Roma expulsions: Europe and Romania issue warning to France

The European Commission and Romania have been following the recent French treatment of Roma closely and are warning Paris not to stigmatize ethnic minorities following recent expulsions and other events.

A plane carrying 79 Roma back to Romania from France within the context of “humanitarian repatriation aid” leaves today and others are scheduled say French officials, who also confirmed the dismantling of 51 Roma camps in the last month says Le Point. The Roma are the largest European ethnic minority group by number with most of them originating from Romania and Bulgaria, both of which are members of the European Union. Recent policies adopted by France have prompted Mattew Norman, spokesman for Viviane Reding, the European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, to issue a stern statement insisting that “France must respect the rules concerning the protection of European citizens. We are following the situation very closely in order to ensure that the rules have been respected.” According to French Immigration minister Eric Besson however, the 79 Roma sent back to their country have accepted humanitarian repatriation aid of €300 per adult and €100 per child. He said that today’s flight is the 25th of its kind this year involving Roma from Romania or Bulgaria. Europe considers that the expulsion of citizens is not legal unless they are considered to be a threat by the country concerned. “If a country goes ahead with an expulsion it has to consider if the decision is reasonable on a case-by-case basis. You cannot take a decision which applies to a whole population” said Norman. Recent French policies on Roma camps decided by President Nicolas Sarkozy at the end of July after violent incidents involving Roma have strained relations between France and both Romania and Bulgaria. In a related development, French State Secretary for European Affairs Pierre Lellouche has already brandished the threat of a delay to those countries’ applications to join the Schengen Area of Europe - where border controls no longer exist - if they do not do more to reintegrate their Roma communities. Mathew Norman underlines nevertheless that “Nothing in the Schengen Agreement stipulates a link between the integration of a population and entry to the Schengen Area.” Romania stepped up its criticism of France yesterday when Romanian Foreign Affairs minister Teodor Baconschi said “I hope that the law has been respected for all the expulsions of Roma” before warning Paris against “the stigmatization of an ethnic group” and “collective expulsions.” The French Foreign Ministry has announced that two Romanian State Secretaries will be visiting Paris on August 30 to discuss the issue.