A day to celebrate Roma…
by Catherine MALLET
The 8th April was the International Roma Day, and saw many events taking place across Europe to mark the day and celebrate the Roma people. The European Parliament in Brussels joined in the activities by hosting a Roma week with numerous Roma-themed events and discussions (see other article on stock-taking event).
The European Commission also issued a statement in honour of the day calling on Member States to ‘accelerate their efforts to support Roma: every EU country should respect and enforce anti-discrimination laws; all Roma children should have access to non-segregated education; national authorities should prevent forced evictions and support access to housing'.
The Council of Europe also released a statement on ahead of the International Roma Day with ‘10 goals for the next 10 years’
A number of EU countries made public celebrations or organised events including Greece’s President Prokopis Pavlopoulos who reminded the public that Greece’s Roma community is an integral part of society. Read more here . Sweden also celebrated International Roma Day with a huge celebration in the ‘People’s Park’. See here for more information and photos.
Did you celebrate the International Roma Day? If so, we’d love to hear what you did! Drop me a short line at cmallet@armeedusalut.be
Tags: Europe