Racism widespread in Europe

2006-11-28 15:36

Vienna - Migrants and ethnic minorities, in particular gypsies, continue to face discrimination across the European Union in employment, education and housing, according to a report published by the EU's racism monitoring centre.

"In spite of some heartening examples of good practice, I stand here today unable to say that there has been a substantial improvement with regard to racism and xenophobia in the EU member states," the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC) said in its annual report.

"Most member states are unable to assess how far they have come in breaking the vicious circle of deprivation, prejudice and discrimination," said Anastasia Crickley, chairperson of the EUMC management board, in the report.

"Roma (or gypsies) are a particular target for racist violence and crime, both at the hands of the general public and public officials," Crickley said.

Members of the Jewish community continue to experience anti-semitic incidents, while "rising Islamophobia is an issue of particular concern," she added.

Data collection

Of the 25 EU member states, only Britain and Finland have comprehensive data collection systems in place on racist crime, said Beate Winkler, director of the Vienna-based EUMC.

"Most Member States still lack the necessary data to monitor how social and economic policies affect their ethnic communities," Winkler said.

Five member states - Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Malta and Spain - had provided no statistics on racist crime for the study.

"These data gaps can result in ongoing discrimination in key areas remaining unnoticed. As a result, some ethnic minority groups may experience discrimination without adequate response from the State," Winkler said.

For the report, the monitoring centre examined data furnished by member states on discrimination in the areas of employment, education and housing as well as input from NGOs.

Employment, housing

On employment, the 2006 report states the jobless rates were considerably higher for minorities and immigrants in Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany and Latvia.

In the field of housing, minorities, immigrants, asylum-seekers and Roma were generally in worse dwellings and more precarious situations than the national averages, and also faced discrimination in the search for somewhere to live.

The report also noted cases of people with foreign names being turned down for rental apartments in Belgium and cases of discrimination in access to housing noted especially in Denmark, Finland, France and Italy.

In the education field, racist and anti-semitic behaviour was reported in Austria, Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden.

- AFP