R E P O R T

FROM RIJEKA’S XII ROMA MEETINGS

Rijeka, 2nd November 2012

On Friday 2nd November 2011 in rooms of Primorsko-Goranska Zupanija in Rijeka was held a meeting with County-ruler of Primorsko-Goranska County prof dr.sc Vidoje Vujic regarding Rijeka’s 12th Roma Meetings (that last with following manifestations between 2nd and 5th November).

On this meeting were present: Prof. dr. sc. Vidoje Vujic – County-ruler of Primorsko-Goranska County, Surija Mehmeti – president of the Council of Roma national minority for Rijeka city, Jovan Damjanovic – president of the World Roma Organization Rromanipen, Bajram Haliti – general secretary of World Roma Organization Rromanipen, Fadil Hrustic – commissioner for Roma diaspora of World Roma Organization Rromanipen, Veli Husein – vice-president of World Roma Organization Rromanipen and Angelica Mashtakova – member of Presidium of World Roma Organization Rromanipen.

Course of meeting:

• Initiative about integration of Roma
• Miscellaneous

WELCOME AND OPENING SPEECH:

SURIJA MEHMETI, president of the Council of Roma national minority for Rijeka city
Respected Ruler Vujic, it is honor to me on behalf of organizational board and in my personal name to salute you most heartily as a president of the Organizational board of 12th Roma meetings, as well as other participators of this meeting, headed by the president of World Roma Organization Rromanipen Jovan Damjanovic.

Establishing of the Council of Roma national minority for Rijeka city – Roma community “Roma unity”, is giving us right to create necessary institutional frame for permanent and joint work of representatives of authority and minorities on improvement of legal-political position of our national minority and on protection of our uniqueness.

According to the Law’s provisions, Councils of national minorities are partners and advisory bodies of state authority, and their representatives participate in deciding about issues of importance for uniqueness of national minorities.

Council of Roma national minority has some independent authorizations in areas that are embraced with Roma Decade: eradication of poorness, as well as solving of housing, health and educational issues. It is about authorizations that are significant for expressing and maintaining individualities of national minorities, and that can be delegated to them by the Law. Exposed solutions are making new approach in domestic and comprehensive legislation and should enable participation of minorities in public jobs that are important for preserve of their individualities.

To successfully realize cooperation between the County and Council of Roma national minority, it is necessary to harmonize a stabile program of objectives, tasks, methods, instruments and time frames, as well as obligations of all partners.

And at the end, respected Ruler Vujic, I would like to ask to find on the level of Primorsko-Goranska County solution for legalization of Roma settlements – of course, on mutual pleasure.

JOVAN DAMJANOVIC, president of World Roma Organization Rromanipen

Ladies and gentlemen, very respected friends, as a president of World Roma Organization Rromanipen, former Parliamentary member and president of Democratic left of Roma, allow me to at the beginning inform you about objectives and tasks of World Roma Organization.

We, members of Roma nation (Roma, Sinti and Kale who count approx. 15.000.000) are dedicated to never again be exposed to sufferings, to save future generations of war terror, which twice during our lives inflicted to mankind indescribable sufferings; to again reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in dignity and value of human personality, in equality of men and women and small and big nations.

In wish to develop and realize principles from the UN’s Charter, Universal declaration about human rights, Convention about prevention and abolition of genocide’s crimes, International convention about abolition of all forms of racial discrimination, International pact about citizen’s and political rights, International pact about economic, social and political rights, Declaration about abolition of all forms of intolerances and discrimination based on the religion or believes, Convention about rights of children and other relevant international instruments which have been adopted on the global or regional level or those concluded between individual countries members of the UN, as well to create our future by ourselves and to confirm that all people are equal and same, regardless their religion, gender, race or nation, determined to provide to our nation better future, we establishedi n 2012 in Belgrade World Roma Organization Rromanipen on whose Founding congress participated Roma representatives from 26 countries.

I personally believe that initiative about establishing of World Roma Organization Rromanipen is significant for our national community, and that issue of socialization and participation of Roma in all forms of public life is one of key questions of our joint future in the world.

