Europees Economisch en Sociaal Comité: help Roma om zichzelf te helpen (en)

Strategy for integrating the Roma into society must be hammered out at EU i level and the Roma people themselves have to be closely involved in its design and implementation, said the European Economic and Social Committee in its Resolution on "The situation of the Roma in the EU" adopted at the EESC i last plenary session of the current term. The resolution strongly condemns any form of discrimination against the Roma or any ethnic minority group.

EESC President Mario Sepi said that the current discussion on the Roma was clear evidence that the EU and the Member States had failed to ensure successful social integration of this ethnic minority into society. "In recent years the EESC has relentlessly pushed for immediate action to be taken to help the Roma to improve their situation, rather than waiting until we were forced to do so by external events. This has been one of political priorities of my term as EESC President ", said Mario Sepi.

The EESC stressed that although integrating the Roma was primarily an issue for the Member States concerned, the EU had reponsibiity for addressing this problem at European level. The Resolution reiterated Committee calls for the EU to establish "a comprehensive strategy which is credible to Member States. Such a strategy must be built in a participatory way by involving Roma communities and be supported by funding which is consistent with and appropriate to the major challenges at hand".

It is significant that the EESC has used the legal instrument of a Resolution in this instance; the Committee rarely issues Resolutions; it generally discusses and adopts opinions on draft EU legislation, for submission to the EU lawmakers: the European Commission, the EU Council of Ministers and the European Parliament.

To read the text of the resolution, go to: http://www.eesc.europa.eu/?i=portal.en.news.10891