[artinfo] Antiziganism and Class Racism in Europe
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Sat Aug 29 16:03:25 CEST 2009
Antiziganism and Class Racism in Europe
text by Vladan Jeremic and Rena Rädle
Biro Beograd
Omladinskih brigada Blok 70
11070 Novi Beograd
Serbia
Phone: +381 63 385 073
Fax: +381 11 2150 488
Contact: Office at Biro Beograd
<mailto:birobeograd at gmail.com>birobeograd at gmail.com
<http://www.archive.org/details/BELLEVILLE>www.archive.org/details/BELLEVILLE
Antiziganism and Class Racism in Europe by Vladan
Jeremic and Rena Rädle, April 2009
The Roma have a long history of migrations that
repeatedly brought repression to their people
over the centuries. European countries began
introducing laws against migrating peoples (i.e.
nomads, travelers) in the mid-Fifteenth century
(1). Migrants were perceived as an unsettling
factor, even as a threatening and invading group,
one that jeopardized the safety of the majority
population. Without a registered identity, many
Roma remain completely isolated as citizens in
the societies on whose territories they live.
Being constantly relocated and repopulated, many
have been migrants over the centuries; even
within the boundaries of the countries whose
citizenship they hold. Apart from accusations,
disappointments and misunderstandings in their
relations with the majority population, we are
still facing deep discrimination of Roma, which
doesn't have its roots only in ethnic and
cultural racism or anti-Roma sentiment. Poverty
and nomadism are threatening factors for all of
those who live in social systems based on the
system of ownership, accumulation of goods and
territorialism. Western policies have tried for
centuries to include the poor in the system of
social protection, or to get rid of them: to
banish or eliminate them. Roma are, for the most
part, an ethnic class characterized by extreme
poverty that can present an obstacle to national
or European integrations. It appears that the
relation between Roma and non-Roma is, first and
foremost, defined by the borderline between
wealth and extreme poverty.
The situation of Roma in EU member countries is
precarious and in countries populated to a
greater extent by Roma, such as Romania, Hungary,
Bulgaria and in the former Yugoslav republics
(especially in Macedonia and Serbia) - the
situation is alarming. The situation in which
most European Roma find themselves is similar to
that of a holocaust. One of the basic problems
facing a Roma man or a woman is the issue of
belonging to a marginalized social class that is
exposed to drastic pauperization, in addition to
the problem of the national identity itself - the
fact of being Roma.
Various forms of ethnic and class racism against
Roma are appearing throughout Europe. In May 2008
in Naples, Italian Prime Minister Silvio
Berlusconi's Government implemented a state of
emergency regarding nomad settlements and
communities on the territory of several regions
in order to legitimize fingerprinting of the Roma
population. This law is very reminiscent of
anti-Roma laws dating from the Middle Ages, and
of the darkest periods of European history in the
20th century.
The general situation of migrants in Italy is
difficult and the violent activities undertaken
by the fascist right targeting Roma have reached
a peak in the burning of entire settlements, the
destruction of property, and the forceful
evictions of Roma communities to locations
outside certain metropolitan areas in Italy. The
most drastic examples of this kind happened in
Livorno, Roma, Napoli and Milano between 2006 and
today (2).
Similarly in Finland, a settlement built by Roma
emigrating from Romania to Helsinki in search of
a better future was also destroyed. During our
visit to Helsinki in March 2009, we took part in
conversations (3) that were part of the
exhibition about the history and culture of Roma:
Watch out Gypsies: The History of a
Misunderstanding (4), in the Helsinki City
Museum. This visit further convinced us that
impoverished Roma are being actively prevented in
their attempts to migrate. Strict EU laws prevent
Roma from living or working in alternative ways
and thus are not seen as 'fitting in' with the EU
reality.
The most harrowing images, however, come from
Hungary, where an actual hunt on Roma communities
has been on-going since the end of 2008. The
killing of Roma families by neo-Nazi groups is an
example of the worst racist hunt on people in the
middle of Europe (5).
