The Marginalization of Roma in Romania

Abstract 

Denying people equal opportunities is referred to as marginalization for some people will benefit more than others. Marginalization is evident in both developed and developing countries, for example, the U.S, Philippines and India. People are marginalization because of their race, socio-economic status, education and gender. Romania has social, economic and political forms of marginalization. The poor in Romania cannot afford proper homes, they lived in slums surrounded by garbage and stench, and their homes do not have running water or a bathroom. The houses are in improper conditions and need repairing. Also, Romania has increased cases of human trafficking; this can be attributed to joblessness since traffickers lie to people that they will give them jobs. Also, some girls are kidnapped and forced into prostitution. Some organization and individual groups have come forward to end the issue of improper housing and human trafficking. These types of marginalization are not depicted in Romania but also in Kenya.  

Introduction 

Marginalization refers to treating a person or a group of people as less critical or invaluable. Marginalization is a globalized issue happening in both developed and developing countries. People are marginalized based on their race, level of education, gender, social, economic status, or age. In some parts of the world, people have been ill-treated because of their race; before the abolishment of slavery in the United States of America, most black people were marginalized. African Americans were denied a chance to go to school, and the little education they received involved learning alphabets and arithmetic. Also, slaves were not allowed to own a property for they were owned by their masters. Furthermore, victims of marginalization in many places, some cultures allow the killing of their female relative if the male relatives believe that the woman has brought dishonor in their families, such cases have been reported in Pakistan. Society still holds negative gender stereotypes, whereby people believe that women cannot do specific jobs nor excel in STEM courses. Some people are also denied opportunities since people think they are either too old or too young to perform certain things. Socio-economic status can also cause marginalization, especially where an individual is poor. Poor people do not have access to the most important things in society; this includes education, housing, food, clothing, and medical services. In Romania, people are marginalized in employment, healthcare services and gender. Some individuals have access to proper jobs, whereas others do not. Romania experiences social, political and economic marginalization  

Theoretical Analysis 

In Romania, over five million people are poor; this implies that most of them cannot afford proper housing (Habitat for Humanity GB, 2020). Poverty has forced most individuals to cram themselves in slums, where they believe they can get affordable housing. Most of these houses have no showers or running water; people fetch water from outside. Other members of the slum communities share this water source. The water source is not reliable for they are instances where water supply is cut, and people are forced to stay without water for days or seek water elsewhere. Also, houses in Romanian slums show that they need urgent repair since some have broken windows and doors. Also, some roofs are leaking, making it unbearable for people to stay comfortably in their houses during rainy seasons. The homes are not spacious, and many are single rooms, this implies most people do not have privacy and proper spaces since they are crammed in tiny spaces with many family members. The country also experiences natural disasters such as floods and harsh winters; the house in the slums cannot protect people from harsh climatic conditions since they do not have a heating system. People are living in the cold, thus exposed to disease; also, floods can quickly sweep away the houses. The shared facilities such as washroom can be breeding grounds for water-borne diseases such as cholera and typhoid. Most people who live in the slums do not have stable jobs, and others are unemployed. 

There is a social exclusion of Women in Romania. Cases of human trafficking in Romania are increasing, over the last decade women from low-income households, with little education have been kidnapped and trafficked to different parts of the world (Legislationline.org, 2020). Some of these women are trafficked to foreign countries with promises of a good job, but when they reach their destination, they are forced into prostitution. These traffickers do not perceive women as human beings, for they alienate them from their families for many years. The women are subjected to psychological and physical torture those who try to escape from traffickers are killed. Trafficked women are denied the opportunity to lead a normal life since some of them are underage and do not understand what the future holds for them. The families of the trafficked women are subjected to stress since they wonder whether their daughters are alive or dead. Some families exhaust their resources, trying to find their daughters in foreign countries and bring them home. Prostitution is illegal in many parts of the world, and these women sometimes get arrested and are harassed by the police. Some of the “client” women are subjected to are cruel for they physically and sexually abuse the girls. Also, sometimes the ladies get killed by the men who are they are supposed to serve. The kidnapping of girls has bred fear in some Romanian communities for people are not sure about the fate of their girls. Some parents wish to see their children get decent careers; however, the lives and dreams of their daughters are cut short. 

  Existing Social Entrepreneurial Efforts 

  Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women is working together with Romania authorities to end human trafficking in Romania (Gaatw.org, 2020). They help the captured women get legal advice; they explain the national legislative process to the victims and the same lawyers who offered the women legal counsel represent the girls in court if the need arises. The organization also keeps files for these individuals to keep them updated about the services an individual or a specific group of people are receiving from the organization. The organization monitors the progress of its victim to understand the needs of the person affected. This organization is also creating awareness about the dangers of human trafficking; it has formed an online platform where they train people to be able to identify risks of trafficking. Its online platform also teaches individuals how they can protect themselves from traffickers. Also, the messages people get from the platform can be transmitted from one person to another. The platform has successfully recruited over four hundred participants from different regions of Romania. The platform consists of mainly young people; an increasing number of people in platform implies that the organization has been able to reach out to many people. Global Alliance Against Traffic in women works with other organization, which helps them to identify victims of trafficking and refer them to their services.  

