E.M.E.R.G.E. - European Mobility Enabling to Reduce th Ground of Exclusion - European Project hosted by Istituto Sturzo in partnership with ESA and FCASEC

European Union between defense of the Treaties and electoral consensus

From 2010 Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion to 2014 Year of European elections

The full text of the E.M.E.R.G.E. publication can be read here:

European Union between defense of the Treaties and electoral consensus

The E.M.E.R.G.E. publication

The transnational research staff at work

The E.M.E.R.G.E. partnership has realized the volume European Union between defense of the Treaties and electoral consensus. From 2010 Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion to 2014 Year of European elections, co-financed by the European Union under the "Europe for the Citizens" Programme.

The publication gathers the results achieved by the trans-national staff of Italian, Bulgarian and Romanian researchers. It focuses on the activities held by the European Parliament and other EU institutions in relation to the main social problems in Italy, Bulgaria and Romania and the role of European parties through the study of the campaigns promoted on the occasion of the European elections.

This publication enables to deepen the new tool of democratic participation that from April 2012 will allow the citizens to directly begin the European legislative process: the "European Citizens’ Initiative".

For further information and for a copy of the book, plaese email: g.fiaccarini@sturzo.it.

Copertina

What kind of help is a constructive kind of help?

Exchange of ideas between E.M.E.R.G.E. researchers Elena Kirova and Federica Chiezzi

Elena Kirova (Bulgaria): "Sofia is a beautiful city. The streets are often covered with holes (that become craters in the winter months), traffic jams during business hours on Mon-Fri can be real bad, parking spots are a scarce, but what really makes it a horrible experience when driving on the streets of Sofia are the people who stay at the traffic lights waiting for the red signal to ambush your car and racket you for your money.
In this article I’m going to open a topic for a debate on an issue that affects a large percent of the drivers in Europe. It may at first sound insignificant, but as we go further into the issue, I believe we could find some general problems with social integration rooted in the following scenario.
This is how it usually happens:
1. A driver stops at an intersection.
2. A windshield cleaning “professional” comes to offer the service.
3. The driver politely or not so politely declines the service.
4. The cleaning professional performs the service.
5. The driver feeling intimidated and not wanting to enter a confrontation gives a small amount of money in return.
6. Cleaner accepts and repeats.
Many cities are already taking action against what is seen as pure form of racket and exploitation of minors. In Florence it is now illegal to clean the windscreens of cars waiting at traffic lights. The act of Florence city officials was prompted by citizens’ complaints of window-washers "becoming more aggressive, especially to women alone in their cars." The first patrol which resulted in 15 people being charged was led by Florence police Chief Alessandro Bartolini. "There are no more on the streets. Word has got around, apparently," Bartolini said.
The people that are performing this type of cleaning service fall in the poor and socially excluded category. In Bulgaria, the majority of them are Gypsies. For most of them it is their only source of income. If we take this venture out of their hands does it mean that we will exclude them even more from the society and make them poorer? 

Federica Chiezzi (Italy): As in Florence, also in Rome, from the 1st of November 2009, window-washers, jugglers and hawkers are strictly forbidden to walk through the city streets and offer any kind of services. The “first citizen” Gianni Alemanno issued and signed new measures to eliminate illegal services performed by those people which can both disturb and bother drivers. Alemanno set the imposition of a fine of 100 euro for those who don’t respect that ordinance.

COUNCIL OF EUROPE SLAMS ITALY’S TREATMENT OF ROMA

The Council of Europe, based in Strasbourg (France), now covers virtually the entire European continent, with 47 member countries. Founded on 5 May 1949 by 10 countries, the Council of Europe seeks to develop throughout Europe common and democratic principles based on the European Convention on Human Rights and other reference texts on the protection of individuals. Even if not belonging to the European Union, it is often mistaken for one of its bodies.

Recently, the Council of Europe’s European Committee of Social Rights found Italy to have violated the rights of its Roma population. The Committee found Italy in violation of the prohibition on discrimination and violations of the rights of Roma people to adequate housing; social, legal and economic protection; protection against poverty and social exclusion; and the right of migrant Roma families to protection and assistance. The Committee said that Roma camps have been destroyed and their inhabitants illegally evicted and expelled from Italy, often without notice and without the option of alternative housing. Many camps in various regions throughout Italy have also been the target of arson or vandalism based on racial hatred. The perpetrators of these crimes are rarely prosecuted or even investigated by local authorities.

