Nedavno objavljeno izvješće ECRI-ja za 2019. godinu naglašava nekoliko ključnih tendencija. Izbori za Europski parlament, održani prošle godine, kao i drugi nacionalni i lokalni izbori održani u Europi tokom 2019. godine, ukazali su na tendenciju "daljeg uspona ultranacionalističkih stranaka". Istovremeno, sve je više i više političkih stranaka orijentiranih kao centar koje koriste retoriku krajnje desnice i usvajaju restriktivne političke mjere u pogledu migracija i integracija. Međutim, ovi trendovi ne odvijaju se izvan šireg konteksta.

“Sve je jači osjećaj javnosti kako su zapostavljeni, što je posljedica ekonomskih i društvenih “stiskanja”, a što također povećava broj ljudi koji princip jednakosti svih doživljavaju kao prijetnju njihovim, i onako sve manjim, resursima. Oni često osjećaju kako bi uključivanje marginaliziranih skupina, poput migranata ili Roma, vodilo ka neželjenoj konkurenciji u društvu koje već vide kao visoko konkurentno."

„Pravednija raspodjela bogatstva“ put je kojim treba ići kako bi se prevazišle ove napetosti u društvu. U izvješću se zaključuje kako bi proaktivan pristup podrške „inkluzivnom obrazovanju“ također pomoglo državama članicama u borbi s tim problemom. I to je zasigurno tako. Usprkos velikom broju nacionalnih strategija, planova djelovanja, projektnih aktivnosti i programa podrške, položaj većine Roma nije se značajno poboljšao. Kako nejednakosti u Europi postaju sve veće, a socijalni izdaci se smanjuju na mnogim područjima, pristup obrazovanju, ali i zdravstvu i drugim javnim uslugama, postaje sve problematičniji. Pored dugogodišnjih ksenofobičnih stavova u europskom društvu, sveukupna strukturalna neuravnoteženost u ekonomskom sustavu sputava socijalnu i kulturnu uključenost Roma.

U posebnom odjeljku o trendovima vezanim za Rome i Putnike, u Izvješće ECRI-ja navodi se:

"Čini se kako poduzete radnje nisu dovoljne, te kako se njima ne mogu savladati višeslojni i međusobno povezani uzroci socijalne isključenosti koji su najvidljiviji u područjima obrazovanja, zapošljavanja, stanovanja i zdravstvene skrbi."

U tom smislu, očito je kako politika koja se provodi u mnogim europskim zemljama ima malo ili nimalo rezultata. Štoviše, položaj većine romskih zajednica pogoršao se u posljednjih nekoliko godina. Jedan od razloga zašto se to događa je dominantno shvaćanje prema kojem su izazovi s kojima se Romi suočavaju nešto izolirano, problemi koji se tiču isključivo Roma.

Ono što treba razumjeti je, ako uključivanje Roma nije samo od vlade plaćeno govorenje bez sadržaja prema “europskim standardima” znači da su marginalizirane skupine već sastavni dio društva. Ono na što treba obratiti pažnju su podjele unutar društva kao takvog. To ne znači kako bi svi ljudi trebali biti isti, te kako se različiti narodi moraju asimilirati. Uključivanje marginaliziranih grupa više je pitanje moći. Prevladati podjele u društvu znači iskorijeniti dominaciju jedne skupine nad drugom, odnosno, znači kako dobrobit društva u cjelini treba prevladati interese malobrojnih.

 

 

The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) is a unique human rights monitoring body which specializes in questions relating to the fight against racism, xenophobia, and intolerance in Europe. It was set up by the first Summit of Heads of State and Government of the member states of the Council of Europe in 1993. The main activities of ECRI include country monitoring, development of policy recommendations for governments, and relations with civil society actors. Each year, the Commission issues an annual report which, among other things, outlines the main trends in Europe with regards to discrimination and abuse of rights.

The Annual Report for 2019, published just recently, underlines several key tendencies. Last year, the elections for European Parliament, as well as various other national and local elections across the continent witnessed “a further rise of ultra-nationalistic parties”, the document notes. At the same time, more and more mainstream political parties from the centre employ far-right rhetoric and adopt restrictive policies with regard to migration and integration. These trends, however, are not occurring without context.  

“A growing feeling among the general public of being left behind by an economic and social “squeeze” also increases the number of people who consider equality for all as a threat to their already shrinking resources. [They would often] perceive the inclusion of marginalised groups, such as migrants or Roma, to constitute further unwanted competition in what is already seen as a highly competitive society.”

A “more fair and equitable distribution” of the wealth is the way forward to overcome these tensions. A pro-active approach to support “inclusive education” would also help member states to tackle the issue, the Report concludes. And this is certainly true – in spite of the large number of national strategies and actions plans, project activities and support programs, the situation of most Roma has not improved significantly. As inequality is deepening in Europe and the social expenditure is shrinking in many areas, the access to education - but also to healthcare and other public services – is becoming increasingly problematic. It is the overall structural imbalance in the economic system that hinders the social and cultural inclusion of Roma, in addition to the long-standing xenophobic attitudes in European societies.

In its special section on the trends regarding Roma and Travelers, the ECRI Report states:

“Current actions appear to be insufficient and unable to overcome the multi-layered and interlinked root causes of social exclusion which are most visible in the areas of education, employment, housing and health.”

In that sense, it is obvious that the policies undertaken in many European countries appear to have little to no result. What is more, the situation of most Roma communities has deteriorated in recent years. One of the reasons behind this outcome is the dominant inclination to perceive the challenges Roma face as something isolated, as a problem of and for Roma alone.

What is to be understood, if Roma inclusion is not just governments paying lip service to the “European norms”, is that marginalized groups are already part of society. And what has to be addressed are the divisions within the society as such. That is not to say that everyone should be the same and that different people have to be assimilated. The inclusion of marginalized groups is rather a question of power. To overcome the divisions in society means to eradicate the domination of one group over another, it means that the well-being of the society as a whole prevails over the interests of the few.