Roma minority human rights

Forcing changes in the social security legal act Bulgarian government adopts changes that left vast proportion of Roma outside the social care system. Most of the Roma in the Municipality of Polski Trambesh /likewise throughout Bulgaria/ were dependant on the monthly social welfare allowances and governmental job programmes such as “from social welfare to employment”. Introduced legislative changes caused that the long time registered unemployed persons are able to receive monthly welfare allowances for a period no longer then 12months and they can reapply to receive monthly welfare allowances after another12 months but only if they were registered as unemployed during this period. Previously every long term unemployed (registered as unemployed for more than 9 months) received monthly welfare as long as one stays registered in the State Labour Agency (SLA) unemployed register, on monthly bases one should visit local SLA bureau and declare that he is unemployed. Majority of the Roma that had received monthly welfare perceived the situation as a deal – monthly attendance at the SLA bureau = receiving of monthly welfare payment. After the legislation changes come into power at the end of 2008th large number of Roma refused to continue their registration in the SLA unemployed registers because they monthly welfare were ceased. This fact partially explains 2009th January – May statistics of unemployed rate comparing with 2008th as follows:

All data presented throughout the text are from the official bulletin of the State Labour Agency, Department of Svishtov, Polski Trambesh bureau.

As showed the unemployed rate has risen up in May 2009th with 11, 6 percent comparing with May 2008th while in January – April it was significantly lower than the same period during 2008th.Economic development of the area, the District Centre - Veliko Tarnovo in particular, is another explanation of those rates. About 60 percent of the local Roma men were employed in the construction business in Veliko Tarnovo.

Global economic crisis has affected Bulgarian industry and construction companies causing them to stop their business for uncertain time and dismissed their workers. Thus a large number of Roma from the municipality of Polski Trambesh have lost their jobs as they were involved mostly as manual labour workers on construction sites and in different factories in the District Centre– Veliko Tarnovo. It is expected that the economic crisis will continue to affect on rising up the unemployed rate especially among the local Roma as they were employed in most affected sectors of the economic – construction and industry. Although the unemployed rate is only 11, 6 percent during May this year it has rose up from minus 64 percent, this amount to more than 53 % rose up since February to May 2009th.

The statistics account as “employed” persons who are involved in different governmental programmes for employment, different training and prequalification courses. In the diagram on the left you can see shares of persons accounted as employed by the SLA statistics since January to May 2009. Average share of 27 percents are hired on a regular competitive bases, 50 percent are hired under different governmental programmes and involved in different trainings and 23 percent were struck out the list of long term unemployed persons, basically because they have failed to attend trainings and governmental programmes offered. Thus in fact only 27 percent of overall accounted as “employed” are employed in real economy on a regular competitive bases. Biased statistics is just one of the implications of State policy to artificially lower the unemployed rate.

Local SLA employees have applied penalties to stroke out registered unemployed on regular bases and often refuse to register a person as unemployed using different excuses. In particular our NGO is concerned about random and inefficient types of trainings, qualification courses and governmental programmes for employment towards registered unemployed persons conducted bythe SLA – Svishtov and the criterion on which applicants for these activities being selected.

Selection of the trainees to be included in the training courses is barely monitored for its efficiency and often Roma are discriminated - many training courses towards unemployed were conducted without Roma participation, although the majority registered unemployed in the municipality are Roma.

In 2009th our organization monitors the selection procedure in the courses for “entrepreneurship education” towards unemployed persons. This course offers trainings on planning and business development, English language and computer literacy. Courses will be conducted in Polski Trambesh, there will be two courses for seven months period and every participant will receive a monthly stipend in amount of 200 leva. Participants in those courses were biased selected by the SLA local employees to be: spouses of the local State Social Agency employees, representatives of different political parties’ local offices, former directors and managers of local industry plants, former head of the post offices and close friends of the SLA employees. None representations of Roma in those trainings were explained as “they do not have enough qualification to be included in the courses”, although many youth Roma with completed comprehensive school education are registered as unemployed.

