B Explanatory memorandum
by Mr František Kopřiva, rapporteur
1 Introduction
1. Centuries-old, deeply ingrained
dynamics of hatred, contempt, indifference, inaction or overtly discriminatory
policies have left many Roma and Travellers
Note in Europe
consigned to racially segregated, inadequate housing, often lacking
the most basic facilities, and often vulnerable to eviction, demolition
or attack. Communities who wish to maintain an itinerant lifestyle
are frequently confronted with a severe shortage of adequate sites,
leading to an explosive combination of unsuitable, overcrowded living
conditions for them and tensions with local residents and authorities.
2. This experience of discrimination in the field of housing
– a term that I use in this report to refer to both permanent (fixed)
homes and mobile homes adapted to an itinerant lifestyle – is still
a reality for far too many Roma and Traveller communities and individuals
in Europe today, and remains inseparably intertwined with antigypsyism
Note and anti-nomadism.
3. Activists and others who raise these issues are sometimes
accused of feeding into stereotyped images of Roma and Travellers
focusing on poverty, criminality or differing lifestyles. The real
issues at stake, however, are justice, segregation and harassment.
4. These realities not only amount to violations of the prohibition
on inhuman and degrading treatment and of the right to respect for
private and family life and the home under the European Convention
on Human Rights (ETS No. 5) (Articles 3 and 8), as well as of the
right to housing, recognised notably under the European Social Charter
(revised) (ETS No. 163) (Article 31) and the International Covenant
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Article 11), but they may
also have dire consequences for the health and access to employment
of Roma and Travellers, and for their children’s access to education.
All of these human rights violations severely diminish both the
life chances and the life expectancy of Roma and Travellers across
Europe.
5. Shockingly numerous examples of discrimination against Roma
and Travellers in the field of housing have been highlighted by
the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), the
Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection
of National Minorities and the Commissioner for Human Rights in
their regular monitoring work concerning almost all Council of Europe
member States.
6. The extent and gravity of the issues faced by Roma and Travellers
in the field of housing may vary considerably from country to country
and from one town, city or region to the next, as well as between individuals.
Many governments and international organisations, including the
Council of Europe, have moreover adopted strategies and measures
designed to promote the inclusion of Roma and Travellers. Many of
these cover housing. However, as my report shows, there is still
a long way to go to eliminate discrimination in this field.
7. As lawmakers, it is our duty to bring these human rights violations
to an end. We must ensure that our governments fulfil their responsibilities
to put an end to discrimination against Roma and Travellers in the
field of housing, and to the antigypsyism and anti-nomadism that
underly it, and we must intensify our own efforts as parliamentarians
in this field.
8. My report examines the broadest possible range of realities
faced by Roma and Travellers in the field of housing, and the human
rights violations these entail. I have cited numerous examples raised
notably in the monitoring work of the Council of Europe and by civil
society. For every example given, there are however unfortunately
many others. The questions raised are fundamental and urgent; the
measures I propose to respond to these situations will, I hope,
be part of the solution.
2 Segregation and isolation
9. Housing has been described
as providing the most palpable evidence of the widespread inequalities encountered
by Roma.
Note Unfortunately, this
experience is true across many European countries, where Roma live
segregated in isolated settlements, on the outskirts of urban centres.
The ECRI has for example dealt expressly with the segregation or
spatial isolation of Roma and its consequences in its fourth-, fifth-
and/or sixth-cycle monitoring reports on Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia,
Cyprus, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania,
Montenegro, North Macedonia, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, the Slovak
Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Ukraine – but segregation
is also implicit in ECRI’s references to Roma settlements in many
other States.
Note Such issues have also been examined
extensively by the Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention
in many of its third, fourth and/or fifth-cycle opinions, notably
under Article 15 of the Framework Convention.
Note Segregation moreover persists over
the long term, affecting generation after generation of Roma.
10. The case of Italy unfortunately exemplifies two forms of segregation
faced by Roma. First, many Roma who do not have access to publicly
or privately owned housing live in unauthorised settlements on the periphery
of Italian towns or cities. With extremely precarious shelters and
without paved streets, running water, electricity or other basic
facilities, and in some cases situated on toxic wasteland, these
settlements quickly become insalubrious. As discussed further below,
public health concerns are used as grounds to evict the Roma families
installed there, but often without offering adequate alternative
accommodation. Second, some authorities have set up “authorised”
settlements for Roma, providing the necessary amenities and more solid
(container) housing. However, these are often isolated from town
centres and enclosed by fences, and all persons wishing to enter
or leave these settlements must submit to identity controls. Overcrowding
may moreover rapidly lead these sites to become insalubrious too.
Both of these situations involve multiple human rights violations,
as noted by Council of Europe monitoring bodies and other international
organisations. As the Commissioner for Human Rights also underlined,
“the segregated conditions in these [authorised] camps offer no
prospect of gainful employment to the inhabitants, or even the possibility
to interact with non-Roma persons and integrate into society.”
