Eleven More Roma from Hungary Recognised as Refugees in France

07 May 2002

According to a January 4, 2002 press release by the Roma Press Center (RSK), eleven Romani refugees from the village of Zámoly, in central Hungary, were notified on January 2, 2002, that they had been granted asylum in France. This brings the total number granted asylum to 41 of the original 46 claimants. According to RSK’s press release, those granted asylum include three adults and eight minors. Among the group is Ms Melinda Lakatos and her three children, whose previous asylum claim had been rejected by the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (OFPRA) in March 2001. Ms Lakatos appealed the decision and a French court of appeal overturned the first instance decision. The Budapest-based weekly newspaper HVG reported on January 12, 2002, that among the Roma from Zámoly who have been granted asylum in France, most of the adults have found employment, and the children are attending school on a regular basis. Background information on the case of the Romani refugees from Zámoly can be found on the ERRC Internet website at:  Roma granted asylum .

(HVG, Roma Press Center)