Local authorities in Romania forcibly evict Roma next to the city garbage dump site

Alert DateDecember 17, 2010 Country: Romania General Type: Discrimination, Institutional discrimination Racism and discrimination phenomena: Anti-roma/zinghanophobia
Groups affected / Interested in: Roma & Travelers Key socio-economic/institutional areas: Policing - law enforcement, Housing, Health and social protection, Education, Anti-racism, Integration - social cohesion
Victims Data
Victims Nationality/Ethnic Origin N/A
Victims Gender N/A
Victims Age N/A
Victims Number N/A
Fatalities - deaths N/A
Perpetrators Data
Perpetrators Nationality/Ethnic Origin N/A
Perpetrator Gender N/A
Perpetrator Age N/A
Perpetrators Number N/A
Extremist/Organised Group Violence No

In December 2010 authorities from Cluj-Napoca forcibly evicted 56 Roma families from the city centre where they had been living for 25 years to the outskirts of the city, next to the city’s garbage dump and a former chemical waste dump, also next to another Roma settlement of around 1,000 Roma living in very poor conditions. The living conditions are dire: improper housing, hazardous health environment, lack of access to utilities and infrastructure, etc… [1] In November 2011, the National Council for Combating Discrimination found discrimination in the case. [2] As far as we are aware, the Roma are still there despite breaches of several human rights basic standards, discrimination included. [3]

 

Sources:

 

  1. Amnesty International, Mind the Legal Gap, Roma and the right to housing in Romania, June 2011, p. 8, available at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR39/004/2011/en/5f9becde-66e9-4262-bb3a-ff1c3681046d/eur390042011en.pdf (Accessed on 01.03.2012)
  2. National Council for Combating Discrimination, Press release on the decisions of the NCCD Steering Committee Decisions from 15.11.2011, available at: http://www.cncd.org.ro/noutati/Comunicate-de-presa/Comunicat-de-presa-referitor-la-deciziile-Colegiului-director-al-CNCD-din-data-de-15-11-2011-124/ (Accessed on 01.03.2012)
  3. See also: Antena3, In premiera, 20.11.2011, available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_YFqoKlWdM (Accessed on 01.03.2012) and Amnesty International Wire, Marching for Social Justice and housing rights for the Roma from Pata-Rat in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 22.12.2011, available at: http://livewire.amnesty.org/2011/12/22/marching-for-social-justice-and-housing-rights-for-the-roma-from-pata-rat-in-cluj-napoca-romania/ (Accessed on 01.03.2012)