Last week, the Warsaw Conference on the Human Dimension of the OSCE took place, within which the participants of the event discussed the state of observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The project manager of the Roma Women’s Foundation “Chirikli” Julian Kondur and the project assistant Taiya Avram also joined the event.
Representatives of the Roma civil society and OSCE states discussed the most acute problems faced by the Roma during the full-scale war. They also exchanged experiences and recommendations for solving these challenges.
“We have documented cases where some displaced Roma families were treated differently, discriminated against, or even limited access to rescue services or housing due to deep-rooted prejudices against Roma. To resolve such cases, Chirikli forwards this information to Ukrainian state bodies responsible for the protection of rights minorities
Stereotypes also negatively affect Roma’s ability to access temporary housing. This problem is mostly solved by Roma public organizations or the Roma communities themselves,” Julian Kondur said.
Meanwhile, Taiya Avram called on other countries to continue providing protection and expanding integration programs for Roma who have moved to other countries because they were forced to escape the war in Ukraine.
“At the same time, it is extremely important to stop the criminal. Russia, its leadership and its military must answer for all the crimes they committed in Ukraine and the suffering they caused to innocent civilians!” she added.
Roma Women’s Foundation “Chirikli” thanks the OSCE countries for their fight against racism and discrimination, as well as for their help in solving the problems of Roma in crisis and post-crisis situations. We urge you to continue monitoring the violations of Roma rights related to the full-scale Russian invasion, and continue to look for ways to solve these problems!
Photo: Natalia Duminica, OSCE / Piotr Dziubak