Whether living in EU or non-EU countries, a deep
and an unexamined hatred for Roma peoples is
widespread across Europe. It is symptomatic that
direct violence against Roma is most intense in
places where a great gap exists between those
profiting from neoliberal reforms and local
population on the verge of poverty.
Under the Bridge Belgrade
While traveling through Belgrade, driving along
the E-75 international highway and crossing the
Gazela bridge that connects central Belgrade with
New Belgrade, we came across the poverty-stricken
Roma settlement in the area of Staro Sajmi”te.
The first time we met people living under the
bridge Gazela was during a gathering of artists
and activists working on the project Under the
Bridge Belgrade, which was organized in
cooperation with our colleague Alexander Nikoliç
in December 2004. Under the Bridge Belgrade is a
complex research project about the municipal area
of Belgrade, and one of the actions organized as
a result was the aforementioned gathering under
the Gazela bridge. This gathering turned into a
great happening that lasted eight hours, during
which the settlement's residents, both Roma and
other refugees, invited all those present to
ignite a fire and stay with them at the
settlement.
One of the project's participants, David Rych,
wrote a piece about our gathering under the
Gazela bridge and stated that: 'The 'artist like
Mother Teresa' can only be a misconception,
unless the quest for relevant support will
necessarily lead to approved models of inclusive
community work, something that would require time
and commitment with regard to every single case.
There are a number of issues that have been
clearly addressed by representatives of the Roma
community mentioned above. An additional
objective of entering unfamiliar hardship for the
sake of cultural work could be to translate these
transitions into a more comprehensible image of
the 'real.' Clearly, we'll have to acknowledge
the incompatibility of reality lived by
individuals and groups on opposite synapses of
our societies, nations or other categories of
distinction and dissolve the reality of 'the
Other' as one more component of a mutually shared
entity and investigate and visualize the
mechanisms of exclusion the dominate system
applies with regard to marginalized positions
only. Some of the visitors might have been
introduced to a local situation in order to
initiate contributions to that very common
reality. A few others might continue similar work
in different locations. And, of course, some
might never come back. Not there, not elsewhere
where the most 'subaltern' live. Sometimes the
frontier is your doorstepŠ' (6).
During the following few years, several artists
continued their activism with the community under
the Gazela bridge, in the form of either reports
or artistic interventions (7). Vienna artists are
currently publishing a tourist guide for the
Gazela settlement. (8).
Belgrade authorities have been trying to evict
the inhabitants of Gazela and several other Roma
settlements for a while now.
Deportation/relocation is not triggered by the
community's miserable living conditions or the
settlements' poor condition, but by planned
infrastructure works and the current
reconstruction of the Gazela Bridge. In 2005,
Belgrade City Hall proposed an idea to relocate
Roma living in the Gazela settlements and move
them to the 'Dr. Ivan Ribar' neighborhood in New
Belgrade, which triggered protests by the locals.
Although their protest represents open hostility
toward Roma, New Belgrade residents claimed that
the issue was not racism, but fear of filth and
decrease of real estate prices: 'We have nothing
against Roma, but we fear that their customs and
culture will not fit in the city environment -
said one of the residents - There will be
problems with hygiene. How will anyone of us sell
their apartment if there is such a settlement
right next to us?' (9).
A similar protest happened in September 2008,
when the residents of the Belgrade suburban
neighborhood of Ovca tried to block initial work
on a new Roma settlement there. 'We have nothing
against Roma, we would react the same way if some
other ethnic minority were to inhabit Ovca. The
problem is the fact that the relocation of 130
Roma families would significantly alter the
national structure of this population. This will
have a catastrophic effect on our tradition and
way of life' explained one of the Organization
Committee members who a member of the Romanian
ethnic minority (10).
New Belgrade's Belville
Belville is the name of a new residential complex
in New Belgrade, built by Blok 67 Associates Ltd.
This company was founded by Delta Real Estate
(part of the Delta Holding Company owned by
Miroslav Miskovic, Serbia's richest tycoon) and
Hypo-Alpe Adria Bank (11). Their aim is to build
business offices and apartments for athletes
taking part in the Summer Universiade in June
2009 in Belgrade. After the Universiade, the
apartments will be handed to new and predefined
owners.
