Roma Week 2023

ROMA WEEK 2023: Archive
Overview:

24 April – 27 April 2023 Brussels

Policymakers, experts, activists and organisations concerned with persistent antigypsyism in Europe collaborated for Romani Week in the European Parliament and other EU institutions between International Roma Day (8 April) and Romani Resistance Day (16 May). The Romani Week 2023 was aligned with the objectives of the European Year of 2023.

In the framework of the Romani Week 2023, there were sets of events focusing on how history affects the current situation of Roma in Europe and the prospects for the future.

Romani Week 2023 was organised by Romani and pro-Romani civil society in partnership with the European Parliament and the European Commission.

Hosts and support:

Civil Society Partners:

Objectives:

  • Addressing the situation of the Roma refugees from Ukraine in receiving countries.
  • Platform to raise concerns and knowledge exchange: To facilitate exchange and capacity building between Roma, civil society, policymakers and officials.
  • Advocacy for specific thematic areas: These included a general overlapping historical dimension of antigypsyism, anti-racism, participation, funding, green economy, and digital agenda.
  • Campaigning against antigypsyism: The Week was an opportunity for experts and activists to advocate for European and national policymakers to strengthen the implementation of measures fighting antigypsyism.
  • National Roma Strategic Frameworks: Looking at the current EU Framework and addressing the shortcomings of the National Strategic Frameworks.
  • Investing in capacity building and upskilling: During the Week, there were discussions with young people and representatives of civil society on how to address capacity building and empowerment best.

Agenda:

For Romani Week 2023, a Roma youth advocacy training was organised from 22 to 28 April.

The Roma Youth Advocacy Training brought together 30 young Roma and non-Roma to strengthen their understanding of the structures and working mechanisms of the EU institutions, as well as current EU policies related to Roma and against racism, and to develop advocacy strategies and campaigns to raise awareness of antigypsyism at the European level. Moreover, the training addressed how the political participation of youth can be strengthened and how political leaders across Europe can contribute to the fight against antigypsyism.

During the EU Romani Week, the young activists and educators of the training introduced their own local perspectives from across Europe to share their concerns and challenges and to show how Roma youth self-organisations have become agents of change in their communities and societies.

Monday 24th April 2023

18:00 – 20:00      Opening reception

Tuesday 25th April 2023

09:30 – 15:30     Final Conference Chachipen: History, Memory and Justice for Roma in Europe

The event showcased the results of the Chachipen project- Remembrance, Recognition, Justice and Trust-Building. CHACHIPEN addressed different forms of antigypsyism and ways to address them in national settings and paved the way for presenting the Transitional Justice toolbox to further the European response and investigation into horrific chapters of the history of Roma and Sinti so that the guarantees of non-recurrence would be strengthened.

The conference discussed remembering and recognition of the Roma Holocaust in Europe and antigypsyism within transitions from fascist regimes. It looked at the case studies of Spain under Franco and Romania under Antonescu and the extent to which antigypsyism had been addressed. It also looked at good examples from Germany and Sweden in dealing with Roma and Sinti issues and the fight against antigypsyism.

15:30 – 17:00    Roma Heroines Phiren Amenca International Network

Throughout the centuries, Roma women have been victims of the white male gaze in media, literature, history, and arts. Often portrayed as oversexualized, untouchable, or having superpowers, the misrepresentation and systematic marginalization of Roma women have contributed to silencing the voices of Roma women and to a Europe where Roma women lack basic health care services, lack opportunities in education, become victims of human trafficking and many more. Thus, focusing on the power and resistance of Roma women becomes even more crucial. Remembering the fierce Roma women who have contributed to our Roma movements, the women who raised their children within difficult circumstances, and the Roma women artists who challenge sexist and racist discourses should be brought into the spotlight and celebrated. On the occasion of Romani Week on 25 April 2023, the Phiren Amenca International Network organized a panel discussion where young Roma Heroines shared their inspiration to becoming role models for their communities, the challenges they face due to intersectional discrimination and what the contemporary examples are for Roma Resistance from a youth Roma women perspective.

