ROMED

Certainly, you have or lived near a Roma community. Maybe change some words, time, or products with them or just ignore their life. Anyone has a lot of things to do daily, so this issue is mostly local administration problems. But, how can we know their desire without involvement in decision-making? How their life and education can be enriched with a replica in all minority communities? If your reaction is that there are illiteracy or impassive with their needs, please check the ROMED program held by the Council of Europe and the European Commission in joint action.

With 22 countries involved through three stages of development, it becomes one of the most extensive support for six years for entire Europe not only for the European Union. Three steps it means:

– first, improve Roma access to local services through effective intercultural mediation;

– second, the participation of Roma in local decision-making through applied principles of good inclusive governance;

– third, political will and capacity of local administration for local Roma strategy inclusion through community organizing and empowerment.

Yes, it is looking good even in these new words. In reality, the primary challenge remains in the region with unstable political support from local councils or no support like in Hungary, more time needed to build trust and cross over personal issues to touch a useful level, so high result obtained in Romania, Portugal and Bulgaria after Evangelic Church or non-roma citizen involvement. Also, Community Action Grup does not have enough resources, or some are confronted with faster people exchange and abandon.

National authorities should ensure that employers do not utilize the mediators for purposes that are not in line with their intended mission; that way, it was adopted the European Code of Ethics for protection against abuse. With this Code in front, success is registered like:

– the level of marginalization decrease;
– new capacities for community self-organizing;
– participation and winning the local election;
– openness from local authorities;
– cultural understanding and communication bridges between decision leaders.

The program has high complexity and determines different reactions in each region or country. Still, at this moment, humanity tries to find solutions for integrating diversity. After 60 years of peace, economic growth, health capacity, we should continue these investments in understanding together.

At the high-level seminar on the results of ROMED held in Brussels on 28 March 2017, I heard examples, stories with people involved, and the desire to continue. That is good as bad at the same time. The benefits part is in up words in this article and staying together with the dark side of human been: intolerance and lack of human rights respect. Our institutions can not be involved much more in solving problems like war, women violence, education for all because they still need to fix simple access at democracy for everyone in the whole of Europe.
You can choose to be part of future results through cultural curiosity, ways to spread knowledge in your community, administrative involvement, and natural evolution.

For more information, access the ROMED conference report: “Taking Stock and Looking Forward.” and Evaluation Report.

Thank you for resources like Evaluation Report and materials from high-level seminar participants. On audio section is available the introduction speech of  Mr. Franz Timmermans from which I quote:

“Diversity is our great asset, and now Diversity is turned in our challenge, the source of a lot of fear and is no time to waste.”

Registration from the High-Level Seminar: