public health 176 (2019) 43e49 Available online at www.sciencedirect.com Public Health journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/puhe Themed Papere Original Research Are Gypsy Roma Traveller communities indigenous and would identification as such better address their public health needs? * V. Heaslip a,b, , D. Wilson c, D. Jackson d a Principal Academic Department of Nursing and Clinical Science, Faculty of Health and Social Science, Bournemouth University, UK b Department of Social Studies, University of Stavanger, Norway c Maori Health, Taupua Waiora Centre for Maori Health Research, Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences, Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand d Nursing, Faculty of Health, University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), Australia article info abstract Article history: Introduction: Across Europe, large numbers of Gypsy Roma Traveller communities experi- Received 23 May 2018 ence significant health inequities such as higher morbidity, mortality and infant mortality. Received in revised form This health inequity is perpetuated by wider determinants such as a lower social status, 1 October 2018 lower educational attainment and substandard accommodation. This is not dissimilar to Accepted 25 February 2019 other indigenous peoples, even though many Gypsy Roma Traveller communities are not Available online 10 May 2019 identified as indigenous. Methods: This article presents contemporary literature and research alongside the inter- Keywords: nationally agreed principles of indigenous peoples, examining similarities between Gypsy Indigenous Roma Traveller communities and other indigenous peoples. Roma Results: We argue that Gypsy Roma Traveller communities could be recognised as indige- Gypsy nous in terms of the internationally agreed principles of indigeneity and shared experi- Traveller ences of health inequity, colonisation and cultural genocide. Doing so would enable a more Health inequity robust public health strategy and development of public health guidelines that take into Health inequalities account their cultural views and practices. Conclusion: Recognising Gypsy Roma Traveller communities in this way is important, especially concerning public health, as formal recognition of indigeneity provides certain rights and protection that can be used to develop appropriate public health strategies. Included within this are more nuanced approaches to promoting health, which focus on strengths and assets rather than deficit constructs that can perpetuate problematising of these communities. Crown Copyright © 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The Royal Society for Public Health. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author. B414 Bournemouth House, Bournemouth University, Christchurch Road, Bournemouth, BH1 3LH, UK. Tel.: þ441202 961774. E-mail address: [email protected] (V. Heaslip). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2019.02.020 0033-3506/Crown Copyright © 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The Royal Society for Public Health. All rights reserved. 44 public health 176 (2019) 43e49 Within their principles, the UN considers two types of Introduction and context peopledindigenous and tribal peoples. Tribal peoples, how- ever, are not indigenous in the literal sense within the coun- Human rights and indigeneity tries they live, although they live in similar circumstances to indigenous communities.7 In doing this, the UN captures both 1 The human rights movement has supported legal and polit- indigenous groups under the priority criteria (that is, the first ical recognition of the rights of indigenous peoples. Muncan people) and groups with cultural distinctiveness and describes human rights as the ‘inherent, equal, and irrevo- difference. cable freedoms of the individual and includes access to the When applying these principles to Gypsy Roma Traveller basic necessities of life, freedom of expression, right to justice, communities, it can be argued that these communities meet ’ 2 and state of peace . In accepting this, the synergies between many of the principles of indigenous peoples. However, before the indigenous and human rights movements are clear. we consider this, we first define Gypsy Roma Travellers. However, there are also risks associated with linking rights of Within the literature, there are many terms used to identify indigenous peoples too closely on the international human Gypsies and Travellers such as Gypsy, Roma, Traveller, rights framework. Humanitarian thinkers and legal practi- Romany, Roma and Romani. While it has become common tioners founded international law, upon which the human practice to collate these under the umbrella of ‘Roma’, this is rights movement was cemented during the 18th and 19th problematic for Travellers, of whom many do not perceive 3 centuries. Consequently, human rights are not universal but themselves as Gypsies or Roma.8 Therefore, we have chosen contextual and reflective of the views of the dominant ma- to use the term Gypsy Roma Traveller when collectively jority which do not necessarily reflect the world views of the referring to these communities, although when referring to a ' 1 indigenous peoples themselves. Mende argues the need for specific community, we will use the specific group term. This indigenous human rights on the basis that indigenous rights article shall now continue to explore the UN principles of challenge the universal and individual scope of human rights. indigeneity with respect to Gypsy Roma Traveller Before exploring whether Gypsy Roma Travellers could be communities. identified as indigenous, there is a need to explore what indigenous means. This is, however, problematic, largely Identification of Gypsy Roma Traveller indigeneity using because there are no agreed definitions of indigeneity from priority criteria the international4 or academic community. Thornberry5 identified four key aspects of indigeneity that include associ- The first three of the UN principles for indigenous peoples link ation with a particular place, prior inhabitation, original or to the identification of indigeneity under priority criteria with first inhabitants and distinctive societies, thus placing self-identification of indigeneity, historical continuity and emphasis on time, location and being first inhabitants. How- notions of place (Table 1), which could be considered ever, the notion of indigenous peoples being the first people in regarding Gypsy Roma Traveller communities. There are a territory fails to recognise the importance of placing currently about 10e12 million Gypsy Roma Travellers across emphasis on shared cultural uniqueness that differs from Europe.9 Within the United Kingdom (UK), Gypsy Roma 1 dominant cultural groups. While the rights of indigenous Traveller communities consist of individuals born within the 6 people exist within legislation, Wang argues this provides UK (English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh Gypsies and Travellers) little clarity as such laws failed to define identification of how and those who have migrated to the UK (Eastern European and who are indigenous peoples. Ultimately, when exploring Roma) for economic or asylum reasons. As identified, Gypsy 1 indigenous human rights, Mende argues there are a number Roma Travellers are not a homogenous group, although some of uncertainties, obscurities and contradictions relating to the of the communities (Roma and Romani) share common notion of indigeneity itself, and while a full exploration of this ancestry. Exploring genome-wide data from 13 Romani com- is beyond the scope of this article, what it does highlight are munities across Europe suggests that Romani communities the challenges of being identified and recognised as originate from a single-founder population originating in indigenous. north/north western India around 1.5 thousand years ago.10 In order to explore whether Gypsy Roma Travellers could When considering historical continuity, the first written be identified as indigenous, we have used the United Nations traces of Roma in Europe date back to the 14th century, (UN) principles of indigenous peoples. Rather than providing a although they may have been around as early as the 12th 7 clear definition of indigenous, the UN identified a number of century.11 In contrast, while it was historically believed that principles to help identify indigenous peoples (Table 1). Irish Travellers were a subset of the original Romani founder Table 1 e Principles of indigenous people.7 1. Self-identification as indigenous peoples at the individual level and accepted by their community as a member 2. Historical continuity with pre-colonial and/or pre-settler societies 3. Strong links to territories and surrounding natural resources 4. Distinct social, economic or political systems 5. Distinct language, culture and beliefs 6. Form non-dominant groups of society 7. Resolve to maintain and reproduce their ancestral environments and systems as distinctive peoples and communities. public health 176 (2019) 43e49 45 population, recent genome-wide research on Irish Travellers Colonisation of Gypsy Roma Traveller communities has clearly identified a distinctive Irish origin.12 By exploring historical continuity and notions of place, it can be argued for The work of Mathews25 and Cunningham and Stanley26 the non-recognition of Roma as indigenous peoples because visually presents a representation of the impact of colonisa- they cannot claim these priority criteria, unlike Irish Travel- tion on Aboriginal health. Adapting this for Gypsy Roma lers who are able to make such claims. Traveller communities (Fig.