On April 3, 2009, in a sudden action with
mechanical-diggers, forty houses were demolished
in a Roma settlement that had begun taking shape
during the last five years in a location near
Belville. The decision to demolish the Roma
houses was made by Belgrade's Secretariat for
Inspections. City Mayor, Dragan Djilas, said on
this issue that: 'Whoever is illegally occupying
a part of city land in places planned for
infrastructure facilities cannot stay there. It
has nothing to do with the fact that the people
in question are Roma or some other ethnicity. A
few hundred people cannot stop the development of
Belgrade, and two million people living in
Belgrade certainly won't be hostages to anyone.
This practice shall continue to be implemented by
the City Authority in the future. Simply - there
are no other solutions' (12).
The police assisted in the demolition of the
settlement by securing the diggers, without
giving residents the time to rescue their
belongings. Several inhabitants had to be
practically drawn out of the ruins at the very
moment when one digger was clearing the area. As
we were close by, we joined our neighbors from
the very beginning of this action in Block 67. As
an act of protest to the home demolitions, Jurija
Gagarina Street was blocked around noon that day.
The settlement's inhabitants then organized
another protest in front of Belgrade City Hall.
No one addressed the displaced Roma residents
from Block 67 who gathered in front of the
Belgrade City Hall that evening. The protest
continued the following day.
Following protests by the public, several NGOs
also started to raise their voices. Pushed by
UNHCR, the WHO and the Ministry of Human and
Minority Rights, the Belgrade city authorities
tried to settle down the issue. The 'solution'
was to set up residential containers in the
suburban neighborhood Boljevci that very night.
The bureaucratic apparatus that was set in motion
to 'solve' this issue in the field soon proved to
be non-functional. We learned that a Roma teenage
boy had been killed several years ago in
Boljevci. So there is a logical question: why was
it decided that the containers should be placed
in this very village? Boljevci residents blocked
roads demanding that residential containers for
Roma be removed: 'If you don't remove them, we
will burn down both the containers and those
trying to move in them', one person from Boljevci
said. The protests by Boljevci residents had
violent moments: attempts were made to burn down
residential containers and thus prevent Roma from
moving into these temporary facilities. The
incident resembled an open racist revolt. Mayor
Djilas said: 'I can understand the fear of people
from Boljevci, because they were to have as
neighbors people who, in part, do not even have
personal ID cards. It is not known who they are',
adding that 'all those who do not have a
residence in Belgrade must go back to the places
they came from. It is legally right, it is the
basis for everything, and there will be no
negotiations with the OEBS, UNHCR, or NGOs on
this issue.' (13).
So, as far as Djilas was concerned, the Roma
issue was 'solved' by placing a three Roma
mothers with children into containers in
Mirijevo, near the old Roma settlement. The
majority of the people still have no alternative
solution.
Although Serbia is currently presiding over the
'Roma Decade' in 2009, city authorities didn't
have a plan for alternative housing at the moment
the houses were demolished. It took three
protests and pressure from international
organizations to stop the media lynch against
Roma and to try to find a solution for
alternative housing. Our documentary 'Belleville'
was filmed during the ten days when these events
happened in which we took part directly as active
participants fighting for the rights of our
neighbors. This documentary premiered in the
Cultural Centre of Serbia in Paris where it was
included at the last moment in our exhibition
previously called 'Psychogeographic Research'. On
27th of May 2009, the film was shown at the
settlement in Blok 67.
European Slums
UN-Habitat's Global Report (14) distinguishes six
different 'cities' with specified class actors
and economic functions: there is the luxury city,
the gentrified city with advanced services, the
suburban city of direct production, the city of
unskilled workers, and finally the city of
permanently unemployed 'underclass' or 'ghetto
poor' with income based on marginal or illegal
activity and direct street-level exploitation.
This last city is the informal city or city of
illegality, which comprises the slums of large
megacities such as Lagos in Nigeria or Sao Paolo
in Brazil. The informal sector has its base
there; services are reduced and unstable, and
residents do not have a legal status and are not
part of the legal system. Harassment by
authorities is commonplace. The poorest Roma
settlements in Serbia and throughout Europe can
be qualified as slum cities typically associated
with the global South. The UN-Habitat's Global
Report on human settlements from 2003 defines
slums as settlements with poor access to drinking
water, sanitation and other infrastructure; with
poor housing quality, overcrowdedness and by the
uncertain residential status of its inhabitants.
These characteristics provided by UN-Habitat can
be applied to more than a hundred Roma
settlements in Belgrade.
The composition of the population and its status
in Belgrade's slums is divergent. There are cases
of Roma who have managed to secure registered
residences in Belgrade or who are indigenous.
There are also the Roma refugees from Kosovo who
may represent between 20- 40% of the population
in a given settlement in Belgrade. A number of
inhabitants are economic migrants from southern
Serbia, from places where no economic existence
is possible. A large number of inhabitants are
Roma asylum seekers from Western European
countries and the EU, who were deported back into
Serbia by the Readmission Agreement. A number of
inhabitants in these settlements are not of Roma
descent, just the poorest of the poor, refugees
or the socially excluded. A great number of those
living in these settlements are children and
youth. Some estimates put the number of Roma in
Serbia at 600,000, although the 2002 census only
registered 102,193 people as Roma. The number and
condition of Roma children and youth can be best
understood from the following data: 'According to
the UNICEF report on the condition of Roma
children in the Republic of Serbia (2006), almost
70% of Roma children are poor and over 60% of
Roma households with children live below poverty
line. Children are the most imperiled, living
outside of cities in households with several
children. Over 4/5 of indigent Roma children live
in families in which adult members do not have
basic education.' (15).
If we consider the existing data on urban poverty
and the dynamics of 'slumization', we can better
analyze the demolitions that occurred in the
Belgrade neighborhood of Blok 67. Complex
relations between local authorities and local
residents become even more complex in the
proximity of the Flea Market. The market is a
source of income and survival for people who
gather and resell recycled goods. Local and flea
market authorities have developed a string of
rules, networks and complex arrangements with the
locals / users of the market from whom they
generate a certain amount of profit.
In his publication 'Planet of Slums' (16), Mike
Davis says that national and local political
machines acquiesce in informal settlement as long
as they can control the political complexion of
the slums and extract direct financial benefit
from them. These almost feudal relations of
dependence on local police or important players
in certain political parties and non-governmental
organizations are deeply rooted and disloyalty
may cause the destruction of the slum itself.
The current stratification of European societies
which is particularly evident in the countries of
the former Soviet Union and the former Yugoslavia
may cause social unrest in which Roma might play
an important role as a trans-national ethnic
group. Non-controlled Roma migration to countries
of Western Europe is not desirable, even though
the borders are open.
It is not surprising that there is a strategy to
'solve the Roma issue' in these countries. The
'Decade of Roma Inclusion 2005-2015' gathers
together the countries of Central and South
Eastern Europe, international and
non-governmental organizations (like the World
Bank, the Open Society Institute, United Nations
Development Program, the Council of Europe,
Council of Europe Development Bank (17)) and Roma
civic associations. The objective is to improve
the status of Roma and 'close unacceptable gaps
between Roma and the rest of society.' In
addition to areas of major concern (housing,
education, employment, and health), special
attention is given to the elimination of
discrimination, the reduction of poverty and the
improvement of the position of Roma women.
Including representatives of Roma communities in
all processes is the basic principle.
The policy of the International Monetary Fund
(IMF) to lend money to countries which meet the
requirement to privatize territory, real estate
and resources, as a result brought devastation to
local economies in Asia, Africa and Latin America
in the 80's, as well as elimination of the middle
class and 'slumization' of entire regions. The
'Decade of Roma Inclusion' is intended to lead to
the nominal equality of Roma communities in the
countries participating in the Decade, in order
to legitimize their deportation from EU countries
back into to their 'native countries'. At the
same time, the elite that carried out the
inclusion by controlling financial and other aid
is being supported. This is counterproductive to
the development of Roma communities as
self-organized political subjects.
