European Parliament resolution of 12 February 2019 on the need for a strengthened post-2020 Strategic EU Framework for National Roma Inclusion Strategies and stepping up the fight against anti-Gypsyism (2019/2509(RSP))
Date: 2019-02-12
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: EU strategy, Roma, equal treatment, ethnic discrimination, human rights, marginalisation, rights of minorities, social integration








C_2020449EN.01000201.xml










23.12.2020   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 449/2






P8_TA(2019)0075
Roma integration strategies
European Parliament resolution of 12 February 2019 on the need for a strengthened post-2020 Strategic EU Framework for National Roma Inclusion Strategies and stepping up the fight against anti-Gypsyism (2019/2509(RSP))
(2020/C 449/01)

The European Parliament,






—


having regard to the Treaty on European Union, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,










—


having regard to the Commission communication of 5 April 2011 entitled ‘An EU Framework for Roma integration strategies up to 2020’ (COM(2011)0173) and to the subsequent implementation and evaluation reports,










—


having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms,










—


having regard to the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights regarding the recognition of Roma as a group needing special protection against discrimination,










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having regard to the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Resolution 2153 (2017) on ‘Promoting the inclusion of Roma and Travellers’,










—


having regard to Council Directive 2000/43/EC of 29 June 2000 implementing the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin (1),










—


having regard to the Council recommendation of 9 December 2013 on effective Roma integration measures in the Member States (2), and to the Council conclusions of 8 December 2016 on accelerating the process of Roma integration and of 13 October 2016 on the European Court of Auditors Special Report No 14/2016,










—


having regard to the Council Framework Decision 2008/913/JHA of 28 November 2008 on combating certain forms and expressions of racism and xenophobia by means of criminal law (3),










—


having regard to its resolution of 25 October 2017 on fundamental rights aspects in Roma integration in the EU: fighting anti-Gypsyism (4),










—


having regard to its resolution of 15 April 2015 on International Roma Day — anti-Gypsyism in Europe and EU recognition of the memorial day of the Roma genocide during World War II (5),










—


having regard to the Fundamental Rights Report 2016 by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), and to the FRA’s EU-MIDIS I and II surveys and various other surveys and reports on Roma,










—


having regard to the European Citizens’ Initiative ‘Minority SafePack’, registered on 3 April 2017,










—


having regard to the relevant reports and recommendations of Roma civil society, NGOs and research institutions,










—


having regard to Rule 123(2) of its Rules of Procedure,










A.


whereas anti-Gypsyism (6) is a specific form of racism, an ideology founded on racial superiority, a form of dehumanisation and institutional racism nurtured by historical discrimination, which is expressed, among others, by violence, hate speech, exploitation, stigmatisation and the most blatant kind of discrimination (7);










B.


whereas Roma (8) are still being deprived of their basic human rights in Europe;










C.


whereas the findings of the Commission Report on the evaluation of the EU Framework for National Roma Integration Strategies up to 2020 (COM(2018)0785) underline that ‘the framework has been key for the development of EU and national instruments and structures aiming to promote Roma inclusion, but the ambition of putting an end to the exclusion of Roma has not been achieved’;










D.


whereas the evaluation carried out by the Commission shows that inclusion strategies must address the different goals simultaneously and in a comprehensive approach with a stronger focus on the fight against anti-Gypsyism; whereas a specific non-discrimination goal along with goals on inclusion of Roma should be added alongside the four Roma inclusion goals (education, housing, employment and health);










E.


whereas the progress achieved in the inclusion of Roma is limited overall; whereas improvements were observed in early school-leaving and early childhood education, but there was deterioration in school segregation; whereas there was an improvement in the self-perceived health status of Roma but they continue to have limited medical coverage; whereas in most Member States no improvement was observed in access to employment, and the share of young Roma not in employment, education or training even increased; whereas there are serious concerns relating to housing and only little progress has been made regarding poverty; whereas anti-Gypsyism and its manifestations, such as hate crime and hate speech — online and offline — continue to raise serious concerns; whereas EU action was considered to provide important added value to national Roma policies and their implementation through political, governance and financial areas;










F.


whereas the evaluation reports the shortcomings in the initial design of the framework and its limited effectiveness during implementation;










G.


whereas the evaluation sheds light on the fact that there is a need to ensure Roma empowerment and participation through dedicated measures; whereas that empowerment and capacity-building of Roma and NGOs are key;










H.


whereas the evaluation shows that the EU framework did not pay sufficient attention to targeting specific groups among Roma, that multiple and intersectional discrimination have to be addressed and that there is a need for a strong gender dimension and a child-centered approach in the strategies;










I.


whereas the current EU framework lacks clear objectives and measurable targets; whereas there are insufficient qualitative and quantitative monitoring procedures, while country-specific recommendations are not binding; whereas insufficient effort is being made to address the limited participation of Roma individuals and communities in the framework’s design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of measures, programmes and projects regarding Roma;










J.


whereas most mainstream programmes are not inclusive of Roma, and whereas targeted actions covered by the Structural Funds failed to make sustainable positive changes in the lives of the most disadvantaged Roma;










K.


whereas Member States have a clear responsibility to take corrective measures against practices that discriminate against Roma;










L.


whereas the issue of building trust between Roma and non-Roma is vital for improving the lives and life chances of Roma; whereas trust is essential for society as a whole;












1.


Reiterates its position, calls and recommendations put forward and adopted in its resolution of 25 October 2017 on fundamental rights aspects in Roma integration in the EU: fighting anti-Gypsyism; regrets that limited action has been taken on the recommendations put forward in this resolution;












2.


