HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES OF y THE ROMA (GYPSIES) Y 4.F 76/1^: R 66/3 ^ " - "° != nuABING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL SECURITY, INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND HUMAN RIGHTS OF THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS SECOND SESSION APRIL 14, 1994 Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Affairs •» U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 81-718CC WASHINGTON : 1994 ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington.DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-044837-9 HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES OF THE ROMA (GYPSIES) 4. F 76/l:R 66/3 ^ - ^ M of the ""Faring BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL INTERNATIONAL SECURITY, ORGANIZATIONS AND HUMAN RIGHTS OF THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS SECOND SESSION APRIL 14, 1994 Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Affairs H U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 81-718CC WASHINGTON : 1994 ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice SuperintendentofDocuments.CongressionalSalesOffice.Washington.DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-044837-9 COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS LEE H. HAMILTON, Indiana, Chairman SAM GEJDENSON, Connecticut BENJAMIN A. GILMAN, New York TOM LANTOS, California WILLIAM F. GOODLING, Pennsylvania ROBERT G. TORRICELLI, New Jersey JAMES A. LEACH, Iowa HOWARD L. BERMAN, California TOBY ROTH, Wisconsin GARY L. ACKERMAN, New York OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine HARRYJOHNSTON, Florida HENRYJ. HYDE, Illinois ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York DOUG BEREUTER, Nebraska ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA, American CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey Samoa DAN BURTON, Indiana JAMES L. OBERSTAR, Minnesota JAN MEYERS, Kansas CHARLES E. SCHUMER, New York ELTON GALLEGLY, California MATTHEW G. MARTINEZ, California ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida ROBERT A. BORSKI, Pennsylvania CASS BALLENGER, North Carolina DONALD M. PAYNE, New Jersey DANA ROHRABACHER, California ROBERT E. ANDREWS, New Jersey DAVID A. LEVY, New York ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey DONALD A. MANZULLO, Illinois SHERROD BROWN, Ohio LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART, Florida CYNTHIA A. MCKINNEY, Georgia EDWARD R. ROYCE, California MARIA CANTWELL, Washington ALCEE L. HASTINGS, Florida ERIC FINGERHUT, Ohio PETER DEUTSCH, Florida ALBERT RUSSELL WYNN, Maryland DON EDWARDS, California FRANK McCLOSKEY, Indiana THOMAS C. SAWYER, Ohio LEWIS V. GUTIERREZ, Illinois Michael H. Van Dusen, ChiefofStaff Jo WEBER, StaffAssociate International Security, International Organization and Human Rights TOM LANTOS, California, Chairman HOWARD L. BERMAN, California DOUG BEREUTER, Nebraska GARY L. ACKERMAN, New York OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine MATTHEW G. MARTINEZ, California CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey FRANK MCCLOSKEY, Indiana DAN BURTON, Indiana THOMAS C. SAWYER, Ohio ROBERT KING, StaffDirector MICHAEL ENNIS, Republican Professional StaffMember BETH L. POISSON, Professional StaffMember THEODORE M. HlRSCH, Professional StaffMember ANDREA L. NELSON, Professional StaffMember (ID CONTENTS WITNESSES Page LiviaPlaks, associate director, Projecton EthnicRelations 4 Nicolae Gheorghe, coordinating secretary, Federation ofRoma inRomania ..... 5 Klara Orgovanova, psychologist, social worker and former advisor on minori- ties in theSlovak Government 7 Andrzej Mirga, chairman, Roma Association in Poland 8 IanHancock, president, International Roma Federation 9 APPENDIX Summary ofU.S. Holocaust Musuem ceremony in honorofthe Roma (Gypsy) victims oftheHolocaust 17 Chairman Tom Lantos, prepared statement 19 Prepared statementsofwitnesses: Nicolae Gheorghe 22 Klara Orgovanova 26 Andrzej Mirga 29 Ian Hancock 33 (III) HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES OF THE ROMA (GYPSIES) THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 1994 House of Representatives, Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on International Security, International Organizations and Human Rights, Washington, DC. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 1:11 p.m., in room 2200, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Tom Lantos (chairman ofthe subcommittee) presiding. Mr. Lantos. The Subcommittee on International Security, Inter- national Organizations and Human Rights will be in order. I want to welcome our distinguished panel of witnesses to this hearing on human rights abuses against the Roma, a people often called gypsies. I believe this is the first congressional hearing to focus specifically on the Roma, who are a trans-national minority, and not the minority ofa single nation. Since human rights abuses against the Roma must be addressed in an international context, I am delighted that we will hear testi- mony today from leaders of Romani communities in Poland, Slo- vakia, Romania, and the United States. A few days ago, I returned from a trip to Russia, where condi- tions have worsened since my