Please spread the word: Solidarity for Roma Settlements in Belgrade

*UNITED (international) neighborhood against racism - action against fencing Roma settlements in Belgrade*

Three months before the opening of the Universiade[1], Belgrade's City Secretariat for Inspections decided to destroy the Roma slum settlement located right next to the athlete's village "Belleville", residential area for athletes built for this occasion. On April the 3rd 2009 all of a suddena couple of bulldozers showed up at the settlement and demolished 40 houses.As a consequence of this, a series of public protests opposing the humiliating policy was organized, and it made a public pressure on the City Secretariat's decision-makers to an extent that they did not dare to terminate what they started: the total erasure of the settlement. The newstrategy is to erase the settlement's visibility and to ban its residents from the streets. On June 16th 2009, a metal fence was built around the settlement. The fence is guarded by police and security staff on both sides, inside and outside the settlement.

We demand that the fence around the Roma settlement in Block 67 is removed IMMEDIATELY. We demand that the City of Belgrade finally assumes its responsibility to improve the unacceptable living conditions of tens of thousands Belgrade citizens who are forced to live in one of theapproximately 150 slum settlements all over the city.

No to ghettoization of our neighborhood “for the benefit of the city”!
No to Universiade or any public event if it is at the expense of human dignity!
No to the authorities that value capital over human life and use racist strategies to manage their policies!Other Scene (Druga scena) and (international) friends Platform of Belgrade independent cultural and activist scene

LINKS:http://www.drugascena.org/http://picasaweb.google.com/jeremic.vladan/NaseljePosleRusenja#5321280137444794258http://www.archive.org/details/BELLEVILLEhttp://www.dur.org.rs/cms/http://www.youtube.com/user/pravonanaseljetv*WE

CALL FOR INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY:*
A) *SIGN THE PETITION*
http://www.petitiononline.com/01101102/petition.html

B) *CONTACT THE FOLLOWING:*(1) Mayor's office of the City of Belgrade; (2) President's Office of the Republic of Serbia; (3) International University Sports Federation (organizing the Universiade in Belgrade); (4) Your nearest Serbian embassy or consulate.

POSSIBLE MODEL FOR THE LETTER:(1)
Mayor's Office:
E-mail: natasa.golubovic@beogradsg.org.yu
Head of Office, tel: 3246-764, 3229-787
tel: 3247-424, tel/fax: 3344-675
Natasa Golubovic
independent expert associate in international affairs

Dear Mr Djilas:I am writing to express my outrage at the recent intensified racist measures implemented by Belgrade authorities. As I am informed, the city authorities built the metal fence around Roma settlements in Block 67, near University village Belville in New Belgrade. This strategy of ghettoisation which triesto erase the settlements' visibility for the benefit of building a beautiful image of the city for Univerziade contest and to ban its residents from the streets is unacceptable.I demand that you take all necessary measurments for removing the fence around the Roma settlements in the Block 67 IMMEDIATELY. As well, I demand that the City of Belgrade finally assumes its responsibility to improve the unacceptable living conditions of tens of thousands Belgrade citizens whoare forced to live in one of the approximately 150 slum settlements all over the city.
Belgrade can not expect to rebrand itself in the eyes of the world by hosting Universiade contests if it is at the expense of human dignity.
I demand that your government respond and meet its obligations under a number of international conventions (Roma Decade is one of them!) and work towards securing the rights of Roma residents instead of deploying fences and police forces to suppress them.

Kind regards,____________

(2) President of the Republic of Serbia:
GENERAL SECRETARIAT OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA
Andricev venac 1, 11000 Beograd, Serbia
tel: +381 (0)11 3632-007, 3632-136
e-mail: kontakt.predsednik@predsednik.rs
www.predsednik.rs

Dear Mr Tadic:
I am writing to express my outrage at the recent intensified racist measures implemented by Belgrade authorities. As I am informed, the city authorities built the metal fence around Roma settlements in Block 67, near University village Belville in New Belgrade. This strategy of ghettoisation which triesto erase the settlements' visibility for the benefit of building a beautiful image of the city for Univerziade contest and to ban its residents from the streets is unacceptable.I demand that you take all necessary measurments for removing the fence around the Roma settlements in the Block 67 IMMEDIATELY. As well, I demand that the City of Belgrade and Serbian government finally assumes its responsibility to improve the unacceptable living conditions of tens ofthousands Belgrade citizens who are forced to live in one of the approximately 150 slum settlements all over the city.
Belgrade can not expect to rebrand itself in the eyes of the world by hosting Universiade contests if it is at the expense of human dignity.
I demand that your government respond and meet its obligations under a number of international conventions (Roma Decade is one of them!) and work towards securing the rights of Roma residents instead of deploying fences and police forces to suppress them.
Kind regards,-------------------------------

3) International University Sports Federation
http://fisu.net/en/Accueil-950.html
e-mail: fisu@fisu.net

Dear Sir/Madame,
I am writing to express my outrage at the recent intensified racist measures implemented by Belgrade authorities before and during Universiade. As I am informed, the city authorities built the metal fence around Roma settlements in Block 67, near University village Belville, new built residential areafor sportsman of Universiade in New Belgrade. This strategy of ghettoisation which tries to erase the settlements' visibility for the benefit of building a beautiful image of the city for Univerziade contest and to ban its residents from the streets is unacceptable.
I demand that you take all necessary measurements to express your disagreement with this racist politics and ask for removing the fence around the Roma settlements in the Block 67 IMMEDIATELY.
Kind regards,________________________________


[1] The Universiade is an international sporting and cultural festival which is staged every two years in a different city and which is second in importance only to the Olympic Games. The word “Universiade” comes from “university” and “Olympiad”, and means Olympic games for students.