The Case of Roma and Travellers
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SOCIAL INCLUSION THROUGH SOCIAL SERVICES The Case of Roma and Travellers Social Inclusion Through Social Services: The Case of Roma and Travellers Assessing the Impact of National Action Plans for Social Inclusion in Czech Republic, France and Portugal ERRC/NÚMENA SOCIAL INCLUSION THROUGH SOCIAL SERVICES: THE CASE OF ROMA AND TRAVELLERS Copyright: © European Roma Rights Centre and Númena Centro de Investigação em Ciências Sociais e Humanas, March 2007. All rights reserved. ISBN 978-963-86955-5-0 Cover graphic: António Faria Printed by Createch Ltd. in Budapest, Hungary. — 5 — SOCIAL INCLUSION THROUGH SOCIAL SERVICES: THE CASE OF ROMA AND TRAVELLERS TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................................ 7 1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................... 9 2. METHODOLOGY ....................................................................................................................11 3. MAIN FINDINGS OF THE ASSESSMENT ................................................................................. 13 3.1 General Assessment of NAP Measures ......................................................................13 3.2 Country-by-Country Assessment ...............................................................................19 3.2.1 Czech Republic ................................................................................................19 3.2.1.1 Measures in the Area of Access to Social Services in Czech Republic .................................................................................19 3.2.1.2 The General Situation of Roma in Czech Republic .........................24 3.2.1.3 Access to Social Assistance ..............................................................25 3.2.1.4 Access to Social Housing .................................................................28 3.2.1.5 Access to State-Sponsored Health Insurance ...................................31 3.2.1.6 Access to State-Sponsored Pensions ................................................33 3.2.2 France ...........................................................................................................34 3.2.2.1 Measures in the Area of Access to Social Services in France ..........34 3.2.2.2 The General Situation of Travellers in France .................................36 3.2.2.3 Access to Social Assistance ..............................................................38 3.2.2.4 Access to Halting Sites and Social Housing ....................................44 3.2.2.5 Access to State-Sponsored Health Insurance ...................................49 3.2.2.6 Access to State-Sponsored Pensions ................................................50 3.2.3 Portugal ............................................................................................................51 3.2.3.1 Measures in the Area of Access to Social Services in Portugal .......51 3.2.3.2 The General Situation of Roma in Portugal .....................................53 3.2.3.3 Access to Social Assistance ..............................................................54 3.2.3.4 Access to Social Housing .................................................................58 3.2.3.5 Access to State-Sponsored Health Insurance ...................................63 3.2.3.6 Access to State-Sponsored Pensions ................................................65 4. GOOD PRACTICES ................................................................................................................69 4.1 Social Assistance ........................................................................................................69 4.2 Housing ......................................................................................................................71 4.3 Health .........................................................................................................................73 4.4 Employment ...............................................................................................................75 4.5 Difficulties in Identifying Good Practices .................................................................76 — 5 — EUROPEAN ROMA RIGHTS CENTRE/NÚMENA SOCIAL INCLUSION THROUGH SOCIAL SERVICES: THE CASE OF ROMA AND TRAVELLERS 5. RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................................................ 77 5.1 General ....................................................................................................................... 77 5.2 Czech Republic .......................................................................................................... 80 5.3 France ......................................................................................................................... 81 5.4 Portugal ...................................................................................................................... 82 6. BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................................... 84 7. RESEARCHERS PROFILES ..................................................................................................... 89 — 6 — — 7 — EUROPEAN ROMA RIGHTS CENTRE/NÚMENA SOCIAL INCLUSION THROUGH SOCIAL SERVICES: THE CASE OF ROMA AND TRAVELLERS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This impact assessment was produced by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) and Númena Centro de Investigação em Ciências Sociais e Humanas (Númena). Tara Bedard and Larry Olomoofe wrote the final assessment report. Claude Cahn, Bruno Peixe Dias and Tiago Ralha Farinha provided comments on the draft. Claude Cahn provided final editorial comments on the report. The report is based on desk and field research and country-specific reports that the following persons produced: In Czech Republic, Lucie Fremlová and Jana Kabeláčová; in France, Tara Bedard and Larry Olomoofe, with assistance from Annabelle Arki, Catherine Chery and Matthieu Le Charpentier; and in Por- tugal, Monica Catarino-Ribeiro, José Falcão, Edite Rosário and Rahul Kumar. Tara Bedard, Bruno Peixe Dias and Tiago Ralha Farinha and ERRC intern Ste- fanie Ligori undertook additional desk research. Tara Bedard, Claude Cahn, Bruno Peixe Dias, Savelina Danova-Rousino- va and Tiago Ralha Farinha drafted the research methodology for this assess- ment. Tara Bedard coordinated the work of the researchers in Czech Republic and France. Bruno Peixe Dias and Tiago Ralha Farinha coordinated the work of the researchers in Portugal. In addition, the following ERRC staff members, interns and volunteers con- tributed to the production of this report: Ostalinda Maya Ovalle, Kamilla Hassen, Paramjeet Kaur, Carrie Sherlock and Sarah Lysecki. Layout and design of the publication was done by Dzavit Berisha and Sarah Lysecki. The ERRC and Númena are particularly indebted to the Romani and Traveller in- dividuals, civil society organisations, social service workers, government representa- tives and academics who willingly spent their time responding to questionnaires and describing the situation of Roma and Travellers in accessing social services. The ERRC and Númena are also grateful to the European Commission for the financial support for conducting the necessary research and for publish- ing the present report. — 6 — — 7 — SOCIAL INCLUSION THROUGH SOCIAL SERVICES: THE CASE OF ROMA AND TRAVELLERS — 9 — SOCIAL INCLUSION THROUGH SOCIAL SERVICES: THE CASE OF ROMA AND TRAVELLERS 1. INTRODUCTION In Czech Republic, France and Portugal, Roma and Travellers1 experience wide- spread exclusion from labour markets for a myriad of reasons, including direct and indirect discrimination, low educational attainment levels, illiteracy and the “extinction” of forms of employment traditionally occupied by Roma and Trav- ellers. Unemployment levels are therefore proportionally much higher amongst the Romani and Travellers populations of the target countries than amongst non- Romani/Traveller groups. Unemployment is a major contributing factor to social exclusion. This is particularly true in households with no income earner and for persons who are long-term unemployed. The corresponding importance of equal access to effective social services of persons falling within these groups cannot be understated in terms of fostering their social inclusion. Unimpeded access to social services is essential for the elimination of poverty and social exclusion and the promotion of human rights and basic dignity, including the right to access to social services and the right to the highest attainable standard of living. Most governments in Europe are resistant to collecting and/or making pub- licly available data disaggregated by race or ethnicity. However, data collection is essential for the assessment of government policies and programmes and their implementation and in order to understand and eliminate the social exclu- sion of Roma and Travellers. The lack of disaggregated data makes the analysis of the impact of government actions on Romani and Traveller individuals very difficult. Where political will to foster the social inclusion of Roma does exist, a lack of disaggregated data in areas of relevance undermines the effectiveness of policy efforts towards this aim. These facts hold true in the area of access to social services. Current information available on the ability of Roma and Travellers to achieve equal access to effective social