On the International Roma Day, the project team “With and for the Roma in the Danube Region” * emphasizes the necessity of the shared responsibility to support Roma participation and development of the Roma community with the basic tenet - for Roma, by Roma and with Roma. We also highlight the importance of commitment to Roma inclusion, equality and non-discrimination, especially today, in the context of the global COVID19 virus pandemic.

The Roma remain the most vulnerable group facing harsh living conditions and discrimination in access to social assistance, health care, employment and adequate housing - according to various European reports and reports from relevant international organizations and institutions. Many Roma in EU countries are victims of prejudice and social stigma, despite the fact that EU countries have banned discrimination. **

Since the beginning of their history in Europe, the Roma have faced segregation, discrimination and violations of fundamental freedoms and human rights. During the World War II, countless injustices were committed against them, such as subjugation, forced abortions, and genocide.

Today, the EU has the legal instruments and a comprehensive policy to build a true Union of equality. However, as highlighted in the EU Action Plan to Combat Racism 2020-2025, discrimination based on racial or ethnic origin remains evident. This is specifically applicable on the Roma, who regularly remain excluded and marginalized. Many of the 12 million Roma living in Europe continue to face discrimination, anti-gypsism and socio-economic exclusion on a daily basis.

The EU framework for national Roma integration strategies provide opportunities for intensified measures and activities to address this challenge. This is important inasmuch as the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed an extreme exposure of excluded and marginalized Roma communities to negative health and socio-economic impacts.

In such circumstances, efforts should be galvanized to improve the lives of Roma and ensure that their fundamental rights are respected with the support of all relevant institutions and civil society organizations working to implement Roma inclusion policies.

For achieving equity and inclusion required are increased use and better channeling of resources, with the involvement and partnership of Roma communities, all government levels, sectors and stakeholders (national governments, EU institutions, international organizations, civil society, and academia).

Thus, the European Commission has set seven targets at EU level for the period up to 2030. Three of these targets are horizontal in the areas of equality, inclusion and participation. The remaining four are sectoral targets in the areas of education, employment, housing and health.

At the national level, governments should develop strong national strategic frameworks for Roma to make long-term commitments and work with EU institutions on Roma equality, inclusion and participation.

An increased commitment is essential for addressing issues of exclusion, segregation, anti-gypsism and discrimination, but also to improve Roma inclusion and key areas of education, employment, health and housing throughout Europe.

In Serbia, according to official data, there are at least 150,000 Roma, although unofficial figures indicate remarkably higher numbers. A significant number of Roma in Serbia continue to live in inhumane living conditions, deprived of the ability to apply hygienic measures and adequate protection against the Covid 19 virus. Many of them are further unable to realize their secondary raw materials collection activities, thus exposed to additional marginalization and impoverishment.

In such circumstances, it is necessary to increase efforts to improve the lives of Roma in Serbia and ensure their basic rights with the support of all relevant institutions and civil society organizations working to implement Roma inclusion policies in Serbia.

The Ecumenical Humanitarian Organization - EHO has been continuously working for years for the Roma and with the Roma in order to improve housing conditions, inclusion and their social position in society. The inclusion of the Roma in the life of local communities is a matter of extreme importance and always necessary to ensure active citizenship.

The project "With and for the Roma in the Danube Region " aims to exchange experiences, knowledge and examples of good practice in working with the Roma community and other marginalized groups in the countries of the Danube region. The project was made possible by the financial support of the State Ministry of Baden-Württemberg within the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR). The project consists of three phases in which each of them empowers the Roma and brings about social change in their communities:

• Phase A: Capacity building in Roma villages to increase family security in the region of Sibiu (Romania) and in Vojvodina (Serbia)

• Phase B: Educational measures to fight poverty and empower parents to be active in supporting children in their educational journey in the Roma settlement of Rankovce in Slovakia and Vojvodina (Serbia)

• Phase C: Improve the system of information and counseling of Roma regarding legal means of migration in Stuttgart (Germany) and in Novi Sad (Serbia)

International Roma Day is celebrated every year on April 8, in memory of the founding of the first major international Roma civic initiative, the International Roma Union, in 1971 in London. International Roma Day is also a day to celebrate Roma culture and raise awareness of the problems facing Roma around the world.

Congratulations to all Roma - International Roma Day, with the desire to celebrate next year in much better circumstances and with a higher index of social inclusion.

The project team "With and for the Roma in the Danube Region" welcomes the progress made in terms of Roma inclusion in Europe in the last decade and remains committed to supporting their full participation, destigmatization and integration of Roma in the Danube region.

On behalf of the project team „With and for the Roma in the Danube Region “,

Milisav Milinković

Ecumenical Humanitarian Organization

Notes:

* "With Roma and for them in the Danube region" is a project whose goal is to exchange experiences, knowledge and examples of good practice in working with the Roma community and other marginalized groups in the countries of the Danube region. The project is implemented by the Ecumenical Humanitarian Organization in partnership Diakonie Württemberg from Germany, Evangelical Academy Sibiu from Romania and Evangelical Lutheran diaconia in Slovakia.

** EU Roma strategic framework for equality, inclusion and participation for 2020 - 2030,

https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/factsheet_-_a_new_eu_roma_strategic_framework_en.pdf