Gypsy distrust of governments is an obstacle to the recovery of COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic

While countries across Europe are working against each other to inject their populations against COVID-19 in hopes of controlling the spread of the deadly virus and restoring a sense of normalcy, there is a risk of falling already vulnerable and marginalized gypsy communities. .

There are more than 12 million gypsies in Europe, making up the largest minority on the continent. In some European countries, such as Slovakia, Hungary and Bulgaria, gypsies make up almost 10% of the population. Therefore, if Europe wants to defeat COVID-19, it is essential that gypsy communities be vaccinated.

However, mistrust rooted in public institutions has led many gypsies across the continent to be denied the vaccine. In fact, only nine percent of Hungarian gypsies and 11.5 percent of Northern Macedonians say they plan to get COVID-19 vaccine when it is available.

The threat of vaccination doubts among gypsies is a threat to the well-being of this long-suffering minority group, as well as to all Europeans. If a significant number of gypsies refuse to be vaccinated, the virus can spread widely in our communities, and new, more contagious and deadly variants can be created. This would be a risk for us, the gypsies, but also for Europe and the world.

To avoid this scenario, European governments need to address the three causes of vaccine doubt in gypsy communities quickly and effectively.

The first cause of these is the collective experience of neglect. Governments across the continent have long refused to listen to the desperate demands of our people for basic public services such as clean drinking water, access to health and housing. As a result of this indifference and neglect, gypsies cannot be protected against COVID-19; it has been almost impossible to stop the spread of the virus in homes and settlements that are overcrowded without the need for water, sanitation and electricity. Many gypsies are being suspected of being vaccinated by governments that have long refused to respect their most basic rights.

The second reason for the gypsy question among gypsies is the mistreatment they have suffered for decades at the hands of European health organizations. Gypsy women in Europe, for example, have been in compulsory sterilization for more than 50 years in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Therefore, it is not surprising that many Roman women fear that the COVID-19 vaccine offered to them will be another sterilization tool and refuse to take it.

And the treatment of Roma by European health organizations is also not limited to the field of reproductive health. A Gallup study commissioned by the Roma Open Initiatives Office (RIO) in Northern Macedonia, Bulgaria, Italy, Romania and the Serbian Open Society against about 44 percent of medical professionals in those countries is against gypsies. In addition, 38% of the medical professionals who took part in the survey said they support the separation of gypsy patients from the north. Meanwhile, more than one in 10 have reported that they are aware that some colleagues treat sick gypsies with less respect. Gypsies, who over the years have been subjected to the usual discrimination of public health providers, now refuse to participate in promoting the COVID-19 vaccine.

The third reason behind the high levels of doubt about the vaccine among European gypsies is the racially motivated violence we have long experienced on the continent. Gypsies in Europe still remember the genocide that our communities suffered during World War II. Moreover, we are still facing state-sanctioned violence, arbitrary arrests, forced and illegal releases and ill-treatment by security forces in many European countries, including Bulgaria and Hungary, Italy and Serbia.

As a result, the interactions that many gypsies in Europe have had with governments have always arisen as a result of oppression, discrimination, and violence, and the COVID-19 vaccine may be subject to conspiracy theories about what it calls a “deadly tool for population control”.

To convince the gypsy community to get vaccinated, these three problems rooted in European governments need to be recognized and addressed. And they must also accept that communication, not intensive force, is a way to change the attitude of gypsies towards vaccines. Actions by the hard government, such as restricting the movement of unincorporated people or excluding them from the labor market, would worsen the situation.

Prior to COVID-19, European gypsy communities were already struggling on the margins of society. The pandemic, however, turned our situation into a humanitarian disaster. For gypsies in Europe, life is harder and harder than ever now. Many gypsy children who were able to go to school before the pandemic were significantly blocked from doing so – unable to participate in distance learning because they did not have access to computers, the internet and reliable electricity. Some of them never reach out to their most privileged members, or even drop out of school. Gypsies who worked in street markets, agriculture, tourism, arts and entertainment before the pandemic are also in dire straits. Without government support, they may never be able to regain their base.

Without the vaccine, gypsies would not be able to leave the pandemic behind and start rebuilding their lives.

Gypsies from civilian groups across Europe are campaigning to raise awareness and convince gypsy communities that COVID-19 vaccines would not harm but help them. Opre Roma in Serbia, Avaja in Northern Macedonia and Aresel in Romania are working with the Roman media and medical professionals to deal with misinformation.

But civil society organizations cannot solve this problem on their own. We must also respect governments, public institutions and cultural figures and religious leaders to address gypsies directly and help alleviate concerns and suspicions about the vaccine.

Gypsy communities are hesitant to get vaccinated because they do not trust governments and health care organizations. So the problem can be solved in a lasting way if European governments take the necessary measures to address the root causes of our collective pain and anger.

We have seen limited and short-term – but hopeful – progress in the Western Balkans. For example, Montenegro and Serbia have provided critical assistance to gypsy communities during the pandemic, such as water, food and disinfectants. On the other hand, Bosnia and Herzegovina provided technical facilities and extracurricular assistance to Roma children to further their education. The Albanian government provided temporary financial assistance to the gypsies as a result of their indebtedness. They are small steps in the right direction.

But these temporary aids will not get us out of this pandemic, nor will it end the suffering of our communities. To ensure the success of COVID-19 vaccination campaigns and the well-being of gypsies, governments need to make bolder moves and implement long-term policies to rebuild gypsy confidence in governments.

It is an easy choice for European governments today: either they will increase the distrust of gypsies in public institutions by continuing their business as usual, or they will begin to build a new dialogue and relationship with our communities, constantly providing the support and support we need.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the attitude of the Al Jazeera editorial.