Tirana, Budapest 8 June 2018: Negative stereotypes, marginalisation and discrimination are making Roma vulnerable to the risks of statelessness in Albania, according to a new report released today by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC), the European Network on Statelessness (ENS), the Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion (ISI), and the Tirana Legal Aid Society (TLAS). The research was published today at an event in Tirana attended by government ministers, UN officials, and Romani people affected by the risk of statelessness.

Sofia, Budapest 18 May 2018: A 28-year-old Romani man was stabbed and killed by a Bulgarian nationalist in a terrorist attack on Saturday 12th May in Shumen, Bulgaria.

Budapest, Skopje 5 April 2018: The families of four Roma who died unexpectedly in Macedonian prisons are suing the Directorate for Execution of Sanctions (DES), as well as the Ministry of Health, for discrimination in their access to healthcare and protection, resulting in the deaths of their family members. The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) will represent them, and have filed a collective civil complaint before the Basic Court of Skopje II on the 29th March 2018.

Bratislava, Budapest, 22 March 2018: The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Nils Muižnieks, was the main guest at a roundtable organised by the Office of the Slovak Plenipotentiary for Romani Communities, the Office of the Commissioner for People with Disabilities, the European Roma Rights Centre, Validity, and the Forum for Human Rights. The event was also attended by the incoming Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović. The focus of the roundtable was to agree on firm commitments towards inclusive education for all children in Slovakia. 

Skopje, Budapest 15 February 2018: Yesterday, a 13-year-old Romani girl, R.I, had to undergo an abortion after becoming pregnant from sexual abuse she faced while in the care of Skopje’s “25 May” state care institution. The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) is calling on responsible authorities to act immediately and provide this girl with appropriate medical care to ensure her psychological and physical health and safety, as well as return her to her Romani family, from whom she was forcibly taken away in 2012 because of poverty.

Paris, Budapest 6 February 2018: In the last year 11,309 Romani people were evicted from their homes in France, the majority of which (8,161) were forcefully evicted by authorities. A further 2,055 left their homes before the arrival of authorities, under pressure of an imminent eviction.

Budapest, Skopje 18 January 2018: On 25th December 2017 a 39-year-old Romani man, Bekim Demir, died of a reported drug overdose in Idrizovo Prison, days before he was set to be released. The ERRC is taking his case to court as part of a collective complaint involving the deaths of three other Romani inmates, against the Directorate for Execution of Sanctions, within the Ministry of Justice. He is the eighth and final inmate to die in KPU Idrizovo in 2017, and the fourth Romani person to have died in Macedonian prisons in no fewer than 9 months.