Note
11. In some States, walls have been erected around Roma settlements.
In Portugal, for example, a concrete wall approximately 100m long
and 3m high was built around the Pedreiras neighbourhood in Beja.
This district was built in 2006 to rehouse approximately 50 Roma
families, and is situated several kilometres from the main town,
without access to basic amenities or public transport. The wall
– justified by the authorities as a security barrier against a main
road, but in fact situated around 200m from the road – was only
demolished in 2015.
Note In the Slovak Republic, ECRI reported
in 2014 that “some 14 walls segregating predominantly Roma neighbourhoods
... have been erected in various locations since 2008; the latest
was erected in Košice ... in June 2013. The walls differ in size
and scope, but all [have] resulted in deepening the segregation
between the poorer Roma communities from their better-off neighbours”.
Note
12. Some countries, regional or local authorities have launched
commendable initiatives to build new housing for Roma or to legalise
existing Roma settlements and houses.
Note However,
where they are carried out without concomitant efforts to foster
integration between Roma and other inhabitants of the locality concerned, there
is a danger that such initiatives may entrench still further the
spatial segregation of Roma, and again deepen their social isolation.
Note The Pedreiras neighbourhood mentioned
above is one such case; others include the Konik camps in Montenegro
and some examples in Spain, although strategies drawn up to eradicate
shanty towns and slum dwellings and relocate families into standard
housing in Spain have on the whole been assessed as positive.
Note
13. Furthermore, spatial segregation in housing often contributes
to the segregation of Roma children in schools – a human rights
violation that directly impacts the life chances of the children
affected, and which has been condemned by the European Court of
Human Rights in a series of important cases as well as by ECRI in
its country reports.
14. The lack of public transport to outlying areas makes it much
more difficult for Roma to access both schools and the labour market,
and this is exacerbated where settlements are situated far from
town centres.
Note Isolated
locations for housing are moreover often situated far from medical
centres, making access to medical care more difficult. This can
be particularly harmful for Roma women needing regular access to
care during pregnancy.
15. Spatial segregation both results from and deepens the social
isolation of Roma. It also, as examined further below, makes areas
where Roma live highly vulnerable to stigmatisation and even to
violent attacks.
3 Evictions
and demolitions
16. A high number of cases brought
by Roma before the European Court of Human Rights concern forced evictions.
As of 2019, the Court had already found violations of the Convention
in at least four such cases (
Connors
v. United Kingdom (2004);
Yordanova
and Others v. Bulgaria (2012);
Winterstein
and Others v. France (2013);
Bagdonavicius
and Others v. Russia (2016)).
Note As
the European Roma Rights Centre pointed out in its third-party intervention
in the case of
Yuseinov and other v.
Bulgaria in July 2019, the fact that at least nine cases
concerning such issues were then pending simultaneously before the
Court (four cases against France, two against Bulgaria and one each
against North Macedonia, Poland and Serbia) demonstrates a pattern
of such conduct by authorities in member States, and a failure of
domestic courts to deal with them adequately.
Note Since then, at least one additional
case has been communicated to the authorities of the Slovak Republic;
due to the non-exhaustion of domestic remedies, a case concerning
the repeated forced evictions and threat of future eviction of ten
Roma families in Romania was however declared inadmissible in October 2019.
Note
17. Roma frequently do not have legal title to their homes or
to the land on which they are built. This may be because they lack
the necessary identity documents or property registration displacement
due to armed conflict (notably in the countries of the former Yugoslavia)
or changes to national borders (notably following the break-up of
the USSR), or because, following the collapse of communism, they
built homes on unused public land or land with no clear ownership
(Albania). Migrant Roma in some countries settle in unauthorised
camps, as they face extreme difficulties finding access to adequate
housing.
18. The lack of legal title leaves Roma extremely vulnerable to
forced evictions, which are often accompanied by the demolition
of their homes and the destruction of all their belongings. Alternative accommodation
is often not provided, which is in breach of international human
rights standards (see further below) and creates a vicious cycle
in which Roma again settle in unauthorised settlements where they
are exposed to the risk of eviction.
NoteNote Often
they are forced to move considerable distances, communities are broken
up, and children’s schooling is interrupted.
19. In Albania, for example, many Roma and Egyptians built homes
on unused public land or land with no clear ownership following
the fall of the communist regime, and local authorities have largely
tolerated such housing over the past three decades. Economic development
has however created growing demand for land and Roma and Egyptians
living in informal housing have increasingly faced eviction (sometimes
multiple evictions). Finding solutions to these situations can be
complex, for instance because the supply of social housing is insufficient.
Some Roma and Egyptian communities also wish to remain together,
in order to preserve their cultural identity and support networks.
