On the road to change: dealing with domestic violence in Gypsy and Traveller groups

Fifteen years after the UK's only refuge for Gypsy and Travelling women opened, a new generation is acknowledging the problem of violent relationships.

Jill Clark
The Guardian, Friday 14 August 2009

For Kay, the beatings came three weeks into her marriage. She and her partner, both from Irish Travelling families, met on the road as teenagers before becoming pen pals. It wasn't until they settled down on a caravan site in Yorkshire that he threw his first punch. "He'd just flip out, slapping me, kicking me," says Kay (not her real name). "He wanted me to jump when he said, to sit when I was told." Despite the violence in their relationship, the couple had three children together and Kay says she felt powerless to leave. "I just accepted it as normal. In my culture the woman is the heart of the family, the man is the head – what he says goes."

Kay's story may be similar to that of the 25% of women in the UK who are thought to experience domestic violence during their lifetimes – six to 10% of women suffer it in any given year – but a recent paper by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, suggests that women from the Gypsy and Traveller communities who report domestic violence will often have suffered it more severely and over a considerably longer period than other women. Although there is no conclusive evidence about the prevalence of this abuse, the paper cites a study in Wrexham, which found that between 61 and 81% of married Gypsy and Traveller women had experienced direct abuse from a partner.

Cultural barriers are believed to be one reason that Travelling women stay in violent relationships for longer than other women. Kay, who endured 14 years of violence (twice the UK average) before she had an injunction brought against her husband, feared that she might have to leave behind her whole way of life by entering a bricks-and-mortar refuge or being relocated into a house. "It would have killed me stone dead," she says. "I've lived in trailers all my life; it's all I know. In a house, I'd feel cooped up and boxed in; I'd be so alone. I worried my kids would get stick for being Travellers and we wouldn't feel welcome, that we'd get judged and treated as outsiders and would never be able to admit where we came from."

A reluctance to deal with the police, coupled with a lack of knowledge about mainstream services, may complicate the situation. Kay admits, "For all those years I'd refused to report his abuse. If you're seen talking on your own to police, you can be labelled a grass, and a grass isn't allowed in our community. I'd seen them [police] come to the site uninvited, trashing our property, talking down to the kids. There was no trust there. But in the end it was my brother who said: 'Leave him.'"

Kay also felt that she would be stigmatised for talking about the abuse. "We're taught to stand up for ourselves as strong Travelling women. If word gets out you're being hit – by man, woman or whoever – you can be seen as weak."

Kathleen Lowther Morrison, a Traveller from the community group Leeds Gypsy and Traveller exchange, says many Travellers have traditional views on marriage, with divorce a rarity. And a woman leaving a marriage can be ostracised. "If they've lived in a closed community all their lives and have had little education, if they've barely been to school, they can assume all men are violent and domestic violence is normal. Gypsies see domestic violence going on all their lives: if it isn't happening to their mum, it's happening to their sister or their neighbour."

Although community campaigners admit that discussing violence within marriage has always been a taboo, 15 years after Solas Anois – the UK's only refuge for Gypsy and Travelling women – was set up, it is being tackled head on with new initiatives. This summer saw the first conference on domestic violence in the Traveller and Gypsy communities, with another planned for October.

Lowther Morrison says it is essential that help comes from within the community and that more people attend domestic violence courses. "I went on a training course myself," she says. "It was like a light flashing in my head. I never knew what domestic violence was till then. Half of our women still don't, they think a good hiding is part of our culture."

Bernie O'Rourke, who works at Solas Anois – Gaelic for "comfort now"– says attitudes in the community are changing. "More Travelling women than ever are seeking help. More mothers are willing to assist their daughters in leaving violent relationships. Women feel more empowered; change is coming."

In 2008, 44 women were accommodated at the refuge: a further 21 had to be turned away because of lack of space. O'Rourke says more specialist refuges are essential to acknowledge and accommodate the particular needs of the women from the Gypsy and Traveller communities. "A lot of Travelling women have low literacy and numeracy – a CD or DVD version of the refuge rules and information can help. Some can't tell the time or aren't interested in it; their children may not have structured bedtimes. Their life is very different from that of the settled population." She points out that they can be deterred from entering mainstream refuges if they experience difficulties observing cleanliness rituals, known as the Mochadi laws – one bowl for washing up, another for washing the body, for example. Particular standards of hygiene – such as using bleach to clean dishes – can also cause problems with other refuge residents.

