Roma minority human rights

Our organization is a first non governmental Roma organization created in the Municipality of Polski Trambesh. NGO Roma – Together is a non-governmental non-profit organization registered in the District Court of Veliko Tarnavo since 2004 year.

We are registered in the national register of the non-governmental non-profit organizations within the Ministry of Justice – reg. N: 011/ 27.08.04 - 20040827011. All members of the organization are ethnic Roma from the region of Polski Trambesh. Roma - Together acts as an independent and public Roma entity.

Our mission is to initiate changes in public policies towards Roma minority, implement concrete actions in defending Roma minority rights and act as a mediator between the Roma communities and local and central levels of the Government administration to assure adequate and efficient rights based policies towards Roma and protection and fulfilment of their rights. We believe that promotion and protection of Roma minority human rights will results in integration that should create one common place for the minorities and majority, with relations between them based on cultural, religious, linguistic and ethnical pluralism, thus achieving inclusion of minorities’ identity in the mainstream society without by any means violate the way of life, cultural traditions, language or religion of minorities – all basic cultural and social marks that create minority identity, which minority members are aimed to preserve.

In all of our work we use the human rights based approach to access Roma issues. Our NGO do understand human rights based approach as a bottom-up approach focusing on offering opportunities, empowerment and creation of security in development. Creation of an asset towards vulnerable and marginalized social groups through efforts in solving inequality based on ethnicity, gender and social and cultural differences. Use of the human rights based approach aiming at following goals:

transforming relationships between the vulnerable groups and governmental officials or third parties from those based on charity into those based on human rights; thus to transform inhabitants into citizens and officials into service-providers and public servants. Implementation of this approach provides bases for creation of rights based dialog between the vulnerable and officials or third parties based on human rights standards – legally banded rights and duties. Furthermore using human rights based approach requires to include the vulnerable at every stage of the process – planning, implementation and monitoring and requires actions undertaken towards vulnerable to be appropriate not only to their needs but also to their cultural, linguistic, religious and ethnic specifics.

Mr. Ivan Siderov

He is the chairperson and

founder of NGO “Roma - Together”, recognized and respected local Roma leader. He has hold a position of

coordinator on Roma issues in the Municipality of Polski Trambesh,

now retired.

Mrs. Mariyana Borisova

administrative assistant to the organization

Mr. Angel Getsov

Legal Consultant to the NGO “ Roma Together”, he has MA

in Law from the “St. Cyril and Methodius ” University of

Veliko Tarnovo, former Minority Fellow with the UN OHCHR and has graduated a course in European Human Rights System

free glitter text and family website at FamilyLobby.com

Managing body of the organization is the managing committee. It’s consisted by three members of the organization elected for 5 years. All decisions is taken by the majority of votes. Chairperson of the managing committee represents organization before all public entities, governmental structures and third parties.

Supreme body of the organization is the General Assembly. In General Assembly sessions participates all members of the organization. General assembly holds one session per year and can be summoned additionally if there is a need to or by request of one third of the members.It takes decisions about amending and changing of the organizational' statute; admitting and discharging members of the managing committee; decisions about organizational transformation and termination; approves organizational budget and managing committee’ report.

General Assembly holds the power to cancel all decisions taken by the managing committee if they are contrary to the Law or organizational Statute.

members of the managing board of NGO Roma Together

Members of the Managing Committee from left to right: Mr. Petar Hristov, Mr. Ivan Siderov, Mr. Bancho Petrov