Note Legalisation
(granting legal title to the land on which existing homes have been
built) may provide a simple solution in such cases, but at the same
time, risks entrenching segregation, as described earlier in this
report.
20. In Bulgaria, Roma family homes were destroyed in the Lozenets
neighbourhood of Stara Zagora in August 2020, though Roma had lived
there for three decades, paying electricity and water bills. A total
of 300 homes have reportedly been demolished in this neighbourhood
since 2014. Roma who sought to purchase the land on which their
homes were built, and which had been tolerated there for 30 years,
were reported to have received only evasive replies from the municipality,
and those who tried to apply for social housing were told that they
did not meet the conditions for access.
Note
21. In France, Roma living in unauthorised encampments on the
outskirts of cities continue to be subjected to evictions and demolitions
of their homes and personal belongings. Those legally resident in
France are in many cases targeted by repeated, mass evictions, and
those without a residency permit are expelled. The European Roma
Rights Centre and Ligue des droits de l’homme reported that in 2017,
11 309 Roma people (or people designated as such) were evicted from
130 living areas, slums and squats in France. 8 161 of them were
forcefully evicted by the authorities during 98 operations, while
1 093 were evicted following fires that occurred in 12 informal
settlements. The other 2 055 persons left twenty living places before
the arrival of the authorities under pressure of an imminent eviction.
This represented a 12% increase compared with the previous year
(10 119 evictees). The enactment of the Equality and Citizenship
Act of January 2017 was intended to provide increased protection
against eviction over the winter months to persons living in makeshift accommodation;
however, it did not protect Roma effectively, as hundreds were evicted
in November 2017 (in some cases, for the fourth time in three years),
while the number of evictions carried out immediately prior to the
winter months increased.
Note
22. Similar issues have been reported over many years in Italy,
where Roma have been repeatedly evicted from unauthorised settlements,
notably on public health grounds. These evictions are frequently
carried out without the necessary procedural guarantees such as
prior notification in writing, and without alternative housing being
made available; at best, local authorities offer temporary housing.
Most often, the effect of such measures is simply to force the evicted
Roma to move to another unauthorised settlement. As ECRI has underlined,
these forced evictions do nothing to improve the precarious and
insalubrious conditions that justified them, but simply lead to
these conditions being reproduced elsewhere.
Note
23. In Serbia, the inhabitants of the Belvil slum were forcibly
evicted in 2012, when the authorities were working to improve social
housing. However, the criteria for access to social housing put
Roma at a disadvantage. Thus, they were not only pushed out from
their existing (inadequate) homes, but also denied access to the
social housing built in their place. Some families ended up living
in an abandoned warehouse over 200km away in Niš (the last town
where they had had a registered place of residence, to which they
were sent back following the eviction), with no running water for
three months and no electricity for a further six.
Note Two of the Roma relocated to Niš
were eventually awarded damages through the domestic courts in June 2020.
While this award was welcomed, civil society actors regretted that
the court had not found indirect discrimination due to the disproportionate
targeting of Roma for eviction. Nor had it addressed either the
need to pay special attention to the vulnerability of Roma living
in segregated settings or the risk of further eviction faced by
the families concerned.
Note I would also
stress in this context the high obstacles faced in bringing such cases
before domestic courts. Few of those affected have the legal knowledge
or financial resources to do so, and cases such as this cannot be
brought without significant support from civil society actors.
24. In the context notably of urban development plans, Roma who
hold legal title to their property have also been evicted, from
the centre of towns, where they had access to regular employment,
to areas far from any public services including public transport.
In these cases, Roma have lost both their homes and their livelihoods,
and in some cases, centuries of historic ties, as for example in
the Sulukule neighbourhood in Istanbul. The destruction of significant
parts of this neighbourhood around 2009 to make way for urban development
left numerous Roma families homeless, following the demolition of
their houses without the provision of affordable and accessible
alternative accommodation. Priceless Roma cultural heritage dating back
to the 11th century was also lost.
Note
4 Inadequate
living conditions
25. Insalubrious living conditions,
without access to electricity, water and sewage, without paved roads,
and in precarious, draughty, leaky constructions, whether in isolated
settlements as mentioned above, in shanty towns set up on unused
land closer to town centres, or overpriced “residential hotels”
such as exist in my country, leave children, in particular, highly
vulnerable to disease. They damage the health and reduce the life expectancy
of all who live there. The Covid-19 pandemic has unfortunately made
especially clear how the lack of running water and overcrowded,
unhealthy living conditions make taking effective preventive measures against
the spread of the virus impossible and pose a direct risk to the
health, and in the longer term the life expectancy, of Roma.
Note Moreover, where
there is no electricity, families are often forced to light and
heat their homes with naked flames, increasing the risk of fires.
26. Examples unfortunately abound throughout Europe of inadequate,
insalubrious and sometimes inhuman living conditions in places where
Roma and Travellers have their homes – in particular where they
are forced to live in makeshift settlements or accommodation or
do not have access to adequate halting sites.