last visit a few years ago. The prom- ises of a free market economy still elude many Russians, and the difficulties in adjusting to a market economy have been far greater than anticipated. Consequently, the optimism and euphoria that swept Russia, as well as the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, with the fall of communism have been supplanted by frustration, a search for scapegoats, and a horrifying resurgence ofethnic violence. Among those hardest hit by the economic crises and racial intol- erance triggered by the collapse of the Communist regime are the estimated 6 million Roma living primarily in Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, in the Czech Republic, and also in Poland. To many in the United States, the term "gypsies" evokes an image of people who dress like Spanish flamenco dancers, wander the countryside in brightly painted wagons, and play Hungarian violin music. However, as we will learn today from our distin- guished witnesses, modern reality for the Roma is in very harsh contrast to this romantic image. A bit of background information may be useful. The Roma mi- grated from northern India around the 10th century. They were mistakenly assumed to be from Egypt; hence the name gypsy. (l) Many settled into a nomadic lifestyle in the mountains and forests ofCentral and Eastern Europe. During the Second World War, the Roma were targeted for exter- mination by the Nazis. Although accurate records were not kept, it is estimated that at least 500,000 Roma were killed, frequently with the collaboration ofthe local population. Under Communist rule, many Roma were settled in housing projects and took jobs as unskilled laborers in the least desirable industries. Overt anti-Romani discrimination, however, was sup- pressed. Press reports indicate that—many Roma believe their lives were better under Communist rule they had jobs, housing, and were relatively free from ethnic violence. Today, the Roma are the largest dispersed minority on the Euro- pean continent. With the elimination offormer Communist govern- ment subsidies for housing—and employment, unemployment among the Roma has skyrocketed up to 80 percent of the Roma living in Romania are unemployed, as are about 70 percent of the Roma in Hungary. Many of the estimated 6 million Roma live at a subsist- ence level. I think it can be stated without exaggeration that the plight of the Roma is the disgrace ofEurope. But perhaps a bigger problem, in the new regimes preoccupied with economic crises, is the development ofan atmosphere in which human rights violations of a despised minority has become accept- able. Racial intolerance and ethnic violence are condoned, and have re- sulted in repeated attacks on the Roma both physically and ver- Anti-Romani violence has been the worst in Romania, whose bally. government characterizes it as a social problem rather than as the blatant discrimination it is. The Roma have had to face racial discrimination in education and housing, segregation in hospitals, "no gypsies allowed" signs in restaurants and private facilities, coercive sterilization of women, and ill-treatment by the police and thejustice system. I would like to note that this discrimination and abuse has been a feature of the life of the Roma throughout most of their history. They too were victims of the Nazi Holocaust. I very much welcome the attention that the Romani community has been given by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, particularly recognizing them at the National Civic Commemoration last week in the rotunda of our Capitol. And I understand that this morning the Romani commu- nity was recognized in a special observance at the Holocaust Mu- seum.1 Let me just cite a few examples of the kind of human rights abuses which the Roma face. Bigotry is one of the most pervasive problems that the Roma must face. All accounts describe a wide- spread perception by the mainstream population that the Romani people are a despised, marginal social problem. Last September 3, Slovakian Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar said, with respect to "the population activity of the whites and of the Roma," the Roma constituted a "socially unadaptable popu- iA summaryofthe U.S. HolocaustMuseum ceremony in honor ofthe Roma (Gypsy) victims oftheHolocaustisprintedin theappendix. — — lation" I'm quoting with a high birth rate of "children who are poorly adaptable mentally, poorly adaptable socially, children with serious health disorders, children simply who are a great burden on this society." Eighty percent of all Romani children drop out of school by age 10. Romani children begin school with a language barrier. The Romani have a distinct language, and many children are not fluent in the language of the country they are living in. Romani children can therefore quickly fall behind, and many capable Romani chil- dren are then sent to schools for the mentally retarded. This is an outrage. The human rights group Helsinki Watch reports the attitudes of doctors and government officials who promoted the sterilization of Romani women are still present in some hospitals where Romani women are placed in segregated and overcrowded maternity wards. Amnesty International reports ill-treatment of Roma