(1) Robert Jütte, Poverty and Deviance in Early Modern Europe, Cambridge, 1994
(2) Security a la Italiana: Fingerprinting,
Extreme Violence and Harassment of Roma in Italy,
2008, Report, European Roma Rights Centre and
others;
Source:
<http://www.soros.org/initiatives/roma/articles_publications/publications/fingerprinting_20080715/fingerprinting_20080715.pdf>www.soros.org/initiatives/roma/articles_publications/publications/fingerprinting_20080715/fingerprinting_20080715.pdf
(3) Source:
<http://www.hiap.fi/index.php?page=304&abr=0&event=137>www.hiap.fi/index.php?page=304&abr=0&event=137
(4) Source:
<http://www.hel.fi/wps/portal/Kaupunginmuseo_en/Artikkeli_en?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/Museo/en/museum+news/news+and+events/leave+your+roma+prejudices+behind>www.hel.fi/wps/portal/Kaupunginmuseo_en/Artikkeli_en?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/Museo/en/museum+news/news+and+events/leave+your+roma+prejudices+behind
(5) Source:
<http://www.dur.org.rs/cms/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=83:u-maarskoj-rome-ubijaju-po-metodologiji-slinoj-taktici-amerikog-kju-kluks-klana&catid=34:vesti&Itemid=56>www.dur.org.rs/cms/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=83:u-maarskoj-rome-ubijaju-po-metodologiji-slinoj-taktici-amerikog-kju-kluks-klana&catid=34:vesti&Itemid=56
(6). David Rych, “Under the Bridge - A derivé to
a topos of social relevance or... 'a visit to the
zoo'?' pages 34-37, Under the Bridge Beograd,
Bureau for Culture and Communication, Novi Sad,
2005
(7) Tanja Ostojic, Open Studio of New Belgrade Chronicle, 2007;
Source: <http://tanjaostojic.blogspot.com/>tanjaostojic.blogspot.com/
(8) Lorenz Aggermann, Eduard Freudmann, Can
Gülcü, Beograd Gazela-Reiseführer in eine
Elendssiedlung., Drava Verlag, Klagenfurt, 2008
(9) Vecernje novosti, July 11, 2005, Source:
<http://www.novosti.rs/code/navigate.php?Id=14&status=jedna&vest=77610&datum=>www.novosti.rs/code/navigate.php?Id=14&status=jedna&vest=77610&datum=
(10) Source:
<http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2008&mm=09&dd=24&nav_id=320375&nav_category=12>www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2008&mm=09&dd=24&nav_id=320375&nav_category=12
(11) Source: <http://www.belville.rs/kosmomi.jsp>www.belville.rs/kosmomi.jsp
(12) Borba, April3, 2009; Source:
<http://www.borba.rs/content/view/4472/123/>www.borba.rs/content/view/4472/123/
(13) YUCOM, Regards from Saban Bajramovic, Pescanik;
Source:
<http://www.pescanik.net/content/view/2970/61/>www.pescanik.net/content/view/2970/61/
(14) The challenge of slums- Global report on
human settlements 2003, UN Habitat;
Source:
<http://www.unhabitat.org/downloads/docs/GRHS.2003.3.pdf>www.unhabitat.org/downloads/docs/GRHS.2003.3.pdf
(15) Government of Serbia, Strategy for the
Improvement of Roma Status in the Republic of
Serbia', “Official Gazette of the Republic of
Serbia', No. 55/05, 71/05- Correction, 101/07 and
65/08), Belgrade, April 9, 2009;
Source:
<http://www.humanrights.gov.yu/dokumenti/roma/strategija_april_09.pdf>www.humanrights.gov.yu/dokumenti/roma/strategija_april_09.pdf
(16) Mike Davis, Planet of Slums, Verso, London 2007;
Shorter version of the essay at:
<http://abahlali.org/files/NLR26001.pdf>abahlali.org/files/NLR26001.pdf
(17) Source:
<http://www.romadecade.org/index.php?content=1>www.romadecade.org/index.php?content=1
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