Sweden should compensate Roma for long term abuse says religious statesman

Sweden should formally apologize for abuses incurred on its Roma populace over 100 years and compensate them adequately, religious statesman Rajan Zed (pictured) said in Nevada (US) on 10 April.

Zed, who is president of the Universal Society of Hinduism, said that the White Paper on abuses and rights violations of Roma, published by the Swedish government on 25 March, clearly admitted mapping of Roma and assigning them codes, singling out Roma for sterilization, identifying them "as an undesirable group in society and a burden", taking custody of their children, placing an entry ban on them as "Roma did not fit into society", not registering Roma in censuses, placing Roma children in remedial or special needs classes and obstructing opportunities for Roma to support themselves and then blaming them for their own situation.

All this had made life for the Roma populace in Sweden very difficult, Zed said. Although apology and compensation would not bring the years back that they suffered under apartheid-like conditions in Sweden, they would at least be a step in the right direction and towards healing, he argued.

Zed, however, thanked the Swedish government and its Integration Minister Erik Ullenhag for drawing up the White Paper “highlighting the abuses the Roma have suffered” and “showing how stereotypes and prejudices have developed and been passed down from generation to generation, and how this has formed the basis of government policy”.

Zed also urged the national church, Church of Sweden and its Archbishop of Uppsala Most Reverend Anders Harald Wejryd, to push for a national apology and compensation for Roma sufferings. Zed asked other countries of Europe to also publish similar White Papers, to admit how the Roma had suffered apartheid-like conditions over the years.

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