Hard Times and Hardening Attitudes: the Economic Downturn and the Rise of Violence Against Roma
Tuesday, June 9, 2009, 4:00 am
Witnesses
Katalin Barsony
Sociologist, Filmmaker, Project Manager
Budapest-based Roma NGO Romedia Foundation
Stansilav Daniel
Research Consultant
European Roma Rights Center
Isabela Mihalache
Senior Program Manager, Roma Initiatives
Open Society Instiute
Andrzej Mirga
Advisor on Romani Issues
OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights
This briefing focused on the economic downturn and the rise of violence against Roma, the largest ethnic minority of Europe.
It was presided by Hon. Alcee L. Hastings, the Co-Chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, and he was join by Katalin Barsony, Stansilav Daniel, Isabela Mihalache,and Andrzej Mirga, an advisor on Roman issues.
The briefing was held during the 20th anniversary of the fall of Communism, in which Eastern and Western needed to work together to meet the challenges to defend the basic human rights of Roma.
The panelists gave their opinion about the causes of the spike in violence, the implications of these trends, and what the OSCE could do.
Leadership