27. Here, I wish to draw attention to the findings of a recent
report on environmental racism against Roma in Bulgaria, Hungary,
North Macedonia, Romania and the Slovak Republic (the central and
eastern European countries with the highest Roma populations).
Note Many Roma live in segregated sites or (semi-)urban
ghettoes that do not provide basic environmental necessities and
that are more prone to environmental hazards. Waste collection is
often infrequent in these areas, there is often no public water
supply and no sanitation system, inadequate drainage means the ground
turns to mud after rain, homes are frequently damp, and where an electricity
connection is available, it is often unaffordable for Roma families.
To heat their homes in winter, the latter therefore have little
choice but to burn whatever they can find. All of these problems
endanger the health of the populations living there.
28. During the online event on “Environmental Rights and Climate
Change: hearing the voices of minorities and indigenous peoples
in Europe” held jointly by the Sub-Committee on the Rights of Minorities
and the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance on 29 March 2021, Florin
Botonogu of the Policy Centre for Roma and Minorities, ERGO Network,
Romania, also highlighted the situation of Roma forced to live on
or next to rubbish dumps in parts of Romania – often, as in the
case of Pata Rat in the outskirts of Cluj-Napoca, following their
forced eviction from town centres to make way for property development.
Such living conditions expose inhabitants to pollution, toxic waste
and fumes, in addition to the already grave problems mentioned above.
In one case, proceedings were successfully brought against the municipality
concerned, but the latter was fined only 2000€ – far less than it
would have cost to rehouse in adequate accommodation the several
dozen families affected. Thus, even successful court proceedings
gave the authorities little incentive remedy the human rights violations caused
by their own persistent neglect.
Note
5 Lack
of access to the private housing market or to social housing
29. In societies where antigypsyism
is high overall, it is perhaps unsurprising to find landlords discriminating against
Roma on the private rental market. Such behaviour must be prohibited
under domestic law and accessible remedies must also be available
when such cases occur.
30. The situation is often aggravated by insufficient provision
of social housing, lack of access to such housing, and sometimes
even criteria of access that arbitrarily exclude Roma and/or Travellers.
31. In my country, the Czech Republic, the situation is made worse
by the failure to introduce social housing at all, combined with
high levels of discrimination on the private property market. As
a result, many Roma can find accommodation only in so-called “residential
hotels”, in which they are charged exorbitant rents – forcing them
to rely on housing benefits – to live in appalling conditions. In
effect, as a direct result of its failure to introduce a properly
functioning social housing system, the State has for decades been
using public funds to subsidise unscrupulous landlords and keep
Roma living in inadequate, unhealthy environments. Amendments to
the law on aid to those in material distress in 2017 made it possible
for local authorities to declare certain areas “housing benefit-free
zones”, with the aim of preventing influxes of inhabitants dependent
on welfare payments. However, this merely served to displace the
victims of human rights violations, while doing nothing to resolve
the issues at stake. On 31 August 2021, the Czech Constitutional
Court struck down this legislation, finding that it violated the
right to adequate housing and did not differentiate between those
responsible for the problems ostensibly being addressed by such
zones and those who are their victims. This is a crucial step forward
but must now be followed by effective measures to put an end to
the exploitative system of residential hotels and guarantee access
to adequate housing for all.
6 Impact
of the lack of legal title on other rights
32. In addition to the heightened
risk of forced evictions, already discussed above, the lack of legal
title to their housing also often means that Roma cannot register
their address, making it impossible for them to benefit from social
welfare measures to which they would otherwise be entitled. This
can entrench Roma in cycles of poverty from which it can be hard
to break out. It also creates obstacles to investing in necessary
repairs and improvements to the homes concerned, increases the likelihood
that their inhabitants will not have access to basic facilities
(such as running water or electricity), and makes service providers
much less willing to resolve such issues.
7 Inadequate
provision of and inadequate living conditions on halting sites
33. The lack of sufficient, adequately
equipped halting sites and pitches not only forces many Travellers
who wish to maintain an itinerant lifestyle into situations of illegality,
which in turn expose them to repeated forced evictions together
with many other serious human rights violations, but also forces
increasing numbers of Travellers to abandon their itinerant lifestyle
altogether. This denies an integral part of their culture and identity. Moreover,
in States where it is necessary to have an itinerant lifestyle in
order to be recognised by law as belonging to the Traveller minority,
it deprives them of the rights that accompany such recognition.
In other words, the failure by States to ensure that national and/or
local authorities provide sufficient and adequate accommodation
for Travellers directly harms the culture and identity of Travellers.
