member States.

Finally adopt the 10-year old draft of the Horizontal Anti-discrimination Directive
Systematically record and publish disaggregated data on hate crime
Fully transpose and apply the provisions of the Framework Decision on Combating Racism and Xenophobia, treating racist and xenophobic motivation as an aggravating circumstance
Address ongoing ill-treatment, profiling and over-policing of minorities by police officers.
Reform internal policies and working methods in order to ensure a fair representation of minority populations within EU institutions as well as an adequate participation and consultation of minority groups in EU decisions in policies, programmes and funding
Commit to an ambitious, comprehensive, and binding EU Strategic Framework for Roma to achieve equality, social and economic justice, and combat antigypsyism.
Ensure equitable access to quality inclusive education for all children and invest consistently in raising awareness and adequately teach European societies about their colonial and racist past, including the history of antigypsyism.
Define segregation as illegal in housing and in education.
Address discrimination of minority groups in employment.
Take into account the needs of racialised minorities and define them as a priority in all mainstream policies and measures of the Covid-19 recovery plan; meaningfully involve Roma stakeholders and their civil society organisations in the design, implementation, and monitoring of such recovery plans
Ensure funding for equality and fundamental rights of minority groups under the Multi-Annual Framework.

Find here a detailed briefing paper on the fundamental rights situation in Europe and a full list of our recommendations.

For more information on our work addressing antigypsyism in Europe, please contact Senior Advocacy Officer Isabela Mihalache (i.mihalache@ergonetwork.org).

Hate speech by Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister

Picture credit: Bulgarian Helsinki Committee

Once again, antigypsyist hate speech comes from the highest political level in Bulgaria. This time, Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Krasimir Karakachanov demonised Roma in strongest terms after two incidents of violence carried out by individuals of Roma origin.

While we condemn the violent acts against a police man and a service man, we need to make it clear that hate speech and collective punishment against a whole group of citizens is utterly wrong and unacceptable.

Hate speech against the Roma community has strongly increased in recent years and no state institution in the country raises the issue. Vice versa: all political parties use anti-Roma rhetoric – not only the far right nationalists, but also the big mainstream parties. This comes together with purposeful propaganda of the political class against civil society organisations and corrupting of the democratic process among the Roma community.

Liliya Makaveva, ERGO Network board member from Integro Association has translated the following article reporting on the hate speech of Krasimir Karakachanov in order to raise awareness of European civil society that there are no limits for the political class in Bulgaria to blame the Roma community in their chase of political power.

Original article in Bulgarian.

“Gypsies in Bulgaria have become extremely insolent and the tolerance of Bulgarian society has been exhausted”.

This was said by the Minister of Defense, Krassimir Karakachanov, in connection with the latest case of assault on a serviceman in the village of Voyvodinovo. The Minister visited the village, where he met the village mayor Dimitar Toskov, the Mayor of Maritza Municipality Dimitar Ivanov and the head of the Plovdiv Regional Police Directorate. The commander of the 68 Brigade Special Forces, Brigadier General Yavor Mateev, met Krassimir Karakachanov as well. The Minister revealed that before the meeting he visited the injured military at ‘St. Panteleimon’ Hospital. “He will be operated tomorrow. He has a scuffed cheek and a lot of bruising around his eyes. The attackers hit him mainly in the head. His condition is good, he has an average bodily injury and maybe he will be released from hospital in a few days. The Ministry of Defense will bear all the costs of the treatment”, said Karakachanov.

“A few days ago a policeman was beaten, and now a military officer and this cannot go on any longer. The truth is that a comprehensive program to solve the Gypsy question needs to be elaborated. People don’t have to tolerate part of the population that only has rights and does not want to understand that there are duties and must that they must comply with the law. The measures must be literally binding the social benefits with the education and labour. Bulgaria must stop taking into account Brussels officials and human rights defenders“, the military minister said, quoted by Radio Focus. “Illegal buildings are another problem. The ghettos are a Scots story. Kids beat in succession. That cannot go on any longer. The program has been prepared and it will be submitted for discussion to the Council of Ministers. There is no point in waiting and endure more”, Karakachanov continued.

“How long will the state fund the promiscuous gypsy birth-rate? This population does not want to work, to study and, in practice, become a marginalized community that lives under its own laws. For a person who used to live for granted, the easiest job is to make children to receive benefits. They have no any stimulus to work, to improve”, said the Deputy Prime Minister.

Roma rights organisations respond to EU inclusion plans

Brussels, 6 December 2018: Today, a coalition of more than fifteen Romani and anti-racism civil society organisations from across Europe called for the Council of the European Union, and governments of European countries, to make a clear commitment to the new proposals for post-2020 Roma inclusion plans made by the European Commission in its communication to the European Parliament and Council yesterday.

Director of ERGO Network Ms Gabriela Hrabanova welcomed the new Communication: “The Commission and Parliament have clearly positioned themselves for a continued investment in Roma Inclusion after 2020. Now is the time for national governments to do the same, to strengthen their fight against antigypsyism and to update and improve their strategies in line with community needs by working alongside Romani civil society.”

The new communication from the Commission highlighted key elements to improve the EU Roma Framework including: the need for inclusion of Roma in mainstream policies, fighting antigypsyism, improving Roma participation, addressing the diversity amongst Roma, and better data collection, target indicators and reporting in integration strategies.

“Until now, Roma Inclusion plans in EU member states and accession countries have failed to include measures to fight antigypsyism, and have largely failed to significantly improve the situation for Roma across Europe” said Ðorđe Jovanović, President of the European Roma Rights Centre. “The EU Framework for National Roma Integration Strategies after 2020 must serve to counter the effects of the specific structural racism which affects Romani populations throughout Europe.”

The organisations explicitly call for measures in European countries to recognize present and historical antigypsyism as a form of racism; counter and sanction manifestations of antigypsyism in public discourses, public services and institutions; empower civil society, and ensure that the necessary legal and institutional mechanisms are in place and implemented to prosecute hate crimes and hate speech. It is time for European governments to give priority to “reinforcing and distinguishing the focus on antigypsyism as a root cause of Roma exclusion” as concluded by the EU High Level Group on Combatting Racism, Xenophobia and Other Forms of Intolerance in their guidance paper on antigypsyism.

European institutions have to make sure that the next EU budget cycle (Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027), which is currently under negotiation, is connected to policy priorities of the EU Roma Framework including the fight against antigypsyism. In addition, partnership agreements with Member States and operational programs must explicitly name Roma as an investment priority. The next cycle of funding must ensure that funds are also available for specific measures to fight antigypsyism, and to allow the efficient operation of civil society organisations to hold governments accountable and to ensure fundamental rights of Romani citizens across Europe.

For more information, or to arrange an interview contact:

Jamen Gabriela Hrabanova
Executive Director
ERGO Network
info@ergonetwork.org
+32(0)2 893 10 49

The coalition of organisations includes:

Alliance against Antigypsyism
Central Council of German Sinti & Roma
European Network against Racism
European Public Health Alliance
European Roma Grassroots Organisations Network
European Roma Rights Centre
FAGiC Federación de Asociaciones Gitanas de Cataluña
Jaw Dikh Foundation
La Voix de Roms
Nakeramos
Nevo Parudimos
Roma Active Albania
Romanipe
Roma Education Fund
RROMA Regional Roma Educational Youth Association (Macedonia)

Notes for editors:

The EU Framework for National Roma Integration Strategies was adopted by the European Commission in 2011. It requires member states make provision to address inequalities in their countries which Roma face in education, employment, healthcare, and housing.

Antigypsyism is the specific racism towards Roma, Sinti, Travellers and others who are stigmatized as ‘gypsies’ in the public imagination. The term is often used in a narrow sense to indicate anti-Roma attitudes or the expression of negative stereotypes in the public sphere or hate speech. However, antigypsyism gives rise to a much wider spectrum of discriminatory expressions and practices, including many implicit or hidden manifestations. More information is available in the reference paper on antigypsyism.

Antigypsyism on the agenda at EU’s High-Level Group on combating racism, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance

Antigypsyism on the agenda at EU’s High-Level Group on combating racism, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance

The EU’s High-Level Group on combating racism, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance, bringing together representatives of EU Member States and civil society representatives, put special emphasis on discussing antigypsyism at their 4th High-Level Meeting taking place on 5 December 2017.

Vera Jourova, European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality, expressed deep concerns regarding the widespread social acceptance of antigypsyism. As an example she brought the case of hate speech and death threats against Czech Roma singer Gypsy.cz, which was fined with only 4 Euros by a domestic court. Judicial cases such as this send a wrong message when it comes to combating antigypsyist hate speech.

MEP Soraya Post (S&D Group) emphasized the urgent need to remedy antigypsyism as the root cause of discrimination and hatred against Roma and called upon all governments and duty-bearers to take responsibility for their citizens. She warned: “Europe is at a crossroads again. Extremist parties are getting into the governments, xenophobic voices are getting more and more common and tolerated even by members of governments”.

Jamen Gabriela Hrabanova, Director of ERGO Network, presented the Reference Paper on Antigypsyism in her contribution and pointed out the importance to focus on mainstream society when combating antigypsyism: “It is essential to see that antigypsyism is not a ‘minority issue’. It is a phenomenon of our societies, which has its origin in how the social majority view and treat those whom they consider ‘gypsies’. To combat antigypsyism, our attention needs to shift to mainstream societies, while raising the voices of those who are dramatically affected by antigypsyism, but also usually silenced by it”.

The EU Fundamental Rights Agency presented findings of the second survey on discrimination and hatred targeting minorities throughout the EU. The survey shows that Roma and people of African descent face above-average levels of discrimination and hatred across Europe, which affects them in all areas of life and is greatest when looking for a job. Roma are more likely to be victims of hate motivated harassment and violence as well as ethnic discrimination than any other group, but three quarter of the respondents do not know any organisation offering support to victims and are unaware of relevant legislation protecting them. Due to a lack of trust, knowledge and resources, non-reporting of incidents of discrimination and hatred still remains a challenge. Reporting of hate-motivated harassment and discrimination to relevant services did not increase since 2008.

The survey results show the severity of discrimination and hatred against Roma in Europe. We urge the European Commission to assign the Fundamental Rights Agency to publish a study on antigypsyism in the EU and candidate countries and to provide a deeper analysis of the EU MIDIS II survey by looking at structural and institutional discriminatory practices and policies.

ERGO Network together with the Central Council of German Sinti and Roma and the European Network against Racism urge EU Member States to take targeted measures against antigypsyism. These should be included in the National Roma Integration Strategies and the National Action Plans against Racism. Disaggregated data on hate crimes against Roma and their property needs to be collected and antigypsyism must be recognised to allow national authorities to analyse trends of hate crimes affecting Roma and to develop effective responses to ensure recording, prosecution and adequate support to victims of racist violence and hate speech.

Find here the policy recommendations of the Alliance against Antigypsyism.

Download the recommendations as pdf.