In Brussels, an end-of-term high-level seminar titled “Summing Up and Looking Ahead” was held at the initiative of the European Commission and the Council of Europe. The event focused on the outcomes of the six-year implementation of the ROMED principles program and aimed to strengthen the role of Romani mediators in the process of integrating the Romani community into respective national communities. The forum, attended by representatives from all 21 countries involved in implementing this program, saw the participation of Andriy Yurash, the Director of the Department of Religious and Ethnic Affairs at the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine.
Taking place at the European Commission’s headquarters, the event concentrated on three main aspects: discussing the outcomes of program implementation, exploring prerequisites and opportunities to enhance cooperation and coordination efforts between civil organizations and governmental institutions to bolster the role of Romani mediators, and generating recommendations for the potential continuation of the program at the national level until 2020.
Especially interesting and valuable in terms of sharing necessary experience were the sessions during which mediators and their national-level coordinators shared their insights and experience. These mediators were engaged in the implementation of the ROMED1 (focused on Romani mediation in education and healthcare) and ROMED2 (concentrated on enhancing Romani community involvement in local government institutions with mediator participation) subprograms.
During one of these sessions, representatives from Ukraine, Valentina Zolotarenko, a community activist and mediator with extensive experience working with Romani communities in the Darnytskyi district of Kyiv, and Zemfira Kondur, the leader of the Romani women’s organization “Chirikli” and one of the leaders of the Coalition of Romani Public Organizations, highlighted Ukraine’s perspective. Zemfira Kondur concentrated on the dynamics of developing mediation programs and processes in Ukraine. She also delved into recent steps taken by Ukraine’s executive authority, particularly the Ministry of Culture as the responsible body for this area of state policy, to initiate and implement practical measures to strengthen the role of Romani community figures and organizations in the integration process of the Romani community into Ukrainian society at large and local communities, as well as in the operations of municipal authorities.
According to Andriy Yurash, the recognition of the progress achieved in Ukraine regarding the implementation of support programs for the Romani community became possible due to several factors.
Firstly, it’s crucial to acknowledge the deepening cooperation between the state and civil organizations that prioritize the support and protection of the Romani national minority, including the International Renaissance Foundation, which has been financing a special program for Romani community initiatives for 18 years.
Secondly, there has been an overall increase in attention from government bodies towards issues related to the protection and cooperation with Romani communities and organizations on all levels.
Thirdly, progress has been made possible through the direct involvement of activists and leaders of Romani civil organizations in the decision-making and implementation processes.
As unanimously agreed upon by all participants of the seminar, both those representing Ukraine and those discussing the matter, the results could have been more substantial considering the numerical size of the Romani community residing in Ukraine. If Ukraine could initiate and execute programs of financial support for initiatives that focus on promoting Romani community initiatives aimed at overcoming existing stereotypes about their communities and achieving greater integration of Romani people into Ukrainian society, the outcomes could be even more significant.
