USE+FUL | Who are these Roma People ?

Roma people originally migrated from northern India and came to Europe. There are different theories as to why the Roma migrated. It is argued that the reasons for migration are wars, slavery, and the search for freedom.

Roma people immigrated all over the world. However, they generally live in the southern part of europe. They have been named differently in each country they migrated to. The origin of the word gypsy comes from Turkish (çingene) . It used to mean poor in old Turkish. Later, the Persian form began to be used among neighboring countries. Over time, Roma people were named with various names due to dialect differences. For example; Greeks say: Τσιγγάνος ( Tsinganos ), Italians say: Zingaro, Slavic countries say: Cigan.

In many regions, Roma were forced into slavery, a practice which continued into the 19th century in Romania and elsewhere. Roma were also sentenced to death throughout the medieval era in England, Switzerland and Denmark. This later grew into organized persecution. Many countries, including Germany, Poland and Italy, ordered the expulsion of all Roma. In the 1930s, the Nazis in Germany saw Roma as “racially inferior” and murdered hundreds of thousands of them during World War II. After the war, Roma continued to be discriminated against and oppressed, especially in the Soviet Union. Between the 1970s and 1990s, the Czech Republic and Slovakia sterilized around 90,000 Romani women against their will.

In most languages, “gypsy” is considered insulting and is rejected by Roma organizations. “Roma” is the right word to use for all related groups, regardless of their country of origin. It became the accepted global term in 1971, when representatives of Roma communities adopted a flag, anthem and international day (8 April). However, there are some countries where “gypsy” or an equivalent may be accepted by the people concerned.

What’s the difference between Roma and Travellers?

Travellers have a different ethnicity to Roma, and live in countries across Europe including France, Ireland and the UK. They often maintain a nomadic or semi-nomadic lifestyle, unlike most Roma.

How many Roma are there?

There is no official or reliable count of Romani populations worldwide. In Europe, there are between 10 and 12 million Roma. Most of them – around two thirds – live in central and eastern European countries, where they make up between 5 and 10 per cent of the population. There are also sizeable Romani minorities in western Europe, especially in Italy (around 150,000 Roma and Travellers), Spain (600,000-800,000), France and the UK (up to 300,000 in each country).

What’s the situation for Roma in Europe today?

Millions of Roma live in isolated slums, often without any electricity or running water, and struggle to get the health care they need. Many live with the daily threat of forced evictions, police harassment and violent attacks. Romani children also often suffer segregation in schools and receive a lower standard of education.

What impact does this have?

Roma have more health problems, worse housing and lower literacy levels than non-Roma people. In central and eastern Europe, they can expect to live 10 years less than others. On average, they also earn less and are more likely to be unemployed. Without good jobs, they can’t afford proper housing, good health care, or a quality education for their children.

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Mustafa Tuncer, volunteer@ICDET

RE+ALITY | GREenAT Time

Hello from ICDETv! It's summer 2021 and that means - it's time for some travelling&adventure! Our interns had a opportunity to go for work visit outside of Sofia, in Svishtov. They had some crazy, but funny moments during their GREEN travel, outdoor activities and many workshops on environment and inclusion, watch them and enjoy! :)

beGreE+n @ Svishtov

Last week, from the 28th to 30th July, as part of the Begree+n project, the ICDET team went to Shvistov, a Bulgarian town near the Danube, in order to perform some activities imagined by the interns in the past weeks.

Shvistov was chosen as an ideal place to continue what has been done so far regarding environmental subjects in the framework of the Begree+n project. In effect, this city welcomed a Bulgarian NGO called Institute Perspectives, an educational organization dedicated to the implementation of European integration policies in Bulgaria by developing innovative approaches in different fields (human rights, non-formal education...). Therefore, the opportunity to reach a young audience to raise awareness of the environmental cause was evident and could not be missed. Moreover, the diversity of the audience in terms of age and background is a way to ensure a broad impact of the project, combining both a local impetus for change but also allowing for a broader spectrum with more general topics. Through activities that emphasize confronting preconceived notions about the environment and one's own knowledge through presentations and quizzes, as well as through practical actions that include direct public participation via workshops and games, the project aims to provide environmental education and intercultural awareness that participants can carry forward into the future.

On the 29th, we gathered with the volunteer team of the NGO Institute Perspectives in their place, at the camp situated in Vardim to present to them our work. Previously, we joined Vardim by biking and kayaking, starting from Svishtov, as a means to promote green ways of travelling, which is an important subject at the core of the Begree+n project. Following some ice-breakers and basic presentations to get to know each other better, the event really began with a Kahoot questionnaire about vegetarianism to confront people's preconceived notions about this subject and illustrate how everyone can contribute to a healthier environment through this lifestyle. This way of evoking the subject in this way was intended to capture the public's attention more easily and to bring together people who do not necessarily know each other through a game.

Then, the ESC volunteer of ICDET, Murat, a convinced vegetarian presented the benefits of this lifestyle and tried to use his own case to trigger a discussion with other people about the ways of being vegetarian on a daily basis.

Following those activities, we pursue the event with an emphasis on some other ways to consider improving the environment by simple actions, that is to say through travelling or using a specific lifestyle. First, we displayed a video made by a previous trainee about possible initiatives to travel in a sustainable way, and then the subject of camping was addressed through another video because it is a way to live in harmony with nature but few people consider it seriously unfortunately. The camping initiative was also in some way put into practice by the ICDET team through the night spent in Vardim in these conditions.

Overall, from this experience of several days outside Sofia, the team appreciated the discovery of a new environment and the possibility to change people's mentalities through numerous meetings.