SERBIA: Authorities must halt eviction of Romani families

Summary: The Serbian authorities have a special responsibility to ensure adequate housing for these families under international law, as most are Internally Displaced Persons from Kosovo, including 58 children.

[4 November 2011] - The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) and partners sent a letter to Serbian authorities today to express grave concerns over plans to forcibly evict 111 Romani individuals in Belgrade, including Internally Displaced Persons from Kosovo.

The Municipality of Novi Beograd recently took the first steps towards evicting Romani families, through conducting inspections and issuing building code violation notices to residents. 

The threatened eviction will affect 27 Romani families from the informal Romani settlement in Block 61 in Novi Beograd. The Serbian authorities have a special responsibility to ensure adequate housing for these families under international law, as most are Internally Displaced Persons from Kosovo, including 58 children.

ERRC and partners are concerned that the municipal authorities have not consulted with the families, and are not planning to provide adequate alternative housing.

The organisations urge the Serbian authorities to respect, protect and fulfil the right to adequate housing. They call on the municipality to suspend the planned evictions and find sustainable housing solutions for these Romani families.

The letter was signed by Praxis, European Roma Rights Centre, Minority Rights Center, Regional Centre for Minorities, Youth Initiative for Human Rights, Women in Black, Lawyers Committee for Human Rights and the Coalition Against Discrimination.

For more information contact:
Sinan Gökçen
ERRC Media and Communications Officer
[email protected]
+36.30.500.1324

Further Information:

• ITALY: Romani families forced onto the street by continuing evictions in Rome (31 October 2011) 
• DISCRIMINATION: No Place for Roma - French and Italian authorities aggressively evict Roma (11 August 2011)
• PORTUGAL: ERRC Appeals to Authorities to Restore Water in Romani Community (10 February 2011) 
• ITALY: Outrage over death of four Roma children (8 February 2011)
• ITALY: Rome prepares to demolish 200 illegal Gypsy camps (7 September 2010)
• EUROPE: EU turning blind eye to discrimination against Roma (2 August 2010) 
• DISCRIMINATION: Portugal brought before European Tribunal for Roma housing situation (13 May 2010) 
• ITALY: The wrong answer - Italy's 'Nomad Plan' violates the housing rights of Roma in Rome (12 March 2010) 
• CRIN's microsite on children and discrimination
• Read a briefing on discrimination and Roma children here.
• More on children's rights in Serbia