Some of basic objectives and tasks of World Roma Organization are to determine the ground of social security of people (especially unemployed), and commitment that subject of social protection should in first line be children, helpless and elder persons. Other important goals to which World Roma Organization Rromanipen tends are freedom of press, arrangement of equality on legal level, and when it is about Roma – we tend for complete national equality, i.e. that education and development of our culture on mother tongue are enabled in full measure, and that each effort to prevent and disable that right something that should be treated as an active attempt of realization of genocide on cultural level.

We will plead to have right on establishing of our establishments, our cultural institutions, right to get provided learning of Roma language in schools, and that our culture is developed in far more greater measure. That would be in short when it is about our program, principles and objectives of constituting of World Roma Organization Rromanipen.

Professional education was identified as the area in which should be applied standards of equality. Maybe foremost should be developed standards that will provide to Roma equal personal treatment from side of local authorities. That would be first step towards the implementation of equality standard and test of good will are they really wanted to be realized in practice.

At the end, respected Ruler Vujic, since with our Charter is specified that all officials of countries have its offices for sake of realization of Charter, I am asking you to meet our requirements and allocate us an office, so that we could be more efficient in realization of all measures in state of Croatia that indicate respect of rights of members of Roma community.

Bajram Haliti, general secretary of World Roma Organization Rromanipen

Respected Mr. Vujic, respected Mr. Mehmeti, at my opinion, basic characteristic of socio-economic position of Roma in South-eastern Europe is low level of economic activity and high unemployment. Low level of Roma economic activities is consequence of social-economic anachronism, prejudges with employers related to employment of Roma and demographic factors (Roma population is extremely young, in which working active population older than age of 15 are approx. 58%). Besides non-differentiated social-professional structure of work force, to high level of Roma unemployment influence also low educational level, increased competition on the work market for non-qualified occupations, as well as requirements of scientific-technological development on which Roma cannot adequately respond.

Factors that determine economic position of Roma include inordinacy of income related to the sorts of job with which majority of Roma is dealing, increase of unemployment level as the consequence of economic crisis and small need on the work market for low-qualified workers. Owing to that, they aren’t in position to enjoy rights that are provided by the measures of social insurance, which further complicates life of already jeopardized families.

Measures of social policy should be realized together with measures that are having for objective giving of new economic authorizations, improvement of level of professional qualifications and housing and health conditions of life of Roma. Such measures can be at the same time understood also as part of wider strategy for decrease of poorness that cares about social consequences of economic transition for jeopardized groups.

Respected participators of this meeting, I will remind you that World Roma Organization Rromanipen sees in initiative of individual main engine of successful economy. World Roma Organization Rromanipen encourages and supports economic activities of individuals from Roma community, removes obstacles for their initiative and facilitates their participation in international competition.

Veli Husein, vice-president of World Roma Organization

Respected participators of conference, I will be speaking about possibilities of Roma NGOs for active inclusion into the process of creation of donors’ strategies through education and improvement of communication with donors’ organizations. Those processes are key for further development of NGO sector in Southeastern Europe and wider, and with which World Roma Organization Rromanipen should deal significantly.
Intensive communication between World Roma Organization, Roma NGOs, state and donors’ organizations is basis of their partnership and offering of efficient response to the needs of society. If we turn back to the function of states and donors as investors with their objectives and missions like for example human rights’ protection, protection of members of national minorities, development of local community or ecology and environment protection, than NGOs are truly organizations that possess knowledge and organizational infrastructure to recognize and solve some problems and satisfy needs on the road to realization of those objectives. Non-government organizations are obligated to meet donors with problems that are subject of their work if they want to acquire financial resources for solving of specific problems. In opposite, donors are forced to define priority problems individually. Project proposals aren’t sufficient for active communication between donors and NGOs, but also regular informing about needs and problems, their development and price of their non-realization.

