The Roma in Europe

The Roma population constitutes the largest ethnic minority in the European Union, totalling 10 to 12 million citizens. Signifying “man” or “husband” in the Romani language, “Roma” was adopted as the official international appellation for the numerous Romani groups at the first meeting of the World Romani Congress in 1971. These groups include the Roma (concentrated in Central and Eastern Europe), the Kalé (based in the Iberian Peninsula, especially Spain), the Sinti (German-speaking areas), the Manouches (French-speaking areas), and the Romanisæl (Sweden and Norway), among others.

The marginal socioeconomic existence of the Roma has most notably caused tensions with the emergence of the nation-state. In the nineteenth century, the ever-hardening borders of nations proved to afflict the Roma, who often came into conflict with government authorities and resulted in their removal from districts, towns, cities, and countries. This predicament continues to affect them to this day, most visibly in the infamous French expulsions of 2010.

However, there are growing indications that states are more willing to develop mechanisms and policies promoting the social integration of the Roma at both national and local levels, with the case of Spain frequently lauded as a “best practice” example. Although sporadic displays of prejudice continue to emerge in several EU countries, recent developments reveal an emergent international resolve to help the Roma, a European people, become more integrated in their own continent.

From Hunting Game to EU Citizens

After traveling from northern India through the Byzantine Empire and arriving in Western Europe in the 15th century, the Roma had extensive contact with already settled European populations throughout their migration that was marked by centuries of oppression. Amid fears of ordinary citizens and the subsequent proliferation of negative myths, states adopted discriminatory policies of expulsion or forced assimilation, with Western European countries favoring the former and Central and Eastern European countries attempting the latter. Some laws effectively put them on equal footing with animals; in many parts of Germany, Roma were still being hunted for sport as late as the 1830s.

Anti-Roma discrimination persisted well into contemporary society. In an act now known as the Porajmos or the “Devouring,” Nazi officials during World War II gathered Roma into concentration camps, where hundreds of thousands were killed or died as a result.  Post-1989, Roma in the newly democratized countries of Central and Eastern Europe found themselves in a unique situation. On one hand, they rapidly became the primary victim of discrimination and hate crimes due to greater liberty of expression. Roma also faced severe unemployment with the erosion of protected accommodation systems and the transfer of low-rental housing from the state to municipalities. In consequence, many relocated to the slum ghettoes of major cities.

On the other hand, the post-Communist era brought unprecedented opportunities. Roma organizations could now create global networks by easily collaborating across the former Iron Curtain divide, and a new incentive for addressing the problems of the Roma arose because of the new prospect of EU enlargement. Since Central and Eastern European countries now boasted democratic regimes, they could aspire for EU membership by fulfilling the 1993 Copenhagen criteria, which outlined the various requirements demanded of candidate countries. These included the stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights, and respect for minorities. Therefore, to help prepare Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries for accession, the European Union offered financial and technical aid with many projects geared specifically at promoting the greater integration of the Roma. After the 2004 and 2007 EU enlargements, a large portion of the current Roma community could finally boast EU citizenship and enjoy supranational protection of their human rights.

But many of the strategies implemented to fulfil the Copenhagen criteria were badly executed and consisted of band-aid solutions to deeply ingrained issues that required thoughtful and long-term planning. The European Union itself prioritized the economic and democratic requirements of accession, leaving the fight against social inclusion to the side. Without a clear policy framework and effective top-down initiatives, the programs largely failed to improve the situation and in some cases even worsened it. As José Manuel Fresno, adviser to the EU Commission on Roma issues and head of the Spanish government’s Race and Ethnic Equality Council, stated to the New York Times, “The fact is that gypsies in some countries have lower living standards today than 15 years ago.”

The Current Situation

Multiple factors contribute to the social exclusion of the Roma today and the main areas of concern remain education, housing, health, and employment. Low-quality segregated education has led to low educational attainment. According to a recent World Bank Policy Report, among Bulgarian 15-18 year olds in 2010, about half of Roma men and one-third of Roma women enrolled in school (whereas the majority Bulgarian population enjoys a 9 out of 10 figure). Roma also encounter very poor living conditions with limited or non-existent access to basic public works and inadequate access to healthcare. Because of their unsanitary and inhospitable living conditions, Roma face a shorter lifetime than non-Roma. In the European Union, average life expectancy at birth is 76 for men and 82 for women: for the Roma population, it is 10 years less.

The prevalence of discrimination and negative stereotypes against the Roma pejoratively impacts these key areas. Overall, current strategies implemented by national governments to address these deeply-rooted socioeconomic problems only slightly differ from those poorly executed during EU accession and have had minimal effects on combating social exclusion.

The “Spanish Model” and Supranational Progress

Spain, however, has been regularly cited as a model for achieving relative social integration of the Roma—the second-largest Roma community in Europe estimated at 700,000-970,000. Numerous political officials have recently noted Spain’s success including Viviane Reding, the EU Commission Vice-President and Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights, and Citizenship, and László Andor, EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, and Inclusion. Andor commented to Spanish newspaper El Mundo how “Spain has shown that it is possible to integrate the Roma and give a better life to this community.” Even Romanian member of parliament Oana Niculescu-Mizil declared that in Spain “the Roma do not need ghettos.” Although perhaps overstated, this positive rhetoric does have evidentiary support. In Spain, 92.4 percent of Roma live in standard apartments or houses, and almost all have access to health care. Just about all Roma children start elementary school and although no up-to-date figures exist, at least 75 percent are believed to have some sort of steady income.

