Iulia Motoc on racism, freedom of travel and human rights

Writing in the weekly magazine Revista 22 Iulia Motoc sees a connection between the introduction of freedom of travel and the discrimination of the Roma: "The freedom to travel to Western Europe triggered racist reactions in all Eastern European states, where the Roma minority makes up an average of five percent of the population - reactions against a community that began to emigrate to Western Europe by the thousands. This led to diverse protective measures. … One example was the reintroduction of visas in Slovakia prior to EU membership. I see the way this discriminatory policy is being legitimised in Romania as problematic and unique. We are against political correctness, which many see as the West's most absurd code of conduct. There is great confusion regarding respecting human rights and political correctness. And worse still, there is a total lack of debate on human rights. The return to racist discourse, to discrimination and persecution of any type is a renunciation of European culture, which is based on respect for human rights. But … many Eastern European states recognised only after accession how difficult it is to implement such standards."

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