Though there is a large community of Romanies in Chisinau municipality, the Ministry of Labor, Social Protection and Family didn’t order employing a local mediator as it did in respect of other settlements. Ion Duminica, coordinator of the technical working group of the Romanies, said that the lack of dwellings is the most serious problem of the Roma community in Chisinau municipality. The families live in difficult conditions.
In a working meeting entitled “Social marginalization of the Roma community in Chisinau municipality”, Ion Duminica said that most of the Romany people in Chisinau live in indecent conditions. Some of the families with many children live in one room.
“I visited a family and asked where the children sleep. They told me that the one who occupies the bed the first sleeps there, while the rest near the bed. We want to sleep on beds, not under them. We want to be citizens with equal rights. Don’t treat us as dancers and singers only. We want a ray of light. We want to integrate into the EU not as beggars or migrants, but as people who live decently,” said Ion Duminica, quoted by IPN.
He added that the official data saying that only 18 children do not attend school in Moldova are not true. The Roma children do not finish the school and, as a result, do not have diplomas and cannot get a well-paid job. At least one local mediator for Romanies or by a mediator for each district of Chisinau is needed.
Annually, the Chisinau City Hall allocates 400,000 lei for supporting the organizations of the ethnic communities in the municipality. There are 30 such organizations, three of which represent the Romany people.
