Civil society has always been an important and valued partner in the work carried out by the Council of Europe for Roma¹ and Traveller rights over the past 30 years or so. Whether working together with Roma NGOs at grassroots level in cooperation activities or with other international organisations or INGOs at national and European levels for capacity-building and awareness-raising activities, the Roma and Travellers Division strives to ensure that the voices of the estimated 10 to 12 million Roma in the 46 Council of Europe member States, the Western Balkans and Türkiye are heard.

To do this, first and foremost, the Council of Europe reminds governments of, and assists them in the implementation of, their legal obligations arising from the judgments issued by the European Court of Human Rights and policy instruments such as Recommendations issued by the Committee of Ministers, the decision-making body of the Council of Europe.

The Roma and Travellers Division also organises training to build and reinforce the capacities of civil society to provide NGOs with the knowledge and skills to undertake strategic litigation using the Council of Europe’s tools and standards.

This was also the theme of a recent Dialogue meeting where Roma and Traveller civil society representatives discussed challenges in the process of execution of Roma and Traveller-related judgments. These bi-annual Council of Europe Dialogue meetings with Roma and Traveller organisations serve as a forum for Roma and Traveller civil society, the Council of Europe, and other stakeholders to exchange experiences, share examples of good practices, and to plan future co-operation activities such as advocacy and awareness-raising activities. The topical result-oriented agendas enable Roma and Traveller organisations to bring their concerns and suggestions directly to the attention of the Organisation.

The Roma and Travellers Division also invests in youth and Roma and Traveller women as actors of change in their local communities to ensure that voices are heard and uplifted to a higher level in terms of political participation and equality of Roma and Traveller women and girls.

An important element of this is the recognition of Roma history of Roma and Travellers through its inclusion in school curricula and teaching materials at national level.

The Council of Europe’s Strategic Action Plan for Roma and Traveller Inclusion (2020-2025) provides the conceptual framework to combat antigypsyism and discrimination against Roma and Travellers and focuses on three main lines of action: combating antigypsyism and discrimination and supporting real and effective equality; supporting democratic participation and promoting public trust and accountability; and supporting access to inclusive quality education and training.

Through its cooperation activities, the Roma and Travellers Division also carries out joint programmes with the European Union, such as INSCHOOL, EQUIROM, ROMACT, ROMACTED, and Roma Integration III. NGOs contribute to the design and implementation of strategic documents and public policies at local level which target the Roma community.

For more information, please consult the Roma and Travellers website.

[1] The term “Roma and Travellers” is used at the Council of Europe to encompass the wide diversity of the groups covered by the work of the Council of Europe in this field: on the one hand a) Roma, Sinti/Manush, Calé, Kaale, Romanichals, Boyash/Rudari; b) Balkan Egyptians (Egyptians and Ashkali); c) Eastern groups (Dom, Lom and Abdal); and, on the other hand, groups such as Travellers, Yenish, and the populations designated under the administrative term “Gens du voyage”, as well as persons who identify themselves as Gypsies. The present is an explanatory footnote, not a definition of Roma and/or Travellers.