FADIL HRUSTIC, commissioner for Roma Diaspora of World Roma Organization Rromanipen

Respected Ruler Vujic, respected gentlemen, I will be speaking about tasks for motherland and diaspora of World Roma Organization Rromanipen.

As a commissioner for Diaspora I will always insist that in motherland India and countries members of EU, with increased engagement and strengthening of responsibility, should be achieved notable progress in solving of numerous issues of vital significance for Diaspora, especially for preserve of national, cultural and spiritual identity, as well in creating conditions for its versatile inclusion into development and integration of Roma in countries in which Roma live.

Objectives of Commissariat for Roma Diaspora of World Roma Organization Rromanipen are:

• That with establishing of central and regional councils for Diaspora in relevant ministries are created efficient institutional grounds for improvement of connections and cooperation between motherland and Diaspora;
• To decisively raise voice against all forms of discrimination, xenophobia and racism, anywhere in the world, and especially discrimination of members of our nation on the areas of former Yugoslavia republics;
• That motherland support strategic economic projects that lead towards solving of important open questions of existential interest for our nation in exodus;
• To request from relevant bodies of state of India to most-urgently solve all requests for acquiring of citizenship in countries in which Roma live, and to acknowledge them a status of national minority in countries of Eastern and Western Europe, and in countries of Balkans;
• World Roma Organization Rromanipen intends to further support and develop bridges of cooperation with countries in which Roma live and that those bridges become stronger and stronger.

ANGELICA MASHTAKOVA, member of Presidium of World Roma Organization Rromanipen

Respected Ruler, I will give my proposal of opinions about on which way should World Roma Organization approach with its policy to solving of health problems of Roma women in Europe.

Health of women is problematic subject, having in mind social-economic factors (poorness, inappropriate nutrition, absence of access to health services) and cultural models (relatively early and numerous childbirths).

Problems with access to health services are also important. That is partially consequence of the cash payment that is required from users - although those payments are relatively small, they are often too high for many Roma. Limited access to health services in some countries derives also from the non-possession of appropriate personal documents and abstract from the Register of births that are necessary for enrollment into the system of health insurance.

Indeed, from this meeting with you Mr. Vujic I expect that it will contribute that Roma health policy penetrate to the County’s institutions and to on the best way put end to the misunderstanding of health problems of Roma in Primorsko-Goranska County.

PROF. DR. SC. VIDOJE VUJIC, County-ruler of Primorsko-Goranska County

Ladies and gentlemen, very respected friends, as a president of the Primorsko-Goranska County I want to foremost greet Surija Mehmeti, president of the Council of Roma national minority for Rijeka city, and then president of World Roma Organization Rromanipen Jovan Damjanovic, as well as all you who are present today on this significant meeting that is related to the notation of Rijeka’s 12th Roma Meetings.

We want to develop our society on dynamic potential of our citizens, aware that sometimes we need to confront the passivism. However, we build our policy on attitudes that we consider correct, and not necessarily on attitudes that in current moment have majority support. Thing is that we build future on the positive thing, and not on the most easily available.

Republic of Croatia as a participator of Roma Decade has adopted action plans and Strategy for Roma integration. Decade for Roma inclusion 2005-2015 is an international initiative, first of that kin, within which countries of Central and Southeast Europe committed themselves to, within regional frames, act on improving of social-economic status and inclusion of Roma.

Decade for Roma inclusion includes priority areas of education, employment, health protection and housing. Our government committed itself that it will deal with improvement of position of Roma while taking to consideration key aspects – poorness, discrimination and gender equality.

Roma Decade also has our support ahead of our County, which will give material and professional support for projects of regional cooperation, as well for implementation of national Action plans.

As a Ruler of Primorsko-Goranska County, I plead for solving of problem of legalization of Roma settlements in best way, because that is truly in our mutual interest and our mutual objective.

At the end, I support proposal of Mr. Jovan Damjanovic – president of World Roma Organization Rromanipen, to assign to World Roma Organization office in our County in Rijeka.

In Belgrade,

6.11.2012.

Bajram Haliti

General secretary