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Doc. 8829
21 September 2000
Situation of Roma/Gypsies in respect of asylum
Motion for an order
presented by Mr Diaz de Mera and others
This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only the members who have signed it |
1. Since the enlargement of the Council of Europe, the number of Roma/Gypsies living on the territory of its member states has increased in a significant way.
2. The Assembly is seriously concerned by the fact that the number of applications for asylum submitted by Roma/Gypsies originating from Council of Europe member states on the grounds of alleged violations of the human rights is on a rise. One of the recent examples to illustrate this phenomenon is arrival by coach in Strasbourg of a group of 35 Roma/Gypsies from Hungary in search of asylum on 24 July 2000.
3. Some Council of Europe member states apply in the refugee determination procedure the so-called doctrine of « safe country of origin » as part of their asylum legislation or regulations. Consideration of applications originating from the countries considered as « safe » may be accelerated as « manifestly unfounded ». The status determination procedure becomes a formality and an applicant has no chance to have his or her claim heard in a fair manner.
4. The assessment of what constitutes a « safe country » can differ fundamentally and in result the same country may be considered as « safe » by some countries but not by the others. For example the Czech Republic is considered as safe by Germany but not by Austria.
5. In consequence Roma/Gypsies originating from a country considered as a safe by a country where they apply for asylum may not have their claim heard in a fair manner.
6. Moreover, increasingly stringent immigration rules and efforts to deter potential asylum seekers may prevent some Roma/Gypsies from applying. For example, in July 1999 Finland, in swift reaction to arrival of several hundreds of Roma fleeing Slovakia, imposed a visa regime on Slovak citizens.
7. Furthermore, some Council of Europe member states interpret the refugee definition as referring only to persecution by agents of the state thus excluding persecution by non-state agents, including a pogrom. It is not commonly acknowledged that the fact of being the victim of a pogrom or having a reasonable fear of becoming a victim of a pogrom, against which the authorities refuse or prove unable to offer effective protection can, in individual cases, constitute a well-founded fear of persecution for being a member of a particular social group, as indicated in the 1951 Convention and its 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees.
8. Intolerance against Roma/Gypsies has been a long-standing one in many European countries. The tensions and strained relations between communities have contributed to the deplorable situation in which the majority of Roma live today. Increase of nationalist feelings in different parts of Europe have resulted in new outbursts of social and racial hatred against this minority.
9. The Assembly instructs its Committee on Migration, Refugees and Demography to carry out an in-depth study of the situation of Roma/Gypsies in respect to asylum.
Signed : 1
Diaz de Mera, Spain, EPP/CD
Aguiar, Portugal, EPP/CD
Brancati, Italy, SOC
Busic, Croatia, EPP/CD
Connor, Ireland, EPP/CD
Einarsson, Sweden, UEL
Fehr, Switzerland, LDR
Fernandez Aguilar, Spain, EPP/CD
Iwinski, Poland, SOC
Judd, United Kingdom, SOC
Kozlowski, Poland, EPP/CD
Legendre, France, EDG
Lippelt, Germany, LDR
Markovska, "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", EPP/CD
Mutman, Turkey, SOC
Tabajdi, Hungary, SOC
Telek, Turkey, EDG
Tkac, Slovakia, EDG
Vermot-Mangold, Switzerland, SOC
Zapfl-Helbling, Switzerland, EPP/CD
Zwerver, Netherlands, SOC
1 SOC: Socialist Group
EPP/CD: Group of the European People’s Party
EDG: European Democratic Group
LDR : Liberal, Democratic and Reformers’ Group
UEL: Group of the Unified European Left
NR: not registered in a group