A/HRC/4/9/Add.2 page 10 European Union and future Euro-Zone entry, due to persistent discrimination in the labour markets, the Roma will likely be the last to benefit from new employment opportunities. The urgent situation of the Roma warrants continued dedicated attention and funding by Government institutions, sufficient to ensure effective and sustainable solutions. 33. The Independent Expert held a forum for Roma women and interviewed women regarding their experiences and opinions. Women are central to Roma families, bearing much of the burden of childcare and maintaining traditional Roma culture and identity, while also often fashioning coping mechanisms for their families when facing hardship. As such they are deeply affected by the consequences of discrimination and the impact of poverty, and their experiences and voices are vital to understanding the full extent of the problems. Roma women commonly face multiple or “intersectional” forms of discrimination due to their status as both Roma and women. 34. Roma women described concerns related to fundamental issues of hunger, low income, housing, unemployment and their children’s schooling. Other issues such as domestic violence and trafficking were considered important but many expressed their inability to deal adequately with such problems because of the all-consuming demands of day-to-day survival for themselves and their families. When Roma women are victims of domestic violence, discrimination against them as Roma makes unviable the recourse that non-Roma women might have to law enforcement, judicial sanctions or shelters. Access to, and knowledge of services for women remains an important obstacle for Roma women, and blockages in regard to the implementation of national policy at the municipal level exacerbates this. Issues related to child marriage in some sectors of the Romani community, are also lacking adequate policy measures. 35. Roma women are likely to face exclusion from employment opportunities equal to that experienced by Roma men and are further disadvantaged by patriarchal attitudes within the larger society. Women are generally paid less, and for Roma women “the doors are often closed and we are not even able to demonstrate our skills”. During the forum, Roma women highlighted that Roma women with nursing or teaching qualifications, for example, have been unable to find jobs largely due to widespread discrimination. 36. The Independent Expert welcomed the report of Hungary to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 2006. This report highlights the generally disadvantaged situation of Roma women, although regretfully it fails to provide disaggregated data to fully reveal the extent of the problems faced, or to fully elaborate policies and programmes to address the specific needs of Roma women. 37. Within Hungary’s universalist approach to tackling discrimination (avoiding the targeting of special groups), Roma women’s issues fall within broader initiatives in the field of gender. Roma women expressed their view that due to the particular circumstances of discrimination, and multiple-discrimination, such general measures are inadequate to meet their needs. The Independent Expert welcomed new gender initiatives in relation to employment, education, housing, domestic violence and rape, however, she agreed that without a targeted approach these would fail to meet the needs of Roma women.