Romeva sobre l’estratègia d’inclusió poble gitano UE

ough due to the fact that I had my speaking time limited to one minute, I did not mention everyting. However, as these are the arguments we have used in order to base our (Greens/EFA) approach I attach it in its complete format:

R. Romeva i Rueda speech on Jaroka report on EU STrategy for Roma Inclusion

8 march 2011

The EP Jaroka report on the EU Strategy for Roma inclusion was voted in LIBE committee on 14/2, with the majority of the GREENS/EFA amendments accepted by the rapporteur or included in the compromise amendments, and many of the Group´s red lines to the issue included:

The Roma inclusion strategy should be guided by an insider’s approach: designed by Roma for Roma which means empowerment of Roma, inclusion in the decision-making process, hiring of Roma staff/mediators in key positions at local, national, EU level.
Stop unlawful practices that continue with EU member state impunity: violence against Roma, violations of the right to free movement, increasing activity of extremist political parties, politicians, and policies, systemic segregation of Romani children in education, widespread residential segregation of Roma, trafficking in human beings, denial of access to healthcare and social services, coercive sterilisation of Romani women.
Implementation of equal treatment in resource allocation – support policy based on equal opportunity principles; goal is to support only those tenders and programs, which can ensure diminishing of Roma segregation in education and housing, eliminating discrimination in health and social services; facilitating civil society access to funds, promoting exchange of best practices, building on the experience of the pilot projects launched by the Commission in EU candidate countries and micro-regions in the EU, based on the Council of Europe mediators programme.
Respect of the right to free movement of everyone everywhere, as prescribed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; respect of free movement of EU citizens, as prescribed in EU law.

Eliminate traditional Romani practice of child marriages, promote Roma gender equality
Combination of minority rights approach with the anti-discrimination approachfor achieving substantive equality: the minority rights based argument necessarily focuses on Roma as an ethnic minority group; the anti-discrimination approach allows for recognition of a multiple Roma identity – every individual Roma might suffer discrimination on many grounds, not only due to ethnic minority status, namely Roma suffer from multiple discrimination;

Opportunities for political intervention: There seems to be a difference between what the EP is expecting with the Jaroka report (EU strategy) and what the Commission will come up with (Framework for national strategies).

The Commission will provide guidelines and incentives for the adoption of national strategies, thus proposing a scheme that will be monitored at EU level. The Commission thinks that the Roma are an EU problem with national solutions/responses and thus wants to force member states to use the funds for vulnerable people for Roma integration (inclusion) with an integrated approach including targets.

The timeline is as follows: April the Commission presents its communication, then the relevant Council formations (JHA, culture, employment) will take the communication as a basis and suggest/ develop an angle. They hope that it will be in the JHA Council of April 12, EPSO on May 19, general affairs council on May 23 and then the June European Council will issue relevant conclusions.

The Commission has not initiated an open consultation process with social partners and civil society regarding the development of an European Framework for national Roma integration strategies: a coalition of NGOs has requested this; we, as GREENS/EFA support this request.