Six months ago, Irish Traveller Bridie Jones started holding cultural awareness workshops in Kent. Now, she says, "The police no longer take dogs into trailers, or search a whole site to locate a single person. It's about building trust so women will come forward, report violence and have confidence in what the police, social services and other agencies have to offer." She also runs three separate domestic violence support groups for Gypsies and Travellers at homes in her area. "I don't want people thinking that every man I know is going around hitting women, because that would be far from the truth. But domestic violence needs talking about more in my community; it needs bringing out from beneath the carpet."

Lowther Morrison agrees, and says Gypsy and Traveller women now want more equality in their relationships. "My husband respects me and what I do, but there's plenty of women without that – where it's OK for a Gypsy man to remarry but not for a woman, where a woman cannot disrespect a man. It's a long road ahead, but people are coming around to the idea more and more." Her project report, One Punch Kills, recommends opening a caravan site in Leeds for families fleeing domestic violence. "We're not going away, this issue needs looking at and it needs more funding."


Romany Gypsy Janie Cadona, of One Voice, a domestic violence advice organisation for Travellers in the east of England, takes women through their options when experiencing violence from a partner. She agrees that culturally familiar alternatives such as "safe" trailers would help. "For those who have been living out in the open on a site all their lives, or if they're continuously nomadic, it can be too big a shock living with new people in a refuge or hostel. They can feel confined and isolated; anxiety and depression can set in. They risk leaving their life behind, so they stay in a violent situation for longer. Often, Travellers turn up at refuges with six kids in tow – there isn't always room to take in the whole family."

The Irish Traveller Movement in Britain is currently developing a women's group. Director Yvonne MacNamara says such groups can challenge sensitive issues and empower more women like Kay. "A lot of Travellers don't like the terminology 'domestic violence', some won't touch the topic. But others are saying, 'Do something,' which is an incredibly brave thing to do for this community. It's about getting information out there, about teaching men, women, children, young and old, that violence isn't the way. The approach needs to be sensible, it needs to be different and now, I believe, is the time to do it."

The 24-hour National Domestic Violence helpline number is 0808 2000 247.

Traveller women give modern touches to Carmen

Reworked version of Bizet's opera of unrequited love and jealousy gets one-off performance at Royal Albert Hall

Ahmad Ali guardian.co.uk, Monday 2 March 2009 11.41 GMT

A modern version of Carmen written by Traveller women will be staged at the Royal Albert Hall today.

The one-off production will be performed in the Elgar Room by a cast of leading TV and stage actors. It is a collaboration between the Traveller Women's Group, based in Ealing, west London, and students from the Purcell School of Music in Hertfordshire.

Why Didn't I Tell You How Much I Loved You?, like the original that inspired it, is the story of an ill-fated Gypsy woman who falls in love with the wrong man. In the new version, however, Carmen has been replaced by Chantelle, an English Gypsy who falls in love with an Irish Traveller called Paddy.

"When we first heard about the offer we thought they were having a laugh," said Margaret, 40, one of the 16 writers involved in the project. She said she and the others were "delighted" to take part.

The women worked with playwright Darren Rapier and poet Ian McMillan in a series of workshops to realise their own interpretation, using Bizet's narrative as a starting point. They drew upon experiences of racism, and wrote about health issues affecting their communities, such as heavy smoking and difficulty accessing healthcare.

The tale focuses on internal differences within the Traveller population and undermines the misconception that Travellers are a homogenous group. According to Margaret: "Everyone thinks Irish and English Travellers are the same but there are differences in what girls are allowed to do." She added: "We are devout Catholics. Faith is central to our culture."

The story is set in London but much of the action takes place at the annual Appleby horse fair in Cumbria - one of the largest of its kind and an important cultural event in the Traveller calender. "The original happens in a tobacco factory," said Samantha, another of the writers. "We thought: 'Where would it take place for a Traveller?' We decided on Appleby as Irish dancing, horse dealing and everything in our culture are on display there," she added.

The project is a part of the Royal Albert Hall's training and participation programme, and follows on from the success of last year's Tosca project, in which ex-offenders from Enfield in north London rewrote the opera, setting it on a housing estate.

Alastair Tallon, head of learning and participation, said a key objective is to create interaction between groups that would not normally be in contact - in this case, Travellers and music students. Tallon, whose job is to diversify visitors to the Royal Albert Hall, said all the women involved in the project would come to see the production. He added: "Enjoying opera is not just about musical appreciation. It appeals to the human condition. We wanted to know how people relate to its themes."

