Roma ultimatum given to France by EU: allow free movement or face court

[The_Dude 1,142]

Roma ultimatum given to France by EU: allow free movement or face court

France was warned by the European authorities today that it would face disciplinary proceedings and possible court action if EU freedom of movement is not enshrined in French law by next month.

The ultimatum from Brussels, in a letter to the French government from the European commission, upped the ante in the ferocious row over France's treatment of immigrant Gypsies, a dispute that hijacked a recent EU summit and saw insults traded over the second world war.

All 27 European commissioners decided todayto set France a deadline of 15 October to remedy the member state's failure to observe European law, namely a directive from 2004 giving all EU citizens freedom of movement across the union.

"France is not applying European law as it should," said Viviane Reding, the commissioner for justice and fundamental rights who sparked one of the worst rows in the EU for years this month by calling French treatment of Roma immigrants from Romania "a disgrace" and "appalling", reminiscent of the persecution they suffered in Vichy France during the war.

President Nicolas Sarkozy threatened to boycott an EU summit unless she retracted. An EU summit a fortnight ago descended into a slanging match. Sarkozy said Reding apologised. She denied it. She was criticised by fellow commissioners and European leaders for inappropriate language. But the commission, despite the huge pressure from Paris, insisted it would referee in the Roma row as the guardian of the European treaties and the arbiter of EU law.

Yesterday's decision singled out France for censure, although several other EU member states have not converted the 2004 directive into their national laws.

Some saw the commission's move as a minor rebuke to the Élysée Palace as it failed to rule on the more serious charge – whether the Sarkozy administration was in breach of fundamental EU rights by targeting the Roma for ethnic discrimination.

French immigration minister Eric Besson told MPs: "We should all be happy. France is emerging with its head high from its exchange with the commission. It's good news for everyone."

José Manuel Barroso, the commission president, said he did not want to go into the "very sensitive legal issues", suggesting he was keen to avoid re-igniting the row with Sarkozy. But his officials insisted there was no climbdown.

A senior EU official said: "The French have until 15 October. They will never do it by then. There will be an infringement procedure." This could end up in France being hauled before the European Court of Justice.

Since the end of July when Sarkozy ordered a clampdown against Roma or Gypsy immigrants from Romania and Bulgaria, more than 1,000 have been expelled and more than 100 camps have been demolished, a policy that has been condemned by the Vatican, the UN, the European Commission, human rights groups and the French opposition.

The argument for targeted discrimination rested on a French interior ministry paper ordering priority action specifically against the Roma. It was in circulation for five weeks until being withdrawn after being leaked to the French press.

Commission officials said that the onus was on Paris to prove that it was not targeting Gypsies as an ethnic group. Reding said: "If France has affirmed that its laws do not discriminate against certain ethnic groups compared to others, we need the proof to assure of us of that. We are asking that France supply the documents, the details of the expulsions which have taken place."

Source

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

I would love to see France pull out of the EU and then send all their illegal immigrants to EU member country's and let them deal with the problem. That would serve the EU right.

[Danno 1,228]

It is a little crazy to be in some agreement whereby they can tell you to accept the flood of persons which apparently are causing so much trouble.

Strangely enough there are some who dream we will have a similar "North American Union" soon.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Freedom...what a radical concept.

[Peikko 1,575]

I would love to see France pull out of the EU and then send all their illegal immigrants to EU member country's and let them deal with the problem. That would serve the EU right.

That makes no sense at all - the Roma are not illegal immigrants - everyone who is a member of the EU has the right to migrate within the EU - sort of like Americans have the right to migrate to any American state.

It is a little crazy to be in some agreement whereby they can tell you to accept the flood of persons which apparently are causing so much trouble.

Strangely enough there are some who dream we will have a similar "North American Union" soon.

What 'trouble' are all the Roma causing Danno? You seem so certain and authoritative on this, so presumably you have some facts and figures to back this statement up, right?

[Ban Hammer 13,470]

strangely enough, i find myself in agreement with france.

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

That makes no sense at all - the Roma are not illegal immigrants - everyone who is a member of the EU has the right to migrate within the EU - sort of like Americans have the right to migrate to any American state.

What 'trouble' are all the Roma causing Danno? You seem so certain and authoritative on this, so presumably you have some facts and figures to back this statement up, right?

I stand corrected on using the words "illegal immigrants", yet it further proves why France needs to pull out of the EU, along with any other EU member that wishes freedom of choice for it's country's government.

And yes the Roma (gypsy's/cigon) are notorious for their criminal behavior.

*Just in...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20101001/wl_time/08599202282000;_ylt=ApyK5gbrbaJk7D8KcdHJPsxvaA8F;_ylu=X3oDMTJtcGN1ajBpBGFzc2V0A3RpbWUvMjAxMDEwMDEvMDg1OTkyMDIyODIwMDAEcG9zAzExBHNlYwN5bl9hcnRpY2xlX3N1bW1hcnlfbGlzdARzbGsDZXV0aHJlYXRzdG9z

E.U. Threats to Sue Won't Stop France from Deporting Roma

When the European Commission announced on Friday, Oct. 1, that it would initiate legal action against France because of its deportation of Roma, also known as Gypsies, many observers saw the move as little more than a show designed to ultimately allow officials in Brussels and Paris alike to save face and declare victory without much changing. And on Friday, when France began fingerprinting the departing Roma to deter them from returning, it seemed they were right.

