The Romani People face discrimination across Europe, yet the EU continues to exclude them from European security plans, leaving the responsibility entirely to member states
Last week, the European Free Alliance hosted an international delegation of Romani parties and organizations in Brussels, the Global Roma Alliance for Strategic Security (GRASS). The goal of the visit was to meet with several actors from EU institutions to ensure that the security of Roma communities becomes a priority for the EU. The Roma are a People who are present all around Europe. They face discrimination in several member states just for being members of a minority. Nevertheless, the European institutions still treat them as a “vulnerable group” rather than as a “people”, excluding them from European security plans and leaving the responsibility of their protection to member states. In EFA, we support the Romani people and call on the European institutions to take this matter seriously. Threats to the Romani are a European issue, and the EU must step up and take responsibility for the protection of the rights of Romani EU citizens.
The issue of Roma security is currently not addressed in the EU policy discussion. It remains absent from the EU Roma Strategic Framework for Equality, Inclusion and Participation (2020-2030), the Protect EU Internal Security Strategy adopted on 1 April 2025, and the related policy documents. While European institutions avoid treating this as an EU issue, the assumption that the individual human rights of Roma are guaranteed under the national laws of each country has been fundamentally challenged. By 2025, legal mechanisms designed to defend Roma citizens are increasingly deployed to collectively punish and restrict their rights, rather than protecting them.
Making Roma voices heard in the EU
The visit to Brussels followed the GRASS exchange of letters in June-September with Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration, Magnus Brunner, and Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib, regarding the inclusion of Roma security in the European Internal Security Strategy, which already includes the safety and security of Jewish and Muslim communities. The delegation, together with EFA President Lorena López de Lacalle, and EFA Secretary-General Oriol Cases, met with the Cabinet of Commissioner Brunner, the EU Fundamental Rights, and the Chair of the Minorities Intergroup of the European Parliament to explore solutions at the European level.
They also had the opportunity to exchange visions with several EFA MEPs, who committed to raising the issue of the rights Romani communities’ rights in the European agenda, improving parliamentary engagement, and continuing to work together for the rights of minorities in the EU.
The Roma people deserve to be represented. They represent 10 million citizens in Europe. Without representation, their needs will continue to be disregarded. EFA believes that it is important to recognize the importance of minority participation in politics and to overcome any barriers of representation that leave some voices out of the debate. We will continue to work with Roma organizations and parties, and to make sure that their voice is also acknowledged in the EU.