I consider that this is in breach of the Framework Convention for
the Protection of National Minorities, to which many of the States concerned
are parties. It also reinforces the notions that Travellers and
their lifestyle are undesirable, and further heightens tensions
between settled and itinerant communities. Some Traveller organisations
have called for anti-nomadism to be recognised as a specific form
of racism and intolerance, and have underlined that certain government
policies or practices based on anti-nomadic premises need to be
ended as a matter of urgency.
34. On 26 June 2019, we were privileged to hold a joint hearing
with the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance, with representatives of
Traveller organisations from several member States. Their contributions
testified clearly to the extent of the human rights issues at stake.
35. In Belgium, Marie Pinchault of the Centre de Médiation des
Gens du voyage et des Roms explained that Travellers are often nationals
of the country but live in caravans. Their housing situation is
often fragile, in particular where caravans are not recognised as
a legitimate residence, and due to the lack of sites. Many existing
sites are moreover closed in winter. Funds made available by the
State for local authorities to provide sites have not been taken
up by municipalities. While some Travellers do settle for longer
periods, they too face considerable challenges, such as the refusal
of building permits. Forced evictions are the most violent form
of discrimination, and there is should be a moratorium on evictions
during winter. Evicted families are often left without alternative
housing solutions, and evictions have an impact on other rights
such as access to education or economic activities, while repeated
evictions also reinforce the idea that Travellers are undesired.
The legislative framework has recently improved in Wallonia, including
through a decree recognising caravans as a legal type of housing,
and another act making more sites available. It has been argued
that there should be a legally enforceable obligation on local authorities
to have sites available for travellers, and that caravans should
be recognised as a legal form of housing.
36. Also during the hearing of 26 June 2019, Martin Collins, Co-Director
of the Pavee Point Traveller and Roma Centre, described the situation
in Ireland, where the lack of suitable accommodation is one of the
most visible forms of discrimination faced by Travellers. Legislation
has been enacted making it compulsory for local authorities to provide
sites, and Travellers Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) are also in
place. Despite these measures, however, the housing needs of Travellers
are still not met. About 3 000 Traveller families live in inadequate
sites, making it difficult for them to access services such as education
and healthcare, and Travellers also represent 9% of the homeless
population. Some argue that Travellers’ accommodation should be
taken out of the responsibility of local authorities which do not
respond adequately to racism in their community and transferred
to an independent national authority.
37. On 28 June 2019, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission
(IHREC) announced that it had given the 31 local authorities 10
weeks in which to indicate whether they were complying with their
human rights obligations to accommodate Travellers. It also highlighted
that local councils were not drawing down the funding that the State
had made available in this field: only 59% of funding allocated
between 2009 and 2018 was drawn down, and as of the end of June
2019, only €1.84 million out of €13 million provided for 2019 had been
spent.
Note
38. In May 2021, the Irish Ombudsman for Children’s Office (OCO)
published the results of an investigation it had carried out into
the living conditions of children on one local authority halting
site. It found overcrowding, persistent infestation by rodents,
high numbers of children with respiratory problems and skin conditions, insufficient
washing facilities, unacceptable risk to life due to overcrowding
and electrical hazards, and damp housing in a state of serious disrepair.
It concluded,
inter alia, that the local authority
concerned had failed to take into account the best interests of
the children and to guarantee a safe, suitable standard of accommodation
in circumstances where it was competent to do so. It had failed
to guarantee clear passage of the children to school and to provide
children living on the site with an equal opportunity to participate
in leisure and recreational activities. Its failure to manage social
housing in a transparent and accountable manner had furthermore
contributed to the overcrowding on the site, and it had not taken
due account of the disadvantages experienced by Travellers in securing
accommodation.
Note
39. As regards the situation of Travellers in the United Kingdom,
Adrian Jones of the National Federation of Gypsy Liaison Groups
emphasised during our hearing that adequate site provision remains
a pressing issue. Many local councils have been reluctant to provide
additional pitches, frequently in a context of high resistance from
communities. As a result, tensions and conflicts will continue to
arise around issues related to Travellers’ right to adequate housing,
on the one hand, and, on the other hand, their obligation to respect
the law and the interests of the settled community. Shocking living
conditions have also been reported on the sites that are available.
Note Despite strong
anti-discrimination legislation, derogatory statements targeting
Gypsies and Travellers are still frequently made by politicians,
including in parliament, and in the media. Such friction occurs in
particular around Traveller sites. On 6 June 2019, the government
announced the launch of a new strategy to tackle Gypsy, Roma and
Traveller inequalities.
Note In February 2020,
consultations with civil society on the strategy were reported to
have begun, but with no clear timeline due to Brexit and other government
priorities.
Note
8 Threats
and violent attacks against areas where Roma and Travellers live
40. In addition to the widespread
discrimination mentioned above, I wish to underline some of the
particularly egregious violations of human rights referred to during
the hearing held by the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance in Stockholm
on 18 May 2016. These cases illustrate clearly the complex links
between discrimination in the field of housing and antigypsyism.
