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Interkulti Monitor -
News
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 Time magazine has this interesting report about the intergation of the Roma people into Spanish society:
"Of the 10-12 million Roma living in Europe, Spain has the second biggest community, estimated at 970,000, or about 2% of the total population. And the country spends almost €36 million annually bringing them into the fold. "
The report then states these amazing statistics, which one could hardly find elsewhere in Europe:
"In Spain, only 5% of gypsies live in makeshift camps, and about half of Roma are homeowners. Just about all Gypsies in Spain have access to health care, and while no recent figures exist, at least 75% are believed to have some sort of steady income. "
The Time report summerizes the essence of the Spanish integration policy:
"Spain's two-pronged integration approach has been instrumental in those results, pairing access to mainstream social services with targeted inclusion programs. For example, Roma can have access to public housing and financial aid on the condition that they send their children to schools and health care facilities. Then there's the Gypsy Secretariat Foundation Acceder program, which experts say is one of the best integration initiatives in Europe. The program takes young, unemployed Gypsies and teaches them technical skills and helps them earn the equivalent of a high school degree. At the end, they are placed in jobs through a series of agreements with private companies. "
The report also includes this statement by Moreno, a Spanish Roma, in which he makes reference to the French deportations of the Roma recently:
"[The deportations] will never happen here," says Moreno. "We are integrated. I'm first Spanish, then Gypsy, and I'm proud to be both."
"Of course there is racism, but it's better here than anywhere else I've seen," Moreno says, referring to his trips to Italy, France, Germany and the Czech Republic. "Spain has helped Gypsies a lot."
Thus, the key to success in integration of the Roma poplution in Europe:
"While many European countries see their Roma communities as problems to be tackled, Spain has embraced its Gypsies, giving them rights, celebrating their history and making them feel at home."
Its high time other European nations learn the lesson!
Read full report at source
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