Italian Roma resettlement plans 'major human rights breach'

Hundreds of Roma people could be left homeless by Italian plans to forcibly evict them, a new report from Amnesty International UK has claimed.

The report by the human rights group warned that the proposals to evict 6,000 Roma could leave up to 1,000 without a home.

Under the controversial measures which came into force in June 2009 a hundred Roma settlements are set to be demolished leaving 6,000 Roma in need of resettlement.

Amnesty's report, which argues the plan violates Romas' human rights, suggests the 6,000 are to be resettled into just 13 camps on the outskirts of Rome and that the resettlement is going ahead without adequate consultation.

Between 12,000 and 15,000 Roma are estimated to be living in and around Rome. Many have residence permits and many Roma children hold Italian citizenship.

Recent attempts in Italy to address perceived security threats, including those supposedly posed by the presence of Roma communities in cities, have resulted in local authorities taking a number of measures that have contributed to the stigmatisation of Roma living in the country.

In particular forced evictions have become more frequent. In the last few months hundreds of Roma families have already been evicted from at least five different camps.

Ignacio Jovtis, Amnesty International's expert on Italy, said: "These measures must be scrapped immediately. Roma families across the Italian capital now face losing their possessions, their social contacts, their access to work and to state services."

He added: "There is also a risk that if the plan is implemented it could be used as a blueprint for forced evictions in other Italian regions. Evictions without prior consultation and the offer of adequate alternative accommodation to all of those affected are a violation of human rights."