by law en- forcement officers in Hungary and Slovakia, and torture and ill- treatment ofRoma by police in Romania and Bulgaria. While police are quick to respond to crimes allegedly committed by Roma, police often fail to respond to crimes against the Romani community. In Romania, police are reported to have stepped aside and watched local thugs beat Roma and torch Romani houses. Our witnesses at today's hearing are leaders in the Romani com- munity. Nicolae Gheorghe, a sociologist from Romania, is coordi- nating secretary of the Federation of Roma in Romania and a sen- ior spokesman for the Roma in various international organizations, including the Council of Europe and the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. Klara Orgovanova is a psychologist and head ofa social work or- ganization serving Romani children and women in Slovakia. Until recently she served as a minority specialist in the Slovak Govern- ment. Andrzej Mirga is an ethnographer of the Jagiellonian University in Cracow, and chairman of the Romani Association in Poland. He also serves as chair of the Romani Advisory Council of the Project on Ethnic Relations at Princeton. Ian Hancock is a professor at the University of Texas. Dr. Han- cock has represented the Roma at the U.N. as a UNICEF rep- resentative. He is a linguist and chairman ofthe Great Romani En- cyclopedia Committee. He is also president of the International Roma Federation. I am also pleased to welcome Ms. Livia Plaks, associate director of the Project on Ethnic Relations. This organization was founded in 1991 to encourage the peaceful resolution of ethnic conflicts in the new democracies of Central and Eastern Europe and the Rus- sian Federation. The Project on Ethnic Relations' Romani Advisory Council re- cently participated in a Romanian field project on means to reduce community violence against the Romani populations. Let me, in conclusion, express my very sincere appreciation to Ms. Andrea Nelson of my subcommittee staff, who has prepared this hearing today, and Mr. Michael Ennis, a most able Republican staffmember ofthe subcommittee. I also want to pay special tribute to two women who have been in the forefront in calling attention of the Congress to the human rights abuses against the Roma. First is my wife, Annette Lantos, who for many years has had a special concern with these abused and persecuted people. And second is Dr. Kay King, who is sitting in the front row, who formerly was my associate on my congres- sional staff. She has a deep personal commitment to improving the conditions of the Roma. Both of them worked closely and actively with Andrea Nelson in preparing this hearing today. We will begin the testimony, although shortly I will have to in- terrupt because we have a vote. The first witness will be Livia Plaks, associate director of the Project on Ethnic Relations. We are pleased to have you. [The prepared statement of Chairman Lantos appears in the ap- pendix.] STATEMENT OF LIVIA PLAKS, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, PROJECT ON ETHNIC RELATIONS Ms. Plaks. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Contrary to the popularly assumed image of gypsies as a free and untroubled people, the Romani population everywhere in fact endures system- atic gross deprivation oftheir human, social and civil rights. The situation at the present time is approaching crisis propor- tions. Some specialists on the Roma in Eastern Europe predict that unless it is recognized and addressed immediately, it will lead to a tragic disaster for the Roma in the next decade. The main reason for alarm among human rights groups and Romani activists is the deteriorating economies of Eastern Europe, and the fact that the nationalist movements need an easy scape- goat for their attacks, which they find in the Romani population. The Roma do not have a state behind them. They are not a pow- erful lobby. Many people in Eastern Europe hold them in contempt. The Roma have long been the outcasts of Europe, and it is some- times forgotten that they were among the victims of the Holocaust. They were the targets ofenforced assimilation by the Communist authorities, whose programs all too often destroyed coherent alter- natives and left poorly educated, unemployed populations living in deep poverty, segregated, despised by the majority groups, victim- ized by the darkest prejudices and hatreds, and lacking the group cohesiveness or leadership required to defend themselves against violence, let alone to compete for a place in the sun. The Project on Ethnic Relations that you are familiar with has undertaken a number of efforts in the last few years with the Romani community. I will just mention a couple. Two major conferences, one in Czechoslovakia and one in Roma- nia where Romani leaders sat face-to-face for the first time with governmental leaders in charge ofminorities, and the Roma specifi- cally. The establishment of the Roma Advisory Council is another step toward giving international recognition to young Romani leaders who have a voice in their community. Recently we arranged for our team of police management and mob violence prevention specialists to visit Romania with the scope of providing expert advice on preventing and controlling outbreaks