41. In Bulgaria in 2016, following a fight between Roma and non-Roma,
violent protests were held. 2000 protesters demanded that Roma leave
the village and that their housing be bulldozed. The mayor supported these
calls.
Note Such incitement
to violence is all the more reprehensible when it is done by a representative
of public authorities. As the Managing Director of the European
Roma Rights Centre, Adam Weiss, pointed out at the hearing, in addition
to constituting incitement to violence, threatening to bulldoze
homes is also an all-too-easy means of harassing Roma, and it is
made much easier when Roma live together in a segregated area.
42. In Ireland, ten Travellers lost their lives in a fire on a
Traveller housing site in Carrickmines in October 2015. The local
authorities had recognised that this site did not meet health and
safety standards but – even though Travellers had been living there
for 8 years – the authorities were of the view that they did not
have a duty to ensure compliance, as the site had originally been
built under emergency provisions. Despite the lives lost in the
fire, local residents objected to providing alternative accommodation
for the Traveller community concerned. These events reveal the depths
to which antigypsyism and anti-nomadism are embedded in society,
making them extremely difficult to combat.
43. In Ukraine, in the case of
Patrama
v. Ukraine, police led Roma inhabitants out of the encampment
where they were living, set fire to their tents with their personal
belongings inside, fired shots in the air and shot a dog. This case,
concerning events that occurred in 2012, is currently pending before
the European Court of Human Rights. More recently, in 2018, a series
of violent attacks were carried out against Roma settlements in
Ukraine in which Roma inhabitants were driven out of their makeshift
homes, which were then burned by the far-right assailants; police
were reported to have done little to investigate these events.
Note
9 Antigypsyism
and anti-nomadism in public and political discourse and policy
44. Antigypsyism and anti-nomadism
in society, including amongst politicians, remain a fundamental
cause of the serious human rights violations faced by Roma and Travellers
in the field of housing, and a major obstacle to resolving these
issues. These sentiments are variously expressed, as the examples
cited earlier in this report make clear, as inertia, indifference,
inaction, neglect, resistance and hostility. All contribute to the persistence
of structural antigypsyism and anti-nomadism in our societies. Sometimes,
as outlined above, Roma and Travellers’ homes have been directly
targeted by violent attacks. As parliamentarians, we must confront
these issues, not only because it is our constant duty to combat
all forms of racism in society, but also because the measures we
adopt to put an end to the discriminatory practices and policies
faced by Roma and Travellers in the field of housing will not be
effective unless we also put an end to antigypsyism and anti-nomadism.
45. After comments in 2013 from the then prime minister seen by
many observers as likely to incite hatred against Roma from Romania
and Bulgaria,
Note more
than 21 000 Roma were forcibly evicted in France in 2014, and numbers
were reported to be rising again in 2016.
46. I also wish to highlight here the especially perverse tendency
of some politicians and media to engage in victim-blaming. This
occurs throughout Europe and affects both Roma and Travellers. At
our online event of 29 March 2019 Florin Botonogu described striking
examples of such discourse in Romania. Roma families living without
access to or the means to pay for electricity often have little
alternative but to collect and burn wood, rubber or other waste
products, sometimes illegally, in order to heat their homes in the
colder months. Such practices, which may themselves harm the health
of Roma and increase the risk of fires in their settlements, have
been portrayed by the media as causing the excessive deforestation
occurring in Romania, or the pollution of entire cities dozens of
kilometres away. Yet they are survival strategies developed in the
face of lasting neglect and poverty, and of an abject failure to
devise effective long-term solutions to the problems of Roma.
10 Covid-19
and the housing conditions of Roma and Travellers
47. As I underlined in my statement
of 27 March 2020, in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, inadequate, insalubrious,
overcrowded, unsafe living conditions, without access to running
water, sanitation or other public utilities, have made preventive
measures such as staying indoors, social distancing and regular
handwashing all but impossible for many Roma and Travellers, while
access to disinfectant gels, face-masks and even basic information
about preventive measures is often illusory. In such conditions,
when one person does become ill, it is moreover often impossible
for them to self-isolate. Coupled with an often poor state of health,
which is itself in large part attributable to poor living conditions
as well as high levels of poverty, Roma and Travellers living in
these conditions have been at particular risk of contracting the
Covid-19 virus, and of becoming gravely ill from it.
Note A lack of halting
sites in some countries has moreover left some Travellers living
roadside during the pandemic, again in overcrowded conditions and
with no sanitation, and at constant risk of eviction.
Note
48. Antigypsyism and anti-nomadism amplified these problems. Instead
of redoubling their efforts to provide a clean water supply or disinfectant
in order to reduce the risks faced by Roma and Travellers, certain measures
taken by local authorities – placing Roma settlements in quarantine,
installing checkpoint controls and building temporary walls around
them; carrying out temperature controls by drone focusing only on
Roma settlements – have not only failed to help Roma, but have implicitly
signalled that Roma may be vectors of contagion. Other local authorities
have directly stigmatised Roma as being unclean and lacking the
discipline necessary to implement preventive measures.