Volunteers in Romania have taken matters into their own hands to eradicate the issues of poor housing in Romania (Romania Insider, 2018). In 2018, three hundred volunteer workers started building ten houses for families living in Cumpana commune; people living in this area are among the poorest people in Romania. The building of the house was set to be completed in five days; volunteers started working on October 1st, and their project ended on October 5th. The volunteers worked together with families to ensure that the houses were completed in time. The houses were completed, and families were able to move in.  

  Future Social Efforts  

Since people are marginalized as a result of poverty, the government should ensure that needs for people of Romania are catered for, for example, the government of Romania should ensure that every individual in Romania gets an education. Educating society prepares them for jobs since people cannot be employed when they do not have proper skills for a job (Singh & Chudasama, 2020). Also, education should be made compulsory and free this will allow individuals from all walks of life to attain education. The Romania government has also been reluctant to prevent cases of trafficking; it does not fund project meant to end trafficking and has not enforced tight measures to curb trafficking. If the government provides funds to organizations fighting human trafficking, the organizations will have the necessary support to end trafficking pandemic. With the provision of proper jobs, people of Romania will have access to adequate housing. Also, some masterminds of human trafficking in Romania have never been apprehended; this makes it easier for them to continue running their illegal activities in the country. The government of Romania should arrest all criminals since this will have a lasting effect in Romania.  

  Why it Matters 

Having proper housing and freedom from slavery is a human right; therefore, when an individual is forced to live under deplorable conditions without heat, space, water and bathrooms is an infringement to one’s right (Un.org, 2020). Also, slavery was abolished many years ago; therefore, any form of slavery practiced across the world is illegal.  

Relevance to the World 

Kenya is among many countries in the world that have the highest number of unemployed people; this condition exposes many Kenyan to modern-day slavery. Many hopeful youths have been trafficked to the Middle East with promises of well-paying jobs, but they end up getting overworked (Migiro, 2015). Some women have been overworked, denied food and payment. Also, Kenyan women working as domestic workers in the middle have been sexually harassed, and when they dared to complain, they were physically assaulted and killed. Forcing one into slavery is an infringement of their rights since people who are legally employed deserve pay and fair treatment at work. Also, Kenya has an issue of housing, most Kenyans, especially those living in capital Nairobi have no proper shelter. House rents are expensive, making it impossible for low-income people to afford a decent home. Kenya has the largest slum in East Africa; in this slum, there is no running water, electricity and proper bathrooms. Residents of these slums are forced to buy water which is sometimes not clean, and they share bathrooms with many people, thus getting exposed to dangerous diseases. Poor housing depicts that there is inequality in Kenya since only the rich can afford proper housing. 

Conclusio n 

  Romania is a country situated in Europe, just like other countries, Romania has different types of marginalization. In Romania, the gap between the rich and the poor is huge; this makes it difficult for the poor to keep the same pace as the rich. People in Romania have experienced social, political and economic marginalization. The poor in Romania do not have proper housing; they live in slums where there is no electricity, running water and bathrooms. The houses are small, making it difficult for people to live comfortably and need repair; the conditions of these houses do not protect people during harsh climatic conditions. Cases of human trafficking have risen in Romania since most people do not have jobs. Human traffickers seduce young people with promises of good jobs. The conditions depicted in Romania are also evident in Kenya. 

References 

Gaatw.org. (2020).  The Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW) - The Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW) . Gaatw.org. Retrieved 20 April 2020, from https://www.gaatw.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=718:asociatia-pro-refugiu-romania-new-members-work-on-anti-trafficking-in-romania&catid=95:member-profile&Itemid=67. 

Habitat for Humanity GB. (2020).  Housing Poverty in Romania: Rebuilding Unsafe, Decaying Homes . Habitat for Humanity GB. Retrieved 20 April 2020, from https://www.habitatforhumanity.org.uk/country/romania/. 

Legislationline.org. (2020).  Legislationline . Legislationline.org. Retrieved 20 April 2020, from https://www.legislationline.org/documents/id/7703. 

Migiro, K. (2015).  Desperate Kenyan maids abused in Middle East despite ban . U.S. Retrieved 20 April 2020, from https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rights-domesticworkers-kenya/desperate-kenyan-maids-abused-in-middle-east-despite-ban-idUSKBN0OC02K20150527. 

Romania Insider. (2018).  Over 300 volunteers to build social housing in southern Romania this fall . Romania Insider. Retrieved 20 April 2020, from https://www.romania-insider.com/habitat-humanity-houses-constanta-2018. 

Singh, P., & Chudasama, H. (2020). Evaluating poverty alleviation strategies in a developing country.  PLOS ONE ,  15 (1), 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0227176 

Un.org. (2020).  Human Rights . Un.org. Retrieved 20 April 2020, from https://www.un.org/en/sections/issues-depth/human-rights/.