Wednesday 26th April 2023

08:00 – 9:45        Working Breakfast: Dialogue with decision-makers and young Roma

08:45 – 11:00     Conference:  Building Roma historical consciousness

This year we marked the 600th anniversary of a significant historical document issued by the monarch Sigismund of Luxembourg, son of Charles IV. The document known as the Roma Protective Decree was among the first ones of that time that provided Roma with a certain type of dignity and freedom. Many Roma themselves are not aware of this important historical event. The discussion over this document aimed to contribute to better awareness of Roma history by allowing important historians and researchers to share the outcomes of their work. The morning discussion was followed by a handover ceremony of the replica of the Sigismund Decree to the House of European History. There was a great hope that the handover of this replica would open the door for the greater exhibition of Roma history in the House of European history in near future.

11:30 – 12:30     Event: Roma historical consciousness  (European House of History)

14:30 – 18:00     New solutions to old problems (Norway Auditorium)

The event facilitated discussions on the challenges in ensuring adequate and effective regional, national, and local funds for Roma and the importance of monitoring data on funding and its effective implementation towards achieving equality, inclusion, and participation of Roma. The event shared the results of the best practices and what works for Roma from the project “New solutions to old problems – exchange of new types of approaches in the Roma integration”, funded by EEA Norway Grants and implemented in 11 countries from EU and non-EU. The project was an example of participatory research, capacity building, advocacy, and targeted awareness-raising activities to rebuild trust and cooperation between local institutions and Roma communities. The project had the European Roma Grassroots Organisations Network as a partner, leading Partner Nevo Parudimos, and a consortium of 10 NGOs.

The event looked at the challenges and opportunities to scale up the use of EU Funds for Roma during the 2021-2027 programming period. The event promoted the enhancement of Roma entrepreneurship and access to employment at the local level and highlight the benefits of this on health outcomes and healthcare access, among other similar spillover effects

19:00 – 21:30     Traditional Romani Week BBQ dinner – Kamilou restaurant

Thursday 27th April

09:00 – 11:00     National strategies – participation and housing priority (Roma Civil Monitoring)

The first part of the event aimed to present the RCM synthesis report and provide more insights into the findings of civil society organisations participating in the RCM initiative at the level of Member States concerning the quality of the new NRSFs.

The second part of the event focused on one of the main areas of the new Roma strategic frameworks – issues related to housing, such as discrimination in access to adequate housing, de/segregation, mapping of Roma settlements in the Member States or implementation of the EP resolution concerning housing. 

11:30 – 13:30     Socially Responsible Procurement clause in infrastructure projects

The objective was to present a pioneering initiative to include a Socially Responsible Procurement clause in infrastructure projects financed by the Western Balkans Investment Facility (WBIF). The Roma community was one of the main beneficiaries of implementing such an initiative.

Including a socially responsible clause in the numerous Western Balkans infrastructure projects opened a new door for promoting the transition from Roma informal to formal employment.

14:00-16:00     Unlocking the Potential of Young Roma Children in Europe

Every child deserves a fair start and equal opportunities in life. However, across Europe, Roma children disproportionately face hardship during the early years and beyond. The first six years of a child’s life are critical in determining the rest of their lives. Early Childhood Development (ECD) is therefore crucial in ensuring that Romani children have all the opportunities to unlock their full and unique potential and grow up in good health and well-being – to grow and thrive. However, some barriers make realising this difficult. The size of the problem is difficult to determine because of a lack of (disaggregated) data. Adverse conditions for Romani children and their parents are also persistent, as antigypsyism and poor social determinants lead to hardship in all facets of life; employment, education, health, and housing to name a few. A result is that Romani children are disproportionately placed in separate schools, sent to ‘special needs education’, or simply removed from their parents and placed in institutional care. Poverty and discrimination run through these issues like a red threat, a structural issue. During this event, we tried to illustrate these issues by outlining the scale of the problem, providing examples of how these issues might manifest in daily life for Romani children, and, most importantly, how this issue can be resolved through policy action.

14:30 – 16:00    Round table on Ukraine

During the roundtable, we explored topics such as the legal and political framework for the protection of Roma refugees in Ukraine, the challenges to their access to basic services such as healthcare, education, social protection and housing and the role of civil society in supporting the of Roma refugees into host communities and the potential participation of Roma in the Reconstruction Plan/Marshall Plan for Ukraine.

17:00 – 21:00     DG Near award – promoting private and public institutions: Digital Agenda and Green Economy

Gallery: