The police report frightened many Norwegian Roma. – It is absolutely necessary for the authorities to defend us as a national minority, say Sunita Lakatosova and Natalina Janssen.
On Thursday last week, all activities planned for Romano Khair were cancelled. However, the buildings of the Roma Culture and Resource Center in Oslo were full of people.
An information meeting was held about the map of the police room, which was revealed by Aftenposten newspaper.
The general review began with 14 people who had roles in ongoing criminal cases, and was expanded with information about more crimes, according to police. Today it contains information on 655 Norwegians of Roma origin.
The atmosphere in the café is tense and uneasy.
Many of Norway's Roma minority have little education and struggle to read Norwegian newspapers. Therefore, rumors and stories abound about police drawing maps. A photo was shared that someone took of the nearby window, where a man stands behind a camera tripod.
– People are afraid and insecure. They are afraid of their children. They are afraid of what is happening now. Natalina Jansen, head of the Roma Council, says they do not trust Norwegian society.
Natalina Jansen
Leader of the Roma Council
The cell phones of both Janssen and Sunita Lakatosova, Romano Kher's spokeswoman, are ringing and beeping.
– In recent days, people have asked me if they are registered with the police and why, and if the information is shared with the health center and child welfare services, says Lakatosova.
On 5 March, Aftenposten was able to reveal that the Eastern Police District had surveyed more than 650 Norwegians of Roma background. The overview extends to four Norwegian Roma who survived the Holocaust. It also includes children and the deceased.
The Eastern Police District wrote that the overview was “based on a selection of specific criminal cases,” and that it was created “to obtain a specific overview of the overall crime picture.”
“This was an overview based on crime, not race,” wrote the head of the unit in the Eastern Police District, Thomas Sterk, to the newspaper Aftenposten.
Thomas Strong
Acting Head of the Joint Intelligence, Prevention and Investigation Unit of the Sharqia Police Directorate.
– Many of them said they were thinking about leaving
If you run into problems, hitch the horse to the cart and leave. The old proverb used to apply to… NovelsNovelsThe language spoken by the Roma Of the elderly, Janssen says.
– That's why many people said they were thinking about traveling and leaving Norway.
It is also related to the fact that most Norwegian Roma are descendants of Auschwitz survivors. A shock that many still feel.
– You feel the same fear that the family members felt when they were denied entry to Norway in 1934 and persecution increased in Europe. Panic begins.
Lakatosova tries to calm her colleague and others who are afraid and want to separate.
-Nothing comes from running away from problems. We tried that. Now most of us are permanent residents. I work and have children in school. We are Norwegian chambers, and we have rights.
Millions in compensation in Sweden
Lakatosova previously lived in Sweden. In 2013, this was revealed The police in Scania have created an illegal room register With information on 4,741 Swedish Roma.
After an extensive investigation, it was in 2017 It paid 166 million Swedish krona in compensation to everyone who was included on the list. Lakatosova received compensation of NOK 35,000 because she and her children were on the list.
-Do you expect compensation if you are also included in the Eastern Police District Overview?
Compensation is not important now. We are a small, outcast group of people. But we are also a minority that Norwegian society must protect. It is therefore important that the Norwegian authorities take this matter seriously. Now Norway is showing that it has our back.
The Eastern Police District “regrets that this case has caused fear and unrest among a vulnerable minority who are under extreme pressure.”
“It is important for us to emphasize that ethnic or minority affiliation was not a starting point for employment,” Sterk wrote in the Eastern Police District.
The Danish Data Protection Authority is now investigating whether the police record is legal. That's what the police think.
– He described him as a criminal
– The police justify their survey by the fact that there are a lot of crimes linked to some Norwegian Roma families. Isn't that right?
– So you have to ask, is a five-year-old child a criminal? The truth is that there are children and dead people in this record. It has nothing to do with the crime. Lakatosova answers that the issue is about the police creating a registry for a vulnerable population.
– Is it difficult to talk about crime and space?
– Unless I speak for myself. I am not a criminal. Being labeled a criminal is an additional burden, says Natalina Janssen.
Neither she nor Lakatosova knew if they were registered in the Eastern Police District registry.
Aftenposten does not know who is on the list, and the police will not give Aftenposten access to the 88 people listed with their full names and other information. The police will also not answer questions about the number of deaths, children or the number of criminal cases against people registered in the overview.
The police have consistently denied that they created a racial registry.
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