The Roma as a viability test for the EU social inclusion policy

Abstract

The migration and Roma inclusion debate has gained a boost in visibility and publicity at the halfway mark af the Decade of Roma Inclusion, an initiative that select European governments, intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizationsand Roma civil society began in 2005. This article debates the problems concerning the EU strategic initiative that seeks to improve the situation of Roma throughout Europe - partcuiarly in the areas of employment, education, housing and health - and to construct applied measures to accelerate Roma integration. Roma, the largest minority group in Europe, have lived throughout the continent for centuries and have long faced discrimination and high leveis of poverty. Romania and Bulgaria, which joined the European Union (EU) in 2007, have particutarty large Roma populations. In the last two years, Roma have come under new pressure in EU Member States such as Italy and France, which have emphasized expulsion as a means af addressing migration concerns. For Roma from Romania and Bulgaria who were living in France. the year 2010 witnessed an escalation af this pressure alongside an escalation of the accademic and political debate regarding Roma inclusion.