April 27, 2012: Scientific-Practical Conference on the Strasbourg Declaration and Its Implementation in the Context of Democratic Reforms in Ukraine
On April 27, 2012, a scientific-practical conference titled “Strasbourg Declaration on Roma: Implementation within the Context of Democratic Reforms in Ukraine” took place at the Institute of Legislation of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. The conference aimed to discuss the enhancement of state policy, legislation, and practices based on established Euro-integration guidelines, international norms, and standards. The objective was to promote the integration of Roma into Ukrainian society and facilitate their participation in social, political, and civic life. The conference was organized by the Institute of Legislation, the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, and the International Charity Organization “Roma Women’s Fund ‘Chiricli’.”
The conference brought together representatives of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, central and local executive authorities, local self-government bodies, civil and international organizations, including the Council of Europe, the International Organization for Migration, the International Renaissance Foundation, and the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine, as well as media outlets.
The conference was inaugurated by Oleksandr Zaychuk, the First Deputy Director of the Institute of Legislation, Academician of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, Doctor of Legal Sciences, and Professor. He highlighted the legal issues related to Roma integration into Ukrainian society and emphasized the substantial and dynamic democratic reforms in Ukraine within the context of Euro-integration, which created opportunities for comprehensive solutions. Notably, President of Ukraine’s recent social initiatives were underscored, along with the active legislative work of the Cabinet of Ministers and the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in their implementation.
Greetings to the conference participants were extended on behalf of Yurii Bohutskyi, the First Deputy Minister of Culture of Ukraine, Academician of the National Academy of Arts of Ukraine, Candidate of Philosophical Sciences, and Professor, by Lidiia Zubko, the Head of the Department of Ethnic Culture of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Diaspora. G. Shikluna, an expert of the Office of the Representative of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe on Roma Issues, and Y. Kondur, the President of the NGO “Chirikli,” also delivered welcoming speeches.
The conference was chaired by Yevhen Bersheda, the Head of the Department of Conceptual Issues of State-Building at the Institute of Legislation, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Doctor of Economic Sciences, Professor, Honored Scientist and Engineer of Ukraine, and Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Ukraine.
The scientific report on the “System of Protection of Roma within the Context of the Council of Europe Law and the Amendments to the Strasbourg Declaration” was presented by A. Sanchenko, the Head of the Sector for Legal Issues of European Integration at the Institute of Legislation, Candidate of Legal Sciences. The report reflected the results of scientific and applied research on the legislative protection of Roma and its compliance with the norms of the Council of Europe law in relation to Ukraine’s international commitments.
Subsequent reports and presentations addressed a complex range of policy, legal, socio-economic, and cultural issues. M. Budarin, a representative of the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, highlighted the policy and legal foundations and prospects for the development of Ukraine’s state policy on Roma integration. He informed about the ongoing development of a state strategy for the protection of Roma, which involves fulfilling commitments to the European Union. The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine was concurrently tasked with working on this topic within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine for 2011-2014.
Y. Ivanenko, the Chair of the Union of Roma Public Organizations “Roma Council of Ukraine,” discussed the status of Roma in Ukraine, their needs, and possibilities. The direction of reforming the social services system in Ukraine and assistance to the most vulnerable segments of the population were elaborated on in detail by O. Sulima, a representative of the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine. O. Khudoshina, a representative of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, addressed the improvement of the quality and accessibility of healthcare services for the Roma population in the context of reforming the Ukrainian healthcare sector. M. Harnyk, a representative of the State Migration Service of Ukraine under the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, focused on the documentation issues of Roma and ways to resolve them.
The implementation of the practice of Roma mediation to facilitate the integration of Roma into Ukrainian society, as emphasized in the Strasbourg Declaration on Roma, was the subject of presentations by Z. Kondur, the Vice President of the NGO “Chirikli,” and several social-medical mediators, including M. Horvat, M. Burlutskyi, and others. Their work entails close collaboration between Roma communities and local authorities, as a significant portion of Roma face difficulties related to accessing education, housing, medical services, social protection, and particularly employment.
In this context, local initiatives for Roma integration and the experience of their implementation were presented by representatives of the Odessa Regional State Administration, Kirovohrad City Council, and others. The speakers commended the cooperation with Roma mediators and supported the expansion of this practice throughout all regions of Ukraine with Roma communities.
Representatives of Roma non-governmental organizations highlighted their readiness to work closely and constructively with legislative, executive, and local authorities in preparing and implementing the Roma protection strategy and the national action plan for Roma envisaged by the aforementioned Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine, as well as other programs and initiatives.
Based on the discussions during this conference, participants adopted a Concluding Document with scientific-practical recommendations. This document will be submitted to the relevant committees of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, appropriate government bodies, and civil organizations.
Institute of Legislation of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. Oleg Zaychuk, Lyubov Zubko, Henrі Shikluna, Yulia Kondur, Yevhen Bersheda, Alevtina Sanchenko, Maksym Budarin, Yuri Ivanenko, Oksana Sulima, Olga Khudoshina, Maria Harnyk, Zemfira Kondur, Myroslav Horvat, Mykola Burlutskyi.
