Slovenia
SEE Security Monitor: Slovenia
The daily "Delo" reported on 15 February that a conference took place the previous day entitled
"Europe, Slovenia, the Roma." Organized by the Association of Roma in Slovenia, the Austrian Institute for Eastern and Southeastern Europe,
and the Slovenian Institute for Nationality Issues, the conference assessed Romany living standards in Slovenia and the effects of
anticipated EU entry. The conference followed the opening of the new Association of Roma headquarters in Murska Sobota in January.
The precise number of Roma in Slovenia is not known, although estimates range from 6,500 to 10,000 (see "RFE/RL Balkan Report," 8 January 2002). Of Roma with Slovenian citizenship, 74 percent receive aid and 13 percent are regularly employed. Slovenia has two indigenous groups of Roma. The first lives in the Prekmurje region, near Hungary, centered around the town of Murska Sobota. The municipality of Murska Sobota itself has the highest number of registered Roma. Their living conditions, though substandard, compare favorably to the overall situation for Roma.
The second group lives in the regions of Dolenjska and Bela Krajina, near Croatia, centered around the town of Novo Mesto. Many
members of this impoverished group support themselves by collecting scrap metal. Both indigenous groups have lived in Slovenia for
centuries. Some of their settlements, such as Pusca near Murska Sobota, bear names, while others are simply marked on maps as "Romany
settlement."
Many non-indigenous Roma live in urban centers such as Ljubljana and Maribor. These arrived after World War II from other former Yugoslav republics as economic migrants. Although their
federal citizenship was Yugoslav, their republican citizenship was not Slovenian. Consequently, following Slovenia's independence,
most were denied citizenship and other privileges such as voting and employment rights. ("Slovak" Roma living in the Czech Republic faced an analogous situation following the breakup of Czechoslovakia.)
Unwilling or afraid to return south, most non-indigenous Roma in Slovenia remain in a legal limbo. Although the parliament passed legislation allowing them to apply for citizenship or residency, its effectiveness has been limited. Some blame this on Slovenia's poorly functioning bureaucracy or a lack of goodwill from officials,
while others attribute it to a lack of initiative from the Roma themselves.
The constitution promises the Roma some legal status, but not to the same degree as the Hungarian and Italian indigenous minorities
(which also enjoy rights denied to larger "non-indigenous" minorities from other former Yugoslav republics). In particular, there is no provision for Romany representation in the National Assembly. Article 39 of the Act on Local Self-Government provides for local Romany representation, but this is currently implemented only in the municipality of Murska Sobota. On 4 March, the daily "Delo" reported a Constitutional Court decision requiring greater efforts to secure
participation of Roma in this fall's local elections. Romany children generally receive separate education while employment programs, although they exist, are not widely publicized, with the result that comparatively few Roma take advantage of them.
Slovenia faces problems similar to those of other countries trying to better the lot of their Romany population (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 25 February 2002). Deficiencies in basic services, such as water supply and waste removal, are compounded by low education and high unemployment. All too often, imposed housing solutions fail to recognize the heterogeneity of the Romany population, leading to conflict among the Roma themselves. This was the outcome of an
attempted resettlement of two groups of Roma in 1999 in Grosuplje, a town 30 kilometers southeast of Ljubljana. "Cooperate with us," said Jozek Horvat, president of the Association of Roma, at the conference. "Don't give us orders, but give us the opportunity to participate in society." What is clear is that sincere efforts and goodwill are necessary from both sides, Slovenian and Romany -- and at the grassroots level as well as from leaders -- in order to ensure that Roma take advantage of the opportunities available. (Donald F. Reindl) (Source: RFE/RL Balkan Report Vol.6, No.12)