Calls on the Commission:






i.


to act on the calls made by Parliament, the Council and numerous NGOs and experts and propose a Strategic EU Framework on National Roma Inclusion Strategies for the post-2020 period with a wider set of priority areas, clear and binding targets, timelines and indicators for monitoring and addressing the specific challenges and reflecting the diversity of Roma communities, and allocating substantial public funds to this end;










ii.


to sufficiently involve Roma representatives, NGOs and the European Network of Equality Bodies (Equinet) in the design of the Strategic EU Framework, including through a visible and accessible consultation procedure, and to enable their meaningful participation in the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of it, thus strengthening their ownership;










iii.


to place the fight against anti-Gypsyism at the heart of the Strategic EU Framework, including by adding a specific anti-discrimination goal, along with other goals, such as inclusion of Roma in an environmentally sustainable, digital society, and their equitable representation in all spheres of life, and to encourage Member States to develop targeted strategies and concrete actions to fight anti-Gypsyism, in addition to one of its manifestations, social and economic exclusion;










iv.


to ensure that multiple and intersectional discrimination, gender mainstreaming and a child-sensitive approach are properly addressed in the Strategic EU Framework;










v.


to ensure that it allocates adequate human and financial resources in order to have the necessary capacities to monitor, support and provide guidance concerning the implementation of the National Roma Inclusion Strategies, including guidance to the National Roma Contact Points (NRCPs);










vi.


to strengthen the Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) in terms of its mandate, institutional capacity, human resources and budget in order to enable it to help the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the National Roma Inclusion Strategies;










vii.


to adopt a workforce diversity and inclusion strategy for Roma participation in the workforce of the EU institutions;










viii.


to pay attention to specific groups within the Roma population in the Strategic EU Framework, such as EU Roma exercising their right to freedom of movement, non-EU nationals and Roma in accession countries;










ix.


to include a truth, recognition and reconciliation process in the Strategic EU Framework for the sake of trust-building, and to highlight concrete cultural and structural measures and initiatives, supported by EU funds;










x.


to continue to check the inclusiveness of the mainstream public policies of the Member States under the European Semester within the framework of the Europe 2020 strategy, and to maintain a strong link between inclusive structural reforms, the delivery of Roma inclusion goals and the use of EU funding in the Member States;
















3.


Calls on the Member States:






i.


to prepare their Strategic National Roma Inclusion Strategies for the post-2020 period with a wide set of priority areas, clear and binding targets, timelines and indicators for monitoring and addressing the specific challenges and reflecting the diversity of their Roma communities, and to allocate substantial public funds to this end;










ii.


to follow a bottom-up approach and involve Roma representatives, communities, NGOs and equality bodies in the design of their Strategic National Roma Inclusion Strategies (Strategies), and to enable their meaningful participation in the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of these Strategies;










iii.


to place the fight against anti-Gypsyism at the heart of their Strategies, in addition to one of the manifestations of anti-Gypsyism, social and economic exclusion; to develop targeted strategies and concrete actions to fight anti-Gypsyism, such as investigating current and past racist attacks against Roma; and to encourage equitable representation of Roma in all spheres of life, including in media, public institutions and political bodies;










iv.


to ensure that multiple and intersectional discrimination, gender mainstreaming and a child-sensitive approach are properly addressed in their Strategies;










v.


to explicitly consider children as a priority when programming and implementing their Strategic National Roma integration strategies; reiterates the importance of protecting and promoting equal access to all rights for Roma children;










vi.


to strengthen the NRCPs in terms of their mandate, institutional capacity, human resources and budget and to ensure appropriate positioning of NRCPs within the structure of their public administrations in order to enable them to carry out their work through effective cross-sectoral coordination;










vii.


to pay attention to specific groups within the Roma population in their Strategies, such as EU Roma exercising their right to freedom of movement, and non-EU nationals, including Roma from accession countries;










viii.


to include a truth, recognition and reconciliation process in their Strategies for the sake of trust-building and to highlight concrete cultural and structural measures and initiatives supported by public funds;










ix.


to ensure and safeguard the effective inclusiveness of their mainstream public policies, to utilise the available EU Structural Funds to improve the living conditions and life chances of Roma in a transparent and accountable manner; to investigate the current and past misuse of relevant funds and take legal action against the perpetrators; to take the necessary steps to secure the absorption of all the funds targeting Roma communities, including by the end of the current MFF;
















4.


Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the governments and parliaments of the Member States and candidate countries, the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Committee of the Regions, for distribution to subnational parliaments and councils, the Council of Europe, and the United Nations.






(1)  OJ L 180, 19.7.2000, p. 22.

(2)  OJ C 378, 24.12.2013, p. 1.

(3)  OJ L 328, 6.12.2008, p. 55.

(4)  OJ C 346, 27.9.2018, p. 171.

(5)  OJ C 328, 6.9.2016, p. 4.

(6)  Anti-Gypsyism is sometimes spelt differently, and in the various Member States it is sometimes referred to by a slightly different term, such as Antiziganismus.

(7)  ECRI’s General Policy Recommendation No. 13 on Combating Anti-Gypsyism and Discrimination against Roma.

(8)  The word ‘Roma’ is used as an umbrella term which includes different related groups throughout Europe, whether sedentary or not, such as Roma, Travellers, Sinti, Manouches, Kalés, Romanichels, Boyash, Ashkalis, Égyptiens, Yéniches, Doms and Loms, that may be diverse in culture and lifestyles.