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Key Roma organizations reach breakthrough agreement at Warsaw meeting
WARSAW 24 October 2000
WARSAW, 24 October 2000 - Europe's leading Roma organizations achieved a breakthrough agreement on a common approach towards the highly controversial issue of Roma migration from Central and Eastern Europe mostly to Western European OSCE countries. Some 150 representatives of governments, Roma NGOs and international organizations had been invited by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) to an international consultation meeting on Roma refugees and asylum seekers which took place yesterday at the margins of the annual OSCE human rights conference in Warsaw.
In preparation of the meeting, the two largest international Roma organizations and long-time rivals, the International Romani Union and the Roma National Congress, had set aside their differences for the first time in many years, formed a working group and agreed on a common platform on migration issues. "The forming of the joint working group is a historic step", said Nicolae Gheorghe, the Head of the OSCE/ODIHR Contact Point for Roma and Sinti Issues. "The great interest attracted by establishing the working group at yesterday's consultation meeting clearly showed that this new arrangement could be a nucleus for the long-awaited emergence of a joint position of major Roma organizations on a broad basis. The working group could become a much-needed constructive and critical partner for governments, international organizations, donors and human rights groups."
Mr. Gheorghe appealed to the governments of OSCE participating States to respond to this new development by acknowledging the particular grievances of Roma, who face pervasive and systemic discrimination in a number of OSCE countries. "If we want to prevent a further deterioration of the situation of Roma in these countries, the governments should carefully listen to the early-warning signals brought forward by Roma NGOs during yesterday's meeting."
The ODIHR made clear during the consultation meeting, organized by the ODIHR with support of the Council of Europe and other partners as a side event of the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, that it will continue to monitor the human rights situation in the countries of origin, as well as the application of asylum procedures in the destination countries, in particular when there are concerns that the procedures are applied in a discriminatory way.
There was strong support among Roma NGOs at the meeting for the proposal to establish a Roma-led assessment group, which should be tasked to evaluate the effectiveness of existing national and international Roma programmes. The proposal reflected growing criticism of internationally funded projects aimed at improving the situation of Roma in countries of origin.
For further information contact Jens-Hagen Eschenbächer, OSCE/ODIHR Public Affairs Officer at +48-22-5200600 or +48-603683122 (mobile).
In preparation of the meeting, the two largest international Roma organizations and long-time rivals, the International Romani Union and the Roma National Congress, had set aside their differences for the first time in many years, formed a working group and agreed on a common platform on migration issues. "The forming of the joint working group is a historic step", said Nicolae Gheorghe, the Head of the OSCE/ODIHR Contact Point for Roma and Sinti Issues. "The great interest attracted by establishing the working group at yesterday's consultation meeting clearly showed that this new arrangement could be a nucleus for the long-awaited emergence of a joint position of major Roma organizations on a broad basis. The working group could become a much-needed constructive and critical partner for governments, international organizations, donors and human rights groups."
Mr. Gheorghe appealed to the governments of OSCE participating States to respond to this new development by acknowledging the particular grievances of Roma, who face pervasive and systemic discrimination in a number of OSCE countries. "If we want to prevent a further deterioration of the situation of Roma in these countries, the governments should carefully listen to the early-warning signals brought forward by Roma NGOs during yesterday's meeting."
The ODIHR made clear during the consultation meeting, organized by the ODIHR with support of the Council of Europe and other partners as a side event of the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, that it will continue to monitor the human rights situation in the countries of origin, as well as the application of asylum procedures in the destination countries, in particular when there are concerns that the procedures are applied in a discriminatory way.
There was strong support among Roma NGOs at the meeting for the proposal to establish a Roma-led assessment group, which should be tasked to evaluate the effectiveness of existing national and international Roma programmes. The proposal reflected growing criticism of internationally funded projects aimed at improving the situation of Roma in countries of origin.
For further information contact Jens-Hagen Eschenbächer, OSCE/ODIHR Public Affairs Officer at +48-22-5200600 or +48-603683122 (mobile).