EUROPEAN ROMA STRATEGY — WITH FAIR AND HUMAN SOLUTIONS, AND COMMON RESPONSIBILITY
Thanks to the unjust Roma policies implemented by some EU Member States over the last decade, we have lost generations. EU funding for Roma integration policies sadly didn’t help to reduce the cruel differences between people, in large part because the money was spent recklessly by corrupted governments. But funding — even if used properly — cannot be expected to magically solve all problems, social inclusion cannot depend on money alone.
Real change can only be achieved through humane and just policies and only within the framework of the rule of law. The new EU Roma Strategic Framework published last week by the European Commission is a step in that direction. This strategy sets more ambitious goals than ever before. For example, it would halve discrimination against Roma and help ensure that the majority of Roma young people complete secondary school, thus increasing their chances of breaking out of poverty.
One of the most important points of the Roma strategy has been included in the final document upon the suggestion of Anna Donáth, our Group’s shadow rapporteur: in future, the European Commission will take the Roma perspective into account not only in formulating its Roma policy, but in all other policy objectives as well, be it the common agricultural policy or the Erasmus program. Europe has finally recognized that we will all benefit from creating equal opportunities for the Roma to fully participate in political, social and economic life throughout the EU.