Life with the Romanian gypsies for retired Hedingham teacher

Published Date: 03 March 2009

AFTER a long and demanding career teaching children from Romany and gypsy communities across Essex, you would expect Margaret Biddulph to take it easy once she retired.

But after a few months it was clear a comfortable life of coffee mornings in Castle Hedingham was not for her and she made a decision that would radically alter her life.

The grandmother put her house up for rent, packed a suitcase and jetted off to a far corner of Romania.

Mrs Biddulph, a 64-year-old divorcee, said: "I made lots of inquiries and found out about a gypsy community in Romania. In January, 2005, I decided to pack up and go. It was a just case of jumping into the unknown.

"It was quite a culture shock. Romania is a very poor country and the community I work with, who live on the edge of a village called Tileagd, experience tremendous prejudice and have become a convenient scapegoat for many of the problems blighting the country."

Mrs Biddulph, a committed Christian and member of the Sible Hedingham Baptist Church, now spends her days teaching people to read and write in their own unique language and how to live a more sustainable life through small business ventures.

"We have set up a craft programme where I buy hemp and linen for the women to stitch and embroider into bags and cushion covers," she said.

On her infrequent trips back to England she attempts to find outlets prepared to sell the products, with the proceeds being sent back directly to the community.

"It is hard for them to get jobs as the perception is they are nothing more than thieves. It's unfortunate but they have often been left with no choice but to steal to survive.

"Whatever time I have left working there my goal is to break this cycle through the craft project and education," she added.

Giving up her home and spending most of the year in a small house in Romania has resulted in an unusual lifestyle for a retiree.

She said: "It's quite strange really. When I come home I end up living out of a suitcase in spare rooms of various friends before flying back again.

"It means I keep my possessions to a minimum as well. I guess I've taken on a bit of a gypsy existence myself."

The programme Mrs Biddulph is working on is supported by the Smiles Foundation, a Christian organisation attempting to change lives in poorer countries.

The charity has already built a church and school in the village, which is open to both Romanians and gypsies in an attempt to bring the communities together.

She is appealing for any shops, museums, or tourist venues to step forward and start stocking the bags and cushion covers so the next phase of the project can go-ahead.

"I will happily meet or talk to anyone who is prepared to support this vital work.

"This is such a worthwhile project and will make a massive difference enabling the community to stand on their own feet and move forward," she added.

Anyone who wants to find out more about the Smiles Foundation should go to www.thesmilesfoundation.org

For more information on the products made by the gypsy community or to inquire about stocking the goods email m.rainbird@btinternet.com.

Court overturns ruling in Gypsy sterilization case

PRAGUE, Czech Republic: A hospital does not have to compensate a young Gypsy woman it sterilized without her consent, an appeals court ruled Wednesday.

In overturning the Czech Republic's first monetary award for forced sterilization, the court said the statute of limitations had expired.

Human rights groups believe hundreds of women from the Czech Republic's Gypsy minority of about 250,000 people were sterilized against their will.

Under communism, which ended in the Czech Republic in 1989, sterilization was a semiofficial tool to limit the population of Gypsies, or Roma as they prefer to be called, whose large families were seen as a burden on the state. The practice ended only recently, according to a 2005 investigative report by the national ombudsman.

Iveta Cervenakova, now 32, was illegally sterilized without her consent in 1997 after she gave birth to her second daughter by Caesarean section.

She filed a lawsuit in 2005. A lower court ruled two years later that the hospital in the northeastern city of Ostrava had to pay compensation and apologize for violating her rights.

Court spokesman Petr Angyalossy said the 500,000 koruna ($26,330; 20,460 euros) judgment was overturned because the award came after the 3-year statute of limitations in the case had expired.

He said the hospital needs only apologize.

The Czech League for Human Rights sharply criticized the ruling and said it would appeal it to the Supreme Court. Lawyer David Zahumensky of the League for Human Rights, who consulted with Cervenakova's lawyer, said she will argue that there should be no statute of limitation applied in sterilization cases.

Several other Czech Gypsy women are seeking damages from hospitals for illegal sterilizations.

Gypsy wins a day in Greek court

The European Union's top court has condemned Greece for violating the European Convention on Human Rights in a case filed by a woman who suffered a miscarriage after abuse by Greek police in 2001.

