In 2020, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) released a report “Roma and Travelers in six countries” dealing with Roma people and their experiences with discrimination in six countries (Belgium, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom). The report has now been published in Swedish.
The Raoul Wallenberg Institute for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI) has been commissioned by the FRA to launch the report in Sweden in close collaboration with the Roma civil society. The launch is carried out through regional meetings in Malmö, Gothenburg, Linköping, and Uppsala, as well as a national launch in Stockholm.
“This is a significant report. With it, the EU establishes the difficult situation in Sweden that many of us Roma live in “, says Diana Nyman, member of RWI’s Roma steering group.
The report shows that half of the Roma living in Sweden have experienced discrimination. This makes Sweden one of the worst countries for Roma to live in. Despite this, many Roma choose not to report perceived discrimination.
Of the countries included in the survey, Sweden was the country where a Roma person was most likely to experience hate-motivated harassment. Hate-motivated violence against Roma is more common in Sweden compared with the other countries in the report.
The report shows that life expectancy for Roma and travellers is significantly lower than for the general population. In Sweden, Roma women live on average 10.1 fewer years than Swedish women do. For men, the corresponding figure is 11.6 years. The shorter life expectancy for Roma in Sweden can be explained by the obstacles Roma face when they make contact with, among other things, health care. The report shows that 23% of those surveyed have felt discriminated against because of their background when in contact with healthcare.
Every second Roma parent reports that their children have experienced abusive and threatening comments at school. One in five parents also state that they have experienced discrimination when they have been in contact with school authorities.
As many as 60 per cent of Roma and travellers in Sweden live crowded spaces. This figure differs markedly from the rest of Sweden in general, where it is 15 per cent. The EU report shows that 20% of Roma and travellers in Sweden live in housing with serious shortcomings. For the entire Swedish population, the same figure is 6%.
“We can only hope that the report will be an eye-opener for the situation of Roma in the country, the importance of such equality data and everyone’s enjoyment of equal rights, opportunities and non-discrimination,” comments Michael McEachrane, Visiting Researcher at RWI who worked on the report’s launch.
Country reports
Report
Roma and Travellers in six countries | European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (europa.eu)
Documents in Swedish
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