Note Whether
directly or indirectly, and as already occurs far too often outside
times of crisis, such actions have reinforced stereotypes and exacerbated
antigypsyism. Such outcomes are unacceptable, especially as the
result of actions of the authorities.
11 Key
international human rights standards
11.1 European
Convention on Human Rights
49. A glance at the case law of
the European Court of Human Rights in this field is instructive.
Issues brought before it over the past decade include attacks on
Roma villages and destruction of their houses and possessions; violent
(sometimes fatal) attacks by private individuals on Roma communities
or against Roma in their homes; police brutality during raids on
Roma communities; and forced evictions and the failure to recognise
specific ways of life and provide alternative accommodation.
Note
50. The European Convention on Human Rights does not expressly
guarantee the right to housing. However, attacks on and the destruction
of Roma villages, settlements, homes and possessions, deadly attacks
on individual homes and/or on individuals in their homes, and forced
evictions of Roma and Travellers from their settlements or camping
sites have led in recent years to findings of violations of the
Convention, under articles 2 (right to life – both substantive and
procedural aspects), 3 (prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment
– both substantive and procedural aspects), 8 (right to respect
for private and family life and home) and 13 (right an effective
remedy), either independently or in conjunction with Article 14
(prohibition of discrimination).
Note Numerous cases concerning
similar facts and issues are moreover pending before the Court.
Note
11.2 European
Social Charter (revised)
51. The European Social Charter
(revised) has been ratified by 34 member States and signed by a further 11.
The Parties to the Charter accept that the aim of their policy is,
inter alia, the attainment of conditions in which everyone’s right
to housing may be effectively realised (Part I). Amongst the specific
undertakings by which Parties can elect to be bound, however, the
obligation to ensure the effective exercise of the right to housing,
by promoting access to housing of an adequate standard, preventing
and reducing homelessness with a view to its gradual elimination
and/or making the price of housing accessible to those without adequate resources
(Article 31), has been accepted by only 14 States Parties.
Note
52. The European Committee of Social Rights has been called upon
to examine collective complaints against a number of these States
Note concerning the situation of Roma
and Travellers. It has found numerous violations of the right to
housing, taken either independently or in conjunction with Article
E of the Charter (prohibition on discrimination) in cases concerning
Roma and Travellers affected by inadequate access to housing or
accommodation, inadequate living conditions, insufficient numbers
of stopping places, inadequate living conditions at these sites,
evictions, lack of rehousing solutions for evicted families and
inadequate access to affordable housing or social housing. It has
also found violations of other provisions of the Charter, taken either
independently or in conjunction with Article E of the Charter, due
to the impact of evictions or inadequate living conditions on other
rights, such as the rights to health, healthcare, primary and secondary
education and vocational training.
Note Further collective complaints, concerning
the continued perpetration of forced evictions, segregated and substandard
housing, and the use of discriminatory criteria for the allocation
of social housing with respect to Roma and Sinti, and concerning
the large-scale seizure of caravans and other property of Travellers,
are pending.
Note
11.3 International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
53. All Council of Europe member
States except Andorra are parties to the International Covenant
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Article 11(1) of which
provides that “States Parties…recognize the right of everyone to
an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including
adequate…housing…. The States Parties will take appropriate steps
to ensure the realization of this right…”.
54. Regarding forced evictions specifically, the United Nations’
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has clarified
that the fact that an eviction is carried out by force does not
ipso facto make it a forced eviction,
provided that the eviction is executed in accordance with the law
and in conformity with the provisions of the International Covenants
on Human Rights. It has defined forced evictions as “the permanent
or temporary removal against their will of individuals, families
and/or communities from the homes and/or land which they occupy,
without the provision of, and access to, appropriate forms of legal
or other protection” and has concluded that forced evictions are
prima
facie incompatible with the Covenant. It has emphasised
that the right to be protected against arbitrary or unlawful interference
with one’s home (recognised under Article 17(1) of the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights) complements the right not
to be evicted without adequate protection and is not dependent on
the availability of State resources. It has underlined that the
State must refrain from forced evictions and ensure that the law
is enforced against both State agents and third parties who carry
them out.
Note
11.4 ECRI
General Policy Recommendation No. 13 on combating antigypsyism and discrimination
against RomaNote
55. ECRI General Policy Recommendation
No. 13, in its paragraph 6, includes detailed standards for preventing
and combating antigypsyism as regards housing and the right to respect
for the home. It calls for non-segregation of Roma in respect of
housing and action against prejudice and stereotypes concerning
Roma and Travellers in the housing context. More specifically, it
calls inter alia for action against the eviction
of Roma without notice as well as for spatial planning regulations
that do not systematically impede the traditional life of Travellers,
while instead ensuring the existence of appropriate encampment areas
in sufficient numbers for them, whether for permanent occupation
or transit. As concerns Roma sites or dwellings built in breach
of town planning regulations, ECRI takes the position that they
should be legalised where the situation has been tolerated for a
long period of time by the public authorities.
