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4.1.4.2 Attempts at Creating Systematic Forms of Victim Assistance
Association of Roma in Poland: Between Victim Assistance and Inter-group Mediation
The Association of Roma provides civic and legal counseling to the community. This includes, for example, cases of discrimination against Roma survivors of Nazi concentration camps who have been excluded from the national insurance system. There have been over 30 such cases in the courts thus far. Whenever necessary, social interventions are undertaken thanks to the clear line of communication between Roma people and the association’s leaders. When cases of racist violence occur, the association intervenes on behalf of the Roma community, talking with the local government, police and prosecutors. Roman Kwiatkowski, the association’s president, refers to this informal yet direct system of in-group self-help as the »Roma Internet,« albeit in a somewhat humorous way (see Ch. 4.1.3.2.1).
An important part of assisting recent or potential victims of hate crimes is the attempt to prevent possible conflicts or to mediate in crisis situations. Kwiatkowski is frequently involved in such crisis talks with local community representatives. In one example, the Association of Roma in Poland was asked to intervene in the town of Brzeg, where anti-Roma riots took place. The Roma community in Brzeg is very orthodox and closed off from the rest of the community. To add to their social isolation, the local government is not interested in supporting any minority groups that live there. The attacks began on 1 January 2008 when a Roma resident of Brzeg had to defend himself against three aggressive men, sparking violent attacks by local neo-Fascists. According to Roma residents, 50 people invaded the home of the man who had been assaulted on 7 January, demanding that he leave. The following night a smaller group threw Molotov cocktails on top of the building causing a fire. Despite the police’s quick reaction, the attackers managed to escape. On 9 January more attacks took place, and police arrested eight alleged perpetrators. One of the Roma residents of Brzeg reported that the perpetrators »announced that they would bring skinheads from Wrocław, Oława and Opole. They demanded 10,000 zlotys from us in return for leaving us alone.« (4) Kwiatkowski describes the situation as an impasse: » There is a wall on both sides-these [people] are afraid and those [people] are not interested.« On the one hand, city residents hold very stereotypical views of Roma people; on the other, the Roma community does not trust the local government. Roman Kwiatkowski had a meeting with the mayor of Brzeg and hopes that things have changed for the better since his visit.
The Association of Roma in Poland makes an effort to cooperate with the police; however, the Roma frequently need assistance in dealing with law enforcement rather than simply needing police help. As Kwiatkowski said:
»We’ve had many reservations about how the police react [and] how they intervene. They often do not come when dispatched or just leave the scene of an attack on Roma people without investigation. […] People are afraid, flee their own houses; they leave them because they know that the authorities will do nothing to make them feel safe. […]The situation has changed a bit. The police have become more sensitive, but we still see some problems we have to deal with. The police make many mistakes when it comes to dealing with the Roma community; in some cases [the police] are even committing crimes. […] When the Roma report to us that they are discriminated against, we investigate why and then issue our opinion on that subject. […] There is so-called hidden discrimination and we are not able to root it out. […] Ordinary people work for the police, with a variety of attitudes and views.«
The Association of Roma would like to see an increase in education about their group within local police departments in cities and villages where discrimination frequently occurs. Because the association has gained leverage in Poland as a Romani advocacy group, they have been instrumental in raising awareness about these issues in some Polish communities and have succeeded in mediating between the Roma and state institutions or the non-Roma population. The Roma communities’ awareness and trust in the association and its unique situation as a respected advocate for Romani rights within Polