Publication details
Čačipen pal o Roma. A Global report on Roma in Slovakia.
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2003 |
| Type | Monograph |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | This book is the result of the concentrated efforts of dozens of experts in minority issues in Slovakia. It is published at a time when the European Commission, after successfully wrapping up the integration process, is asking Slovakia to increase its efforts to find positive solutions for the problems of the Roma, as well as for the corruption that exists in all walks of life. This pressure from the international community to solve the Roma issue is easy to understand. It is not just that in failing to solve the important questions related to the Roma, Slovakia will cast doubt on the positive steps it has taken towards liberal democracy and a mature economy; nor does the issue merely involve a utilitarian attempt by the European Union to force a demanding solution from a future member state. The most important motive remains the fact that problems related to the ethnicization of poverty, social exclusion, and the marginalization of minorities are very familiar in most post industrial countries. The authors of the Global Report sent a very important, although at first glance trivial message to the reader: It is necessary to differentiate between individual subgroups in the Roma population. Although the Roma are perceived as a homogenous group by the majority population, which results in a unified approach being taken to the Roma and their needs, the minority is in fact extremely heterogeneous. The authors of the Global Report recommend that the complicated internal structure of the Roma population be taken into account when preparing policy. Otherwise, Slovakia is bound to repeat the mistakes of the past, thus increasing the frustration of both the majority population and the Roma. |
| Related projects: |