By Kathy Tzilivakis, Thursday, January 10, 2008

The European Court of Human Rights has dealt a severe blow to Greek law enforcement and the country's justice system, ordering Greece to pay 21,000 euros to a Roma (Gypsy) woman who said she was kicked in the back and stomach while pregnant by a police officer during a raid on a makeshift settlement in the western Athens industrial suburb of Aspropyrgos six years ago.

Human rights campaigners have hailed the ruling as a landmark victory in the fight against police brutality against Gypsies and other visible minorities in Greece. The police tactics in the raid in Aspropyrgos in 2002 sparked heated criticism from local and international human rights organisations. But it was not an isolated incident. It was one of many reported cases of police targeting Gypsies in Greece.

"This is the fourth conviction in 2007 related to police violence [against Gypsies]," said Panayotis Dimitras of the Greek Helsinki Monitor, a local rights watchdog. "This indicates that there is a serious problem of police violence and impunity. It also shows there is institutional racism in the Greek police. The Greek Helsinki Monitor has repeatedly called on the state to deal with such cases before they reach the European court."

In the case reviewed by the Strasbourg-based human rights court, Fani-Yannula Petropoulou-Tsakiri, 28, testified that police ignored her pleas for urgent medical assistance and allegedly herded her onto a police van with other Gypsies who had been arbitrarily arrested. Tsakiri, who was 10 weeks pregnant, suffered a miscarriage. Today she lives in Amfissa with her four children.

According to a report published by the Swiss-based World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) about the 2002 raid, "Officers ordered Roma [Gypsy] individuals to lie face down on the ground while they aimed their guns at them. Other officers entered into almost every home - in some circumstances by force - in search of both drugs and hiding [Gypsy] persons. Once all the individuals were gathered outside their homes, officers began to threaten and harass the group while they waited for transport vehicles. During this time, reports indicate that bullets were fired in the air, while several incidents of police brutality were also registered."

The ruling

The court held unanimously that there had been a violation of article 3 (prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment) of the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights concerning the lack of an effective investigation into Tsakiri's allegation and that there had been a violation of article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) taken in conjunction with article 3.

"The court finds that the failure of the authorities to investigate possible racial motives for the applicant's ill-treatment, combined with their [discriminatory] attitude during the investigation, constitutes discrimination with regard to the applicant's rights which is contrary to article 14 taken in conjunction with article 3 in its procedural limb," said the ruling.

However, the court ruled, by six votes to one, that there had been no violation of article 3 concerning her allegation that she had been the victim of police brutality.

As explained in the ruling, the decision of the six judges (including one from Greece, Christos Rozakis) was based on the fact that the circumstances in which Tsakiri's bleeding had occurred on 28 January 2002 "were not entirely clear". The medical report only stated that she had bled and suffered a miscarriage. No reference was made to bruises, injuries or any other cause of the bleeding.

The one dissenting opinion was voiced by Loukis Loucaides (Cypriot), the president of the court. Loucaides says he does not share the opinion that there was no violation of article 3 as regards the alleged ill-treatment inflicted by police.

"The applicant stated her complaint in a coherent and convincing manner," said Loucaides in his dissenting opinion. "She explained that she had been kicked on her back and, as a result, had felt an intense pain in the abdominal area and started bleeding. There followed a miscarriage... What I cannot understand is why the majority did not believe her story, without even finding a concrete, well-founded reason why she must have lied. In fact, the evidence does not disclose any such reason. The fact that the medical report produced by the applicant made no reference to bruises and to any possible causes of the bleeding does not detract from the truthfulness of the applicant's complaint."

Loucaides also stressed that the majority decision could be "very dangerous in the sense that it may cause injustice to individuals like the applicant, whose evidence may not by itself be taken seriously because of police prejudice as regards their status".

He also said it may "encourage the police to use unacceptable methods of investigation, amounting to ill-treatment in respect of persons like the applicant or other persons who do not have any eyewitnesses to corroborate their complaints of ill-treatment."

Kathy Tzilivakis writes for the Athens News and appears here with permission.

Gypsy heat

December 16, 2007 Regional News

Spain’s oldest woman – a gypsy – has gone without heating all her life
WHO needs central heating? Spain’s oldest woman Maria Diaz Cortes – aged 115 – has lived without it all her life.

Living in a shanty town on the outskirts of Seville, she is now refusing to move to an Old People’s Home, with all the mod cons.

Maria, who lives in a shack in the rough area of El Vacie, to the north of the city, is well looked after by her family including youngest daughter, aged 72.

