Romeo FRANZ (Greens/EFA, DE), rapporteur, makes a statement after the vote on the implementation of National Roma Integration Strategies - Combating negative attitudes towards people with Romani background in Europe, at the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) of the European Parliament in Brussels.

Brussels

statement

situation of Roma people (T)

fight against racism and xenophobia (T)

FRANZ, Romeo (Greens/EFA, DE)

Implementation of National Roma Integration Strategies - Combating negative attitudes towards people with Romani background in Europe: statement by Romeo FRANZ (Greens/EFA, DE), rapporteur

SOUNDBITE (English), Romeo FRANZ (Greens/EFA, DE), I must mention two things. The main problem we would have is the anti-gipsism in our communities and they're all in the whole community in Europe. Anti-gipsism is a hundred years old form of racism. And now it's a most tabooed form of racism. And that's a barrier for equal participation. And in the past, everything for the nationalist states - for the topic of Sinti and Roma people - was voluntary. And that's a point: when something voluntary you have not a success. And the next point is when you don't involve, the effected of people from anti-gipsism in the conception of the solutions, then you have no success. Most of these strategies and projects have no access to the affected people. This was a big problem, and the approaches were paternalistic approaches.

SOUNDBITE (English), Romeo FRANZ (Greens/EFA, DE), When we involve that affected people, the Roma people, in all levels of monitoring and the projects, in everything at an equal level, then I am very sure that we have a success. And that's was my plan. My report will show that we must change our strategy and this is a strategy that we want: binding correctness for the nationalists. This is very important. Then the fight for the anti-gypsyism must be a priority. That's very important, too. When you don't fight against anti-gypsyism, then we cannot see inclusion. And that shows the past.

SOUNDBITE (English), Romeo FRANZ (Greens/EFA, DE), We are so different. We are so heterogeneous. But the majority and the policies don't see our heterogeneity. They say that we are all homogeneous. And that's the point, that we cannot take one recipe for all. National states have different minorities from the Roma people. And that's a point, we must include these people, that the nationalities include the people with so many backgrounds in this new strategy to have success.