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe announced the ruling in the case brought against Italy by the Geneva-based international human rights organization the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) and the Italian organization OsservAzione. The organizations accused Italy of violations of the Revised European Social Charter. The ground-breaking decision in COHRE v. Italy finds Italy guilty of policies and practices that have left Roma residents living in segregated and grossly inadequate housing conditions. The mass expulsion of non-Italian Roma who are citizens of other EU countries has increased dramatically in Italy since following the formation of a new national government in 2008.

Roma settlement in Torino, Italy (2008 © COHRE)

This decision will reverberate throughout Europe, as it establishes new jurisprudence confirming that the mass expulsion of migrants is a violation of the Revised European Social Charter,” said Bret Thiele, COHRE’s Senior Expert for Litigation and Legal Advocacy. “This is very relevant to the current situation of Roma in France, and the French government needs to take serious note of this as the recent evictions and deportations of Roma in France place the government in violation of the European Social Charter too.”

The Italian delegation to the meeting of the Committee of Ministers of the Council reacted to the ruling, pledging to the Committee to “ensure the effective implementation of the rights deriving from the Revised European Social Charter for every individual, including for persons belonging to the Roma communities.” Salih Booker, COHRE’s Executive Director, said that “COHRE and its Italy-based partner, OsservAzione, will continue to monitor the housing rights situation of Roma in Italy to ensure that the Italian authorities live up to this commitment.”

France and Italy seem to be countries “under surveillance” in this period. A delegation of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) visited Italy from 21 to 26 November 2010 as the first step in the preparation of a monitoring report. During its visit, ECRI’s delegation gathered information on the implementation of the recommendations it made to the authorities in its previous report of 2006 and discussed new issues that had emerged since. The delegation held meetings in Rome, Venice, Padua and Naples with representatives of all relevant ministries, public officials, human rights NGOs and minority groups. Following this visit, ECRI will adopt a report in which it will make a fresh set of recommendations on measures to be taken by the authorities to address racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, antisemitism and intolerance in the country. Among these, three will be revisited two years after the publication of the report as part of an interim follow-up procedure.

In the meanwhile the European Parliament – the elective institution of the European Union with a much higher level of political representation than the Council of Europe – is expressing a very similar position. The hearing by the Civil Liberties Committee on 30 November – 1 December brought together all those involved and affected by the EU's "Strategy on Roma inclusion". Hungarian MEP Lívia Járóka has just drafted a report on the strategy and the issues involved. It formed a basis for much of the debate. France and Italy were criticised by Lívia Járóka herself and civil society organisations for their treatment of the Roma. Ms Marilisa Fantacci from French organisation "Collectif des Roms en Europe" reported that nothing had changed since the summer and Roma are still being expelled from France. "We wonder how in these conditions France can develop an inclusion strategy" she asked.

The European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion is going to be concluded but the strategy on Roma inclusion will remain in the European political agenda.

Sources:

COHRE

Council of Europe

European Parliament

Bulgaria in the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion

2010 was announced by the European Commission as Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. This is the year, during which European citizens should pay special attention to social groups at risk, groups that are deprived of active social life and/or active participation in the labor market. These groups most often include disabled people, people suffering from long-term unemployment, ethnic minorities. The European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion aims to raise the awareness of society regarding the groups at risk and to contribute to increasing social tolerance and improving of policies targeting those groups. 2010 is a call for decisive measures in order to fight the causes of poverty in order to secure a respected active role of each individual in society.
The faces of the campaign in Bulgaria and goodwill ambassadors who will promote the concepts of the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion include popular people, as well as people who belong to social groups at risk. The popular faces of the campaign include the pop singer Vladimir Ampov-Graffa, as well as the frontman of the popular pop group D2 Deyan Kamenov. “My goal is to inform people that need help about how the state can actually help them, because everyone deserve to get education, to work and sustain their families”, Deyan says. Little Dzhem from a small village near Plovdiv is also one of the faces of the campaign. Kapka Panayotova, chairman of “Center for Independent Life” Foundation has been working in the field of protection of human rights and rights of people in disadvantaged position, a representative of whom she is herself, for many years.

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Free movement of workers or increase of social exclusion?

The case of Romanian care workers living in Italy

Dora is a Romanian care worker who has a sad story to tell. Thanks to the web archive www.storiemigranti.org we can listen to her voice. When she decided to emigrate to Italy in order to find a job, the help of a cousin was necessary for the placement to be organised. Dora was put in contact with a Sardinian family needing assistance for a very old “grandfather” and then started a regular job as a care worker. When the cousin requested money for the “service”, Dora was happy to have the chance to thank him for such a great opportunity. Unfortunately, these requests did not stop and Dora discovered to be exploited – with violence – by a member of her family. Furthermore, when she started to have a social life and to go out, always in the restricted periods of free time given to a care worker, something new happened. She was accused by her employer to attend the night clubs, “as the Romanian women regularly do”. This was not true. Her short Italian adventure had come to an unpredictable and dramatic end. Dora experienced social exclusions at two levels. At family level, she was exploited as a woman – a hard worker easy to sell and to rob. At social level, she was offended as a member of a national community with a negative reputation in the Italian society. Furthermore, a second victim of social exclusion should be mentioned. The old “grandfather” was suddenly deprived of a person having assisted him with respect and care.

