Siding with the vulnerable

We must put and end to “every kind of segregation” and to the “racist attacks” that gypsy populations are exposed to in Europe. The “anti-gypsy” sentiment is still widespread in the old continent and the growing “fear” towards “walkers”, often fuelled by the media, gives rise to recurring mistreatments by member states, the police, local government… Gypsy children are not guaranteed full access to education and health services, while adult unemployment has reached “intolerable” levels. All this is worsened by the fact that after the EU’s 2004 and 2007 enlargments “most of them are EU citizens”, and enjoy full rights to “circulate and reside freely within the territories of the member states.This concerned speech in favour of gypsies did not come from a humanitarian organization or a religious charity devoted to solidarity. It is instead a resolution passed by the European Parliament, united in plenary session in Brussels last week.This is a firm and clear stand, backed by a large parliamentary majority with the sole exception of nationalist and right-wing forces. But it is not the first time that the Assembly of the 27 takes such a stand defending the vital importance of human and minority rights. Last January, for example, a report was approved which calls for a common political strategy defending children’s rights in several areas, from schooling, education and sports, to media and television (consumerism, violence) and the internet (child pornography). The report also highlights the need to fight against all forms of violence, physical or psychological, in order to ensure a free, secure and healthy life for minors. It is yet another instance of the will to safeguard the most vulnerable citizen. It is not by accident then, that the report makes an explicit mention of the family as the foremost and most suitable environment to protect children. Just as recently, the Parliament and other EU institutions (Commission and Council) have made similar