MINELRES: ERIO Newsletter - August 2004

[MINELRES moderator]

Original sender: ERIO <office@erionet.org> 



http://www.erionet.org/Newsletters.html
 
erio nEwsletter 08/04 
In Brief: 

1. NEW WEBSITES, ERIO�S ANSWERS TO THE gREEN PAPER AND COUNCIL OF EUROPE
CONSULTATION, ERIO�S POLICY PAPERS 

2. ANOUNCEMENTS, Articles AND NEWS

3. FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES AND JOBS 

 

Dear colleagues and friends, 

We have used the month of August to update our databases and website.
Mirror websites are now available in Romanian and Macedonian. They will
be followed by mirror websites in other languages soon. We are also
planning to have relevant information translated for local NGOs and Roma
communities, but in order to be able to do so, we are depending on the
help of volunteer translators. Those of you who are willing to share
part of their time and energy with us are invited to write to us
indicating the language(s), which they are prepared to translate to and
the approximate amount of time they have available. We are also
welcoming applications for volunteers who help us completing our data
collection in the individual countries. For more information or
application please write to office@erionet.org  

We have also participated in the public consultation by the European
Commission on its Green paper surrounding racist discrimination (see
paper here) and in the Council of Europe consultation on �Integration
and Diversity: The new frontiers of European Media and Communication
Policy.� (see paper here) We have also submitted a list of question to
the public hearing of the new Commissioners by the EP. The document is
available here. ERIO is currently preparing policy papers on issues such
as education, employment, health, the condition of Romani women and
racist violence. With these issues we want to provide concrete proposals
meant to overcome the disastrous situation of Roma. Since ERIO has been
established with the purpose to influence EU policy-making towards Roma
the addresses of the papers are the EU institutions working in Brussels
as well as the national parliaments of the EU member states. Those who
want to contribute to these papers with their expertise should write to
our office address office@erionet.org highlighting their area of
interest. We shall be happy to forward you our drafts. 

Announcements 

European Roma Information Office helped organizing the OSCE�s  �Media
and Fighting Discrimination against Roma and Sinti: Media as a tool
against anti-Gypsyism� side event within the OSCE Conference  on
Tolerance and the Fight against Racism, Xenophobia and Discrimination
from 13-14th of September in Brussels. 

Up to this point there are very few and weak coalitions between Roma
NGOs,  non- Roma civic society's organisations and media. That needs to
change in  order to achieve the much needed social cohesion of
Europe.For those of you interested in participating please contact us at
office@erionet.org 

>From 16th to 18th of September ERIO is helding a training seminar on
negotiation in Moldova. 

Full details and documentation for the training is available here. 

News 

The European Roma and Travelers Forum has formally registered on July
13-th at the Tribunal of Justice in Strasbourg. ERIO sent a letter of
congratulation to the ERTF. 

More news 

On 2 August Roma communities all around Europe commemorated the sixtieth
anniversary of the Nazi genocide against the Romani people. In the night
from 2 to 3 of August 1943, 3000 Roma were killed in Auschwitz when the
so-called Zigeunerlager was emptied. Ausschwitz was also the place where
the Nazi-physician, Josef Mengle, utilized Roma as well as other people
for his pseudomedical experiments. 

The Romani genocide under Nationalsocialism was long time ignored and
continues to be downplayed by policymakers and scientists. There are no
concrete figures on the number of Roma who were killed in the name of
the purity of blood, but estimates speak about 250 000 to half a million
people, not including those who survived only on the price of enormous
tortures.  See article here . 

The Roma Council of Bosnia-Herzegovina has protested against Bosnia�s
discriminatory election law which prohibits people belonging to national
minorities to run for high political posts. Amendments have been
recently adopted to this law, but they have come too late in order to
affect the municipal elections which are taking place in October.
Further information can be found here 

Roma have been banned from Athens in order not to disturb the
organization of the Olympic games. See article here. A letter of protest
has been forwarded by the CENTRE SIMON WIESENTHAL � EUROPE. 

Funding opportunities/Jobs 

Minority Rights Group International has also launched a call for
application for an Advocacy and Rights Training Seminar in Warsaw.
Please see details here and download application form here. 

New funding opportunities from the European Commission are available.
For full details please follow the link here. 

The European Commission provides micro-grants for local NGOs. The
deadline for NGOs working in Serbia and Montenegro is 15 September.  

Jobs for International Organisations are available here