“It is out of the question to move,” her daughter Dolores explained. “She would rather live under a bridge than in a home. Gypsies don’t have that culture of putting their relatives in homes.”

The town hall is now studying a plan to move the whole family into a council house in the city instead.

Maria was born in Granada in 1892 and is thought to be the oldest person in Spain, if not Europe.

The previous oldest was Jeanne Calment, who died in France at 122 in 1997.

A new report has just been issued that shows that the average life expectancy for Spaniards has risen to over 80 years.

The average for women is 83.5 years – just pipped by France – while men reach 79.96.

The figure has risen by four years since 2001 when the average was 79.44.

In the UK men only make it to 77.08 and women to 81.12 years.

Racism in Italy. Gypsy woman murdered in Milan

Gypsy woman murdered in Milan, her makeshift shelter set on fire

EveryOne Group is carrying out a campaign against the discrimination and instigation to racial violence that is becoming more and more desperate every day. Write your comment to : info@everyonegroup.com

Our members, who are people with modest or normal incomes are donating their own savings to help Roma people in difficulty - by paying their rent, or by sending sums of money to prevent the extreme poverty entire families are subject to leading to more tragedies - more deaths in an Italy in which we are experiencing a climate that resembles more and more the one that hung over our country when Fascism came to power, and when in Germany the idea of the Holocaust took shape.

We are committed to raising the alarm against this new xenophobia, alerting the authorities and the institutions of the existence of racist gangs of murderers, like GAPE, who claimed responsibility for the murder of four gypsy children in Livorno in the ill-famed fire. In this case, as in others, the authorities chose to protect the neo-fascist criminals, in spite of the evidence supplied by members of EveryOne Group. Instead the children's parents were charged with "abandonment of minors". Last night another makeshift shelter in Via Forlanini in Milan caught fire, in the abandoned Carabinieri barracks near the East bypass bridge. The authorities who rushed to the site carried out the usual procedure used when looking for the causes of a fire : a candle, a gas ring. But everyone knows how most of the fires that break out in gypsy camps are caused. This time, however, the scenario the police officers were faced with was different. Outside the shelter, lying face down over brambles, they found the body of a 36-year-old Roma woman. As they took away the body, the anaesthetist found injuries and bruises defined as "incompatible with life". One of the injuries was caused by a blunt instrument that could well be the cause of death. This news has circulated in the press which is a positive thing for those who hope that the truth will come to light. Now not even the police doctor can deny it and explain the woman's death away with an accident. The doctor present at the emergency central operations service confirmed "traumas compatible with an aggression". The woman's body was found by her partner, who alerted the authorities at 41 minutes past midnight : "My girlfriend is lying on the floor, she's not answering, I think she's dead", he shouted in a panic and racked with pain. The aggression took place in the middle of the racial campaign against gypsies triggered off by politicians, police authorities and media after the death of Giovanna Reggiani - the dynamics of which have still to be established. The dynamics of this case is typical of a racist attack : fire and aggression. The climate over the last few days had caused us to fear episodes of violence, and EveryOne Group on various occasions has attempted to raise the alarm through press releases. These, unfortunately, were never published or broadcast by newspapers and television - which are now so compliant towards those in power that they have practically become accomplices. What must we expect from this inquiry ? Now the possibility of putting the death down to an accident is ruled out (seeing it is now common knowledge) it is to be feared that there will be an attempt to explain the death away with a violent gesture from the woman's partner or another Romanian, claiming it was a fit of jealousy or a case of score-settling. We must keep an eye on the investigation, and how the media reports this case, which today, amazingly, inspired the journalist from Corriere della Sera to ask (in spite of the evidence) : "Accident, revenge or xenophobia" ? To be noted the first theory : accident. Absurd, unjust, worthy of this Italy which is sliding into a climate of terror.

Czech hospital has to compensate Gypsy woman for coercive sterilization, court rules

The Associated Press
Friday, October 12, 2007

PRAGUE, Czech Republic: A Czech court ruled Friday that a hospital must pay 500,000 koruna (€18,200; US$25,800) in compensation for sterilizing a Gypsy woman 10 years ago without her consent, a lawyer for the woman said.

Complaints about the practice have been heard many times. But the lawyer, Michaela Kopalova, said this marked the first time a Gypsy woman in the Czech Republic had been compensated for such a claim.

The court in the northeastern city of Ostrava also ordered Ostrava's Municipal hospital to apologize to Iveta Cervenakova for violating her rights by sterilizing her in 1997, Kopalova said.

Cervenakova, 31, was sterilized after giving birth to her second daughter by Caesarean section. Kopalova also represents two other Gypsy women who are seeking damages from hospitals, claiming to have been illegally sterilized.

(MORE)

Can the world stop genocide?

A conference in the Canadian city of Montreal has been discussing ways to prevent genocide. BBC world affairs correspondent Mark Doyle, attending the meeting, asks whether this can be done.

The 75-year-old woman sat on stage in front of hundreds of United Nations officials, legal experts and academics.

The day before, Marika Nene had travelled from Hungary to Canada - the first plane she had ever taken on her first journey outside Hungary.

She was not intimidated by the gathering. Her long hair was lit up by a stage light and her facial features were strong.

But the strongest thing about Marika Nene, a Roma - or Gypsy - woman who was trapped in the anti-Gypsy pogroms during World War II, was her determination to tell her story.

"I had no choice. I had to give myself up to the soldiers," Marika Nene said through a translator.
"I was a very pretty little gypsy woman and of course the soldiers took me very often to the room with a bed in it where they violated me. I still have nightmares about it".

Many members of Marika Nene's Roma family died in the work camps and the ghettos.

She had travelled to Montreal to give a reality check to the experts and UN officials at the "Global Conference on the Prevention of Genocide".

(MORE)

Spanish gypsy widow takes her case to the European Court of Human Rights

Oct 17, 2007 - 6:59 PM

El Mundo newspaper reports on Wednesday of the case of a gypsy woman who has been refused a widow’s pension by the state because she and her husband married gypsy style. María Luisa Muñoz is now taking her claim to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg after seven years of fighting in the courts in Spain have proved unsuccessful.

She married Mariano Jiménez in 1971, and had six children with him before his death in December 2000. The INSS National Social Security Institute refused her application for a widow’s pension, on the grounds that she was not his spouse, despite his many years of paying into the system.

María Luisa’s first claim to a social court in Madrid was upheld, but was later overturned by a higher court on an appeal placed by the INSS. Her last resort was the Constitutional Court, where all but one of the magistrates voted in the court’s ruling earlier this year that she had not suffered discrimination because of her race.

The Fundación Secretariado Gitano, a non-profit organisation which works for the promotion of the Roma community and who are giving their legal support to María Luisa in her claim, says her situation is a clear example of discrimination and a ‘violation of human rights.’

The FSG also points out that the couple’s marriage took place some years before the 1978 Constitution, at a time when laws which expressly discriminated against the gypsy people were still in force.

Pregnant woman thrashed by mob

Times Of India
9 Oct 2007, 0255 hrs IST,Ananthakrishnan G,TNN

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After Bihar and certain other pockets in north India, mob fury seems to have caught on in God's own country.

On Sunday, a mob thrashed two 'gypsy' women, one of them pregnant, in the northern Malappuram district, on charges of theft. The women were rescued only after a police team arrived almost 45 minutes later. The duo was then shifted to a hospital.

The incident occurred outside a shop in Edappal, where a local woman was shopping along with her child. The woman raised a hue and cry when she found the gold anklet that her daughter was wearing had gone missing. While a search was on for the anklet, the passersby saw two gypsy women along with three children outside the shop.

Without even a cursory questioning, the mob assumed that the gypsy women were the culprits. What followed was gruesome violence unleashed on the two defenceless women.

They were beaten up mercilessly and some of people in the crowd even tried to disrobe them. All this while, one of the gypsy women was begging to be let off as she was pregnant.

A police bus passed by without making any attempt to know why such a large crowd had gathered at the spot. What compounded the mob's offence was that they couldn't find the lost anklet from the possession of the women.

The police, after questioning, arrested five people, including four employees of the shop. Senior police officials rushed to Edappal on Monday to take stock of the situation.

Gypsy Accusation Towards Czechs’ and Slovaks’ Forced Sterilisations

80 ethnic Roma women are claiming that they were conned into sterilisation in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. While some were forced, others were offered financial incentives to get sterilised in hopes of reducing the fertile Roma population.

One woman, Elena Gorolova (37) explained how she joked with the doctor saying they can keep her baby boy at hospital because she wanted a baby girl and how he replied that she better take it because she has been sterilised at the age of 21.

While it is believed that the practice ended in 1990 after the end of communist Czechoslovakia, human rights groups say it happened as recent as 2003. According to the Czech embassy in London, sterilisation was not targeted at specific ethnic groups.


Source: news.bbc.co.uk