Coming to the end of my traineeship with the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC), I thought it would be helpful to put together some news items and resources which illustrate the precarious relationship between Roma communities, businesses and the government. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exposed the multi-dimensional and intersectional vulnerabilities of the Roma community, including housing inequality, the need for a gendered response to the pandemic and the exacerbation of Roma labour rights and lack of effective social security provisions. Please follow the links and tweets for further information.
“Equality for Roma and Travellers: Time to Deliver”, Equinet, 28 July 2020
Social segregation making Roma more vulnerable to COVID-19 & increased scapegoating: “Roma…living in segregated settlements, are found to be at particular risk due to their already poor health status, high levels of poverty, a lack of access to basic public services such as running water or sewage, and the often overcrowded and poor living conditions. More generally, information about the pandemic and safety measures have sometimes been communicated in ways, and through channels, that risk leaving Roma without access to such vital guidance. At the worst extremes, it is not uncommon to see even high-level public figures engage in blaming the Roma for the pandemic, creating an atmosphere that inevitably intensifies the hate speech and hate crimes that they experience”.
“Czechia: Investigation exposes systemic anti-Roma discrimination at real estate firms & flaws in the law; incl. company comments”, Romea.cz, via BHRRC, 17 June 2020
During and after the peak of COVID-19, housing inequality for Roma families appears to sadly persist: A brave investigative piece by a Czech Roma man who found private estate agents and his local authority unwilling to provide him and his family standard rental accommodation. This exposé also includes comments from various well-know real estate firms and the local, as well a critique on the flaws in the Czech Antidiscrimination Law.
“[F]or a Romani family, even arranging…a viewing of an apartment is [a]…difficult barrie[r] to overcome. The situation captured by those recordings is, unfortunately, the sad reality. The Antidiscrimination Act has been in effect in [Czechia] since 2009, but…it is not managing to prevent such situations” – Adam Fialík, Platforma pro sociální bydlení (Platform for Social Housing).
“Europe’s marginalised Roma people hit hard by coronavirus”, The Guardian, 11 May 2020
Diluted labour rights for Roma and the lack of state protection exposed during the pandemic: “Europe’s largest minority, the Roma people, are being particularly hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic in many countries, because they face a combination of health risks, economic deprivation and increased stigmatisation. Many Roma people work in grey market day-to-day jobs, meaning they were laid off as the pandemic hit, and may not be eligible for state compensation schemes. Others returned to central and eastern European countries from jobs in western Europe at the start of the pandemic, often because their income sources had dried up because work was cancelled. Back home, they often have no health insurance and few safety nets…”.
“Take five: ‘After this pandemic, we will have to work much harder than before to improve Roma women’s lives’”, UN Women, 14 April 2020
The pandemic has impressed the importance of applying a gendered-lens to government and NGO responses: “Violence against women and children during the…pandemic have increased, including in Roma settlements. Many Roma, including Roma women, [also] do not have the necessary knowledge about what they need to do during [a] state of emergency. It is difficult for many [Roma] to access timely and accurate information. In Serbia, 25,000 Roma people live in informal settlements without adequate living conditions, including access to running and clean water. They are often confined to overcrowded conditions with many family members living in a small space where it is impossible to effectively implement isolation measures. So, this population is particularly vulnerable and women and children, especially young children, pregnant women and nursing mothers, are the most vulnerable” – Slavica Vasić, Chair and a founder of BIBIJA Roma Women’s Centre in Serbia.
“Coronavirus: Europe’s forgotten Roma at risk”, Deutsche Welle, 4 April 2020
The precarious position of Roma informal workers has been exacerbated by COVID-19: “Millions of poor Roma in Central and Southeastern Europe, most of whom live in cramped conditions without access to health care and basic sanitation, are facing a humanitarian disaster. Those who already earn a meager living by collecting junk and plastic or selling food, household products and flowers are currently unable to carry out even this informal work”.
Photo by Tai’s Captures, licensed by Unsplash
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