12 Inclusion
and integration strategies and international co-operation
56. I welcome the attention paid
by international organisations such as our own, the Council of Europe,
and the European Union, to the need for States to develop and implement,
in close co-operation with Roma and Traveller communities, strategies,
policies and action plans to overcome the inequalities faced by
these communities, including in the field of housing. The Council
of Europe’s Strategic Action Plan for Roma and Traveller Inclusion
(2020-2025) recognises notably that antigypsyism and discrimination
in fields such as housing perpetuate the marginalisation of Roma
and Traveller communities and individuals and hinder policy initiatives
to improve their situation. I consider it crucial that measures
taken to address these issues are covered in the monitoring of the
implementation of the Action Plan.
57. I also welcome the continuing co-operation between the Council
of Europe and the European Union in this field, notably through
two European Union/Council of Europe Joint Programmes, “Building
capacity at local level for the integration of Roma (ROMACT)”
Note and “Promoting good governance and
Roma empowerment at local level (ROMACTED)”.
Note These programmes aim to assist local
authorities to work together with Roma communities to develop inclusive
policies and public services, and to improve the responsiveness
and accountability of local authorities towards marginalised Roma
communities. As we have seen earlier in this report, local authorities
often contribute, through inaction, neglect or overt hostility,
to perpetuating discrimination against Roma and Travellers in the
field of housing. Yet they can play a critical role in overcoming
these human rights violations and building better integrated, more
inclusive and fairer communities in the process.
58. At the international level, the Council of Europe’s former
intergovernmental committee CAHROM has in the past conducted detailed
and highly valuable thematic analyses of issues faced by Roma in
the field of housing – and possible solutions – which remain highly
relevant sources for authorities seeking to address these issues.
Note The
OPRE Joint Statement on evictions of Roma and Travellers in Europe
also sets out crucial recommendations to national, regional and
local authorities in this field.
Note
59. I welcome the fact that many European countries have established
national strategies for the inclusion of Roma, notably in the EU
context, and that improving access to adequate housing is often
one element of these strategies. However, as the European Commission’s
own analyses show,
Note these
strategies are often underfunded, and indeed sometimes no budget
is envisaged at all. Moreover, housing and urban planning almost
invariably fall under the primary or exclusive competence of the
local authorities, and the national authorities have few means by
which to force local authorities to take action in this field.
60. I was also struck, when examining the reports of ECRI, at
how frequently reference was made to local authorities’ failure
to apply for national or European funds, even when funds were available
to finance measures in the field of housing. Sometimes local authorities’
inaction seems simply to be due to inertia and/or lack of capacities.
However, often it appears that local authorities are unwilling to
request such funds due to the likely resistance or even hostility
towards Roma and Travellers of other residents, who are unwilling
to have them as neighbours, or because the local authorities themselves
are hostile to the idea of desegregation and/or opposed to taking
action to improve the living conditions of Roma.
61. In short, structural discrimination against Roma and Travellers
in the field of housing, as well as inertia, indifference, inaction,
neglect, resistance or outright hostility, whether amongst the general
public or within authorities themselves, are all expressions of
antigypsyism and anti-nomadism. Overcoming these sentiments and
the direct or indirect harms that they cause is crucial to successfully
tackling discrimination against Roma and Travellers in the field
of housing, and must form an integral part of all inclusion or integration
strategies designed to overcome it.
13 Conclusions
62. Our societies have left Roma
and Travellers living far too often on the margins; indifference,
neglect and racism, including institutional racism, underlie a situation
where Roma and Travellers all too often live segregated from the
rest of society, in woefully inadequate living conditions. Images
of poverty feed into antigypsyism and anti-nomadism. While many
member States have adopted at least some measures to address these
human rights violations, the root causes are often not adequately
tackled.
63. Every Council of Europe member State, whether or not it is
mentioned by name in this report, needs to examine critically its
legislation, policies and practices in this field, with a view to
ensuring that Roma and Travellers have access to adequate housing,
and that housing is a factor of inclusion rather than exclusion
for all Roma and Travellers living on their territory.
64. Finally, I wish to stress that the human rights issues at
stake in this report are urgent and fundamental. If we fail to address
them, we are denying the human dignity of Roma and abandoning more
and more Roma children to drastically reduced life chances and to
an all-too-familiar vicious cycle of poverty and prejudice.
65. I firmly believe that we can break this cycle, and I call
on all national parliaments to mobilise all their efforts to overcome
the discrimination faced by Roma and Travellers in the field of
housing.