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Is 2010 the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion?

Roma expulsion policy of the French Government goes in the opposite direction

About 1000 Romanian and Bulgarian Roma people (Gypsies) were expelled from France and around 100 Roma camps were destroyed in the last two months. The most recent expulsion wave to Bulgaria was in the end of August. It was part of the French campaign of clearing illegal Roma camps, a phase of a security crackdown announced by the French president Mr. Sarkozy. It is interesting to point out that this year is the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. So is this the way to cope with one of the most marginalized minority groups in Europe?
The Vatican and the UN criticized France about the actions it took. The EU parliament started discussions on the Roma issue on 06.09.2010. The European Commission also expressed its criticism regarding the French initiative.
The spokesperson of the Commission, Michele Cercone said that the Commission has already taken actions for the integration of the ethnical minorities in the EU member states: “The European Commission is bound by the serious task of improving the Roma situation. We have to make sure that all member states abide by the anti-discrimination legislation.”

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Fighting poverty through inclusion

The European year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion had many state presidents wondering how to go about the issue of poverty, since they could not decide how the legal possession of a home counts in the assessment whether a person is considered poor or not. Because of this, the presidents have not been able to find a method to reduce poverty. Moreover, education and poverty were the only issues that the state presidents of the 27 EU member countries could not agree upon.

Romanian president Traian Băsescu urged the Romanian people to stop lamenting, because they are not the only ones experiencing the aftereffects of the crisis, and start working hard instead.
But despite the view of the Romanian president, Romanian city halls are fighting against poverty in their own way: by reducing social exclusion.

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Bulgaria’s contribution to the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion

Initiatives and projects with Bulgarian participation in regard with the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion

After the official launch of the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion on 22nd February in Sofia, Bulgaria has been relatively proactive in its agenda for raising awareness of the issues of social exclusion and dynamic promotion of ideas concerning projects related to the Year. Since the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy is the institution responsible for implementation of activities in regard with the Year, its Minister – Totyu Mladenov presented the specific national goals in the context of the main European common objectives and principles of the Year. The amount of over € 500,000 for the Year is provided by the state budget and the budget of the European Union. The priority thematic areas for Bulgaria during the 2010 Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion are: fighting child poverty; promoting inclusive labor market; equal access to services, culture and sport; overcoming the discrimination of vulnerable ethnic groups; social inclusion of people with disabilities; and gender mainstreaming.

One of the most recent projects advertised by the Bulgarian Ministry of labor and social policy is the “In Search of Solidarity” photo competition which is devoted to combating poverty and social exclusion in 2010. The aim of this contest is to promote a society which supports and improves the quality of life, social well-being and equal opportunities for every single person. Every contestant has to put together a documentary containing 3 to 6 images illustrating the initiatives taken in order to help and improve the condition of the most disadvantaged groups of the population. That is how the ordinary citizen can contribute to the fight against poverty and social exclusion in his area, town or region in the scope of this photo competition.
 

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FEMINIZATION OF POVERTY IN EUROPE

A well-known phenomenon in a slightly modified form

2010 is the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. Poverty and social exclusion are two interconnected, interdependent and extremely complex social phenomena that cannot be comprehensively defined within a whole book, not to mention within a single article. Poverty is the more traditional term, commonly perceived in strictly economic sense, which seems to constantly evolve and include more aspects. Social exclusion is a relatively new concept that has a multidimensional nature, including, again, a focus on the economic status of the individual. Even after recognizing the complexity of the two issues, we still need to admit the priority of the economic aspects in both phenomena. In this line of thinking, we also need to recall another social-economic phenomenon that has been widely discussed at EU level and that is still observed, especially in times of crisis. This phenomenon is directly linked to social exclusion in its definition as “each type of societal disadvantage” and is definitely related to poverty. Formulation of the cause-and-effect links, though, would be far more difficult. This phenomenon is traditionally known as “gender discrimination” and it can also be widely discussed in view of the various aspects of its manifestations. However, having in mind that 2010 is announced the year to fight poverty and social exclusion, let us concentrate on one single, but significant enough, aspect of gender inequality, which has evolved and been defined as a separate phenomenon itself – “feminization of poverty”.

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