Furthermore various qualification courses and programmes that SLA conducts are practically obligatory for the registered unemployed persons due to the legally bound penalty in striking them out the registered unemployed lists that is applied when a registered person refuse to participate in those activities. When one loses his registration one lose his right to receive monthly welfare granted by the SSA.

In the beginning of February 2009th NGO Roma – Together participated as an independent observer in a selection process of trainees for a literacy course for illiterate Roma conducted by the SLA –Svishtov and Radanovo primary school. Selection was conducted on 19th of February with participation of Mr. IvanSiderov and his assistant Mr. Bancho Petrov. The selection committee /Director Tanya Gutceva , SLA – Svishtov, senior clerk Mrs. Stefanova, SLA –Svishtov, department of Polski Trambesh, Director of Radanovo primary school, Mrs. Meodieva and a teacher from the same school / has selected thirteen people to participate in the literacy course. Mr. Siderov and Mr. Petrov have met with each one of the selected Roma and found that one of the Romani women that were selected to participate in this course has recently successfully completed previously organized literacy course. The selection committee counts this to be an administrative mistake and dismissed her from the obligation to participate in this literacy course. However, Mrs. Mariyana Borisova a Romani female raised her concerns to Mr. Siderov that she live in Karantci village, which is 15 kilometres away from Radanovo village, she has three children – at the age of nine, six and three and there is no one else in the family to take care about them while she will be participating in the literacy course for six hours every day. Another Romani women hearing those grievances added that she is from the same village as Mariyana and she have two infants as well. Mr. Siderov has approached Mrs. Gutceva, director of SLA – Svishtov to explain their situation and insist them not to be included in the literacy course, as due to their family needs those women will not attend the course and the only thing that will be achieved is to cease their registration as unemployed, hence their right to receive monthly welfare. After consultations the election committee agreed not to include those persons in the literacy course due to the presented circumstances.

Negative economic trend will force local Roma to return in the Municipality as they will not be able to pay rents and daily necessities living in a large city. Thus it will continue to create more tensions between the State Labour Agency (SLA) and State Social Agency (SSA) employees and the Roma. Moreover local SLA and SSA employees will became the only employers on the labour market for the unemployed Roma. Monthly social welfare and different governmental programmes, administrated by the SLA local bureaus are to be the only source of incomes in small municipalities with none economical growth such as Polski Trambesh. Local Roma who posses any land shall use it as a source of daily subsistence but this hardly will be enough for large Roma families to survive and not all of local Roma possess land. It is clear that the Government strategy to artificially lower the unemployed rate and to minimize social welfare allowances won’t fit the current economical situation and State attitude towards unemployed and social welfare allowances needs to be changed.

Determined to apply positive changes towards achieving this goal we at the NGO Roma –Together were working to appoint a Roma employee in the SLA – Svishtov, Polski Trambesh bureau. Cooperating with Director T. Gutceva we succeed to promote a position of Roma mediator within the SLA – Svishtov for the town of Polski Trambesh to be allocated by the Main Directorate of the SLA. We have selected Mrs.Asya Georgieva, Horohane Romani women from the town of Polski Trambesh; she has completed Bachelor degree in economics at the Plovdiv agricultural college and has previous experience working in administration.

Mrs.Georgieva was appointed as a state employee at 13. July 2009th, she will be at this position until 31December 2010. She is dependant directly to the Directorof the SLA – Svishtov, Mrs. Tanya Gutceva, thus independent from the local state employees of the local SLA bureau. One of her main responsibilities is to select Roma participants in different training courses and governmental programmes offered. It is expected that she will ensure future inclusion of local Roma in training courses and different governmental programmes to be proportional to inclusion of non Roma unemployed and to reduce the number of Roma stroked out of registration due to inclusion in inappropriate trainings and programmes. She will be also responsible to assist local Roma in maintaining their registrations in the long term unemployed persons lists, to maintain contacts with employers hired unemployed Roma and ensure that their labour rights aren’t violated by those employers.

We expect that Roma participation on equal basis, as a state employee, in the staff of State Labour Agency will increase its efficiency towards local Roma and will reduce ill treatment of local Roma by the SLA officials.

NGO Roma Together