While it's an impressive display of unanimity among the 27 members of the Commission - the European Union's executive body - the E.C.'s threatened legal action falls significantly short of the discrimination case that some officials had wanted to launch against Paris for its widely decried policy of rounding up and deporting Roma to Bulgaria and Romania. Instead of charging France with discrimination - a legally difficult tack - the Commission instead gave Paris an Oct. 15 deadline to prove it has incorporated, or "transposed," into French law a binding 2004 E.U. directive on protecting ethnic minorities and ensuring the freedom of movement of all E.U. citizens. If it is determined that France has failed to do that - or if France ignores the order to clarify its situation - the E.C. will open legal proceedings against Paris for refusing obligations to respect fundamental E.U. statues. (See pictures of the French crackdown on migrants.)

"We note that in our judicial analysis, France did not correctly transpose the rules on free movement of European citizens, and as a result, she has robbed these citizens of essential procedural guarantees," E.U. justice commissioner Viviane Reding told reporters following the vote Wednesday, Sept. 29. "This must be corrected, and that is why the commission has acted firmly."

Firmly, perhaps, but minus the discrimination charges that detractors - led by Reding herself - had leveled at France over the Roma deportations that were kicked into high gear in July. Although the government of Nicolas Sarkozy has stopped publicizing deportation numbers, as it did with relish before the international condemnation surged, it's estimated that nearly 1,700 Roma have been expelled in the past two months. (See a defiant France defend the deportation of Roma.)

Paris argues that under the seven-year transitional agreements Romania and Bulgaria signed upon entering the E.U. in 2007, citizens of those nations currently must acquire residence permits to live permanently in France - papers requiring proof of employment and means of living that few impoverished, itinerant Roma have. Sarkozy's government has also claimed that most Roma wind up leaving "voluntarily" - owing in large part to cash payouts offered to Roma who know that if they don't accept, they'll be deported anyway - and that the push is simply part of normal policing to battle illegal immigration. The policy, France insists, in no way focuses on any particular ethnic group.

But that defiant, often haughty, line became harder to defend after French media in September revealed an Aug. 5 circular issued by France's Interior Ministry that repeatedly stipulated that the offensive was targeting "Roma in particular." That led the already critical Reding to condemn France's action as "a situation I thought that Europe would not have to witness again after the Second World War." Her comment turned a political issue into a personal one. During a summit of leaders in Brussels on Sept. 16, Sarkozy railed that "France has been insulted, wounded, outraged and humiliated." He then engaged in what reports have described as an epic row with Commission President JosÉ Manuel Barroso - who eventually expressed his opinion that Reding's comment had gone a bit too far.

Then came the Commission's decision to launch legal action - a move observers say is aimed at finding a middle ground in the increasingly nasty, high-stakes dispute. By pursuing the more legally solid ground of transposition, analysts say, Reding and her backers can challenge France within the context of the Roma controversy while avoiding the tricky-to-prove charge of discrimination - an option Barroso opposed, in part because of warnings from Paris that it would be interpreted as a virtual act of war. (See pictures of Sarkozy celebrating Bastille Day.)

"The Commission can say it held its ground and defended European rules - and, indirectly, minorities - while France will maintain it's within its rights and continue on with expulsions," says Jean-Marc Lech, a political analyst and co-president of the Ipsos polling agency. "It's the perfectly cynical political solution, because both sides claim they win and nothing really changes."

Indeed, the Commission's mere initiation of the procedure is viewed as symbolically significant in sending Paris - and the world - a message of principle on the plight of Roma. The chances of any actual disciplinary action being taken, however, are small. Even if France were to be found in infraction of the E.U. rule, a trial wouldn't roll around for years - by which time Paris could pass legislation to transpose the 2004 directive. Meanwhile, France keeps deporting Roma with little sign of contrition - or fear of Brussels. (See if France is courting xenophobes.)

"We should all be happy. France is emerging with its head high from its exchange with the Commission," France's Immigration and National Identity Minister Eric Besson told parliamentarians Wednesday. "It's good news for everyone." Everyone except the Roma.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Inappropriate images have been removed.

[Danno 1,228]

That makes no sense at all - the Roma are not illegal immigrants - everyone who is a member of the EU has the right to migrate within the EU - sort of like Americans have the right to migrate to any American state.

What 'trouble' are all the Roma causing Danno? You seem so certain and authoritative on this, so presumably you have some facts and figures to back this statement up, right?

Well maybe you are right, tell me about those 100 camps, what was all that about?

And how come every place I have been in Europe I was greeted by the most persistent beggars which either are .. or they are impersonating Gypsies.