According to José Manuel Fresno, who coined the term “Spanish Model,” there are five characteristics that distinguish Spain from other European countries and have contributed to its success in integrating the Roma. The first key element is Spain’s effective democracy. Under the 1978 Constitution that reestablished democracy in Spain, the Roma were finally recognized as legal Spanish citizens with equal rights and obligations. Spain subsequently granted the Roma participation in its new democracy and the guarantee of protecting Roma rights. In contrast, former Communist countries, despite a return to formal democracy, do not necessarily ensure that security forces and public authorities take care to ensure the full participation and protection of the Roma in their public institutions. Secondly, following the democratic transition, Spain benefited from a growing economy and improved economic conditions, which consequently helped improve Roma living conditions and decrease the rate of unemployment. Today, in many Central and Eastern European countries trying to address the Roma problem, the unsteady economic situation mostly benefits the middle and upper classes. In third place, the universal welfare social protection system of Spain, providing access to education, health, general social services, and specialized social services (e.g., for disadvantaged children and the elderly) has been very inclusive and has benefitted the general Roma community because of their low socioeconomic status. The fourth characteristic regards the targeted approach of Spanish governments (national, regional, and municipal) to help the most excluded and disadvantaged Roma groups through special methods especially designed for this population. Finally, the engaging Spanish civic movement in favor of the Roma community has contributed to the success of Roma integration initiatives. Throughout the 1970s-80s, civic associations and the Catholic Church strongly supported Roma rights and promotion, thus creating a down-top approach with the active engagement of different types of local organizations and associations. This stands in stark contrast to the prevalent top-down approach in other European countries.

The Spanish government implements several initiatives that fall in line with Fresno’s categories. The National Roma Development Program, renewed since 1989, pursues permanent solutions and has an integrated, multi-sectoral approach that addresses the numerous practical factors affecting exclusion, such as access to housing and jobs. The program helps ensure that regional and local initiatives improve as many factors as possible for Roma communities, with money from both national and regional levels. The Spanish government also finances organizations such as the Fundación Secretariado Gitano (FSG), which administers the Roma employment program Acceder or “to access,” active since 2000. Acceder has been highly acclaimed by many experts as one of the best integration schemes in Europe. Thanks to the program, young, unemployed Roma earn the equivalent of a high-school degree, acquire technical skills, and obtain jobs through agreements with private companies.

The success of the program has led Romania’s National Agency for Roma to implement its own version. However, it faces difficulties due to the different national context. Romania, for example, faces a labor market with a weak business fabric, a sluggish and bureaucratic public administration, extremely precarious living standards for the Roma population, and very pronounced discrimination—multiple barriers to improving the Roma situation. As the case of Romania shows, the Spanish model cannot be easily replicated in other member-states.

The situation of Spanish Roma today is still far from acceptable. Despite the enthusiastic publicity, problems concerning the Roma population still persist. Just over 7 out of every 10 Spanish Roma over the age of 15 are completely or functionally illiterate, and 6.6 percent of Roma still live in substandard housing in Spain, with 1 percent residing in shantytowns. However, as we have seen, the situation remains significantly worse in other European countries. The Spanish model may thus serve as a useful starting point for these countries to improve the status of Roma.

Future Outlook

Although there are no quick solutions to these deep-seated problems, the recent developments arising at the international level seem to promise at least an amelioration of some coordination and structural difficulties regarding Roma integration programs and initiatives in member-states.

The French expulsions of summer 2010 played an ironically useful role in situating the Roma on national and European-level political agendas. By demonstrating that all member-states need to be involved in combating the social exclusion of the Roma—not solely those in Eastern Europe, who currently participate in the cooperative Decade of Roma Inclusion initiative launched in 2005—the expulsions led the Council of Europe, the European Parliament, and the European Commission to take a more proactive role in tackling these issues. The Council of Europe passed the Strasbourg Declaration in October 2010, which foresaw the creation of a new European training program for lawyers and Roma mediators who will give legal and administrative advice to communities. The European Parliament, led by Lívia Járóka, currently the only Roma Member of European Parliament serving in the 2009-2014 session, passed a number of measures regarding the Roma, culminating in the overwhelmingly supported March 9 resolution on the EU Roma Inclusion strategy. Based on the findings of this taskforce, the Commission elaborated the EU framework for National Roma Integration Strategies (announced on April 5, 2011) that will help member-states develop their own strategies to integrate the minority population and more efficiently use EU funds at their disposal. This framework also establishes minimum standards at the European level for Roma access to employment, education, housing, and healthcare.

Despite the new wave of racism linked to the return of ultra right-wing parties and groups in many European countries, mechanisms for Roma integration are solidifying. As recently as March 2011, members of the Hungarian Vedero paramilitary guard harassed 430 Roma inhabitants as they patrolled the town of Gyöngyöspata for 16 days. The Hungarian extreme-right Jobbik party, which won 16.7 percent of votes in the 2010 parliamentary election, explicitly attributes societal difficulties to “Gypsy crime” and frequently organizes anti-Roma demonstrations. Toleration of these actions by the center-right government appears quite inconsistent with a country that currently occupies the presidency of the Council of the European Union. But with this year marking the 40th anniversary of the 1971 Congress, where the appellation, flag, and hymn of the Roma people were officially established—the situation of the largest European minority group seems to be heading in a positive direction. Thanks to the recent efforts of European institutions and organizations, the Roma now benefit from supranational institutional frameworks that will work to ensure that the community can adequately enjoy basic freedoms and human rights on the European continent.