A/HRC/31/CRP.2 13. It should be noted that this workshop builds on existing work by the Federation of the Romani Associations and Kumpanias of the Americas (Saveto Katar le Organizatsi ay Kumpeniyi Rromane and l’Americhi / Consejo de Organizaciones y Kumpeniyi Rom de las Américas, SKOKRA), the network of Latin American Roma activists in the region. 4 One of SKOPRA’s principal documents, the Quito Declaration of 2001, proclaims unity between the distinct Romani kumpanias in the region, and sets out the key principles of the network, as well as requests and recommendations. 5 III. Key human rights issues facing Roma in Latin America 14. In the Americans region, Roma communities are among the most discriminated against, socially and economically marginalized, and politically subordinated members of the societies in which they live.6 Nonetheless, despite this concerning reality, the situation of Roma in the Americas remains largely invisible.7 In general, very little is known about the Roma communities and the challenges they face. With a small number of recent exceptions, few official policies or programmes exist in the region dedicated to promoting and protecting Roma rights.8 Moreover, the identity of Roma as a distinct minority group is often either not acknowledged or misunderstood. Indeed, there is little public recognition or acceptance of Roma as a distinct minority in the countries of the Americas. This situation is compounded by the fact that Roma identity is largely not reflected in national statistics, and Roma are rarely given opportunities to participate in the political life of the countries in which they live. This invisibility contributes to a vicious circle of marginalization and exclusion, and leads to neglect by the authorities and policymakers. 15. While each Roma community faces specific concerns and challenges in its own national context, the workshop highlighted for the Special Rapporteur the overlaps in terms of the human rights challenges that Roma communities face in the Americas. The Special Rapporteur noted the pressing need to address these concerns, which are often very similar to those issues faced by Roma people in other parts of the world, including in Europe. A. Lack of accurate data 16. Even though they are a minority group with a distinct identity and culture, very little is known about the situation of Roma in many countries of the region. In this connection, all the participants expressed concern about the lack of reliable data and official statistics on the size of Roma populations and their socio-economic situation. 17. The Government of Argentina estimates that there is a population of approximately 300,000 Roma in Argentina, made up of different groups and subgroups with distinct 4 5 6 7 8 Kumpania is a Romani language word meaning a group of Roma who have economic relations and are organized on a residential basis; a grouping together of families not necessarily united by kinship ties, but all belonging to the same group and the same subgroup, or to related subgroups. The Declaration is available from http://liloro.ru//romanes/declaration_eng.htm. See A/HRC/29/24, paras 8–9. Druzhemira Tchileva, ‘Emerging Romani Voices from Latin America’, European Roma Rights Centre, 27 May 2004, available from http://www.errc.org/article/emerging-romani-voices-from-latinamerica/1847. For a general discussion see Jorge Bernal, ‘The Rom in the Americas’, Paper presented to the SubCommission on Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, Working Group on Minorities, ninth session, 12–16 May 2003, E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.5/2003/WP.17, http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/E/SUBCOM/other/E-CN_4-SUB_2-AC_5-2003-WG_17.pdf. 5