“Roma woman here and now. Know me and accept me” is the slogan with which several dozen Roma women and men marched on the streets of Chisinau on Monday, on the occasion of Romani Week that is celebrated from 3 to 9 April. The event was organized by UN Women, in partnership with the Roma Women Platform “ROMNI”, IPN reports.
The organizers said the march was aimed at drawing attention to the Roma women who struggle for an inclusive society and are often discriminated. The event involved Roma women from the Republic of Moldova and Roma refugees from Ukrainian and the EU and U.S. ambassadors in Chisinau.
Elena Sîrbu, who heads the Association of Roma Women of the Republic of Moldova, said the event is designed to sensitize the people to the social and cultural inclusion of Roma women.
“Today’s event is devoted to the Roma women. We are glad that we could organize this nice event. It is an event held to open Romani Week in Moldova. UN Women plays a very important role in promoting our rights and also the Roma culture and not only by traditions,” stated Elena Sîrbu.
The Head of the EU Delegation to the Republic of Moldova Jānis Mažeiks said that diversity for the European Union is very important: “Today’s march and the Republic of Moldova’s solidarity with the Roma women is an important message for the European Union. We love and appreciate the citizens of the Republic of Moldova for the openness they show,” stated the EU diplomat.
U.S. Ambassador Kent D. Logsdon noted that the U.S. is always ready to offer the necessary support for the Roma women not to feel discriminated. “We want to help this community and are glad to see the Republic of Moldova’s openness to the women and people of Roma ethnicity,” noted the ambassador.
International Romani Day celebrates Roma’s culture and history, art, and valuable contributions of Roma to societies. It’s also a day to acknowledge and highlight the different challenges facing the Romani population — one of the largest minority groups in Europe today.
According to UN Women, the Roma girls and women in the Republic of Moldova continue to be one of the most underrepresented groups. Their vulnerability and social exclusion is determined by a series of discriminatory factors, such as gender, class, ethnicity, and race. These influence not only theor role and position in the community, but also the equality of access to education, labor market, earnings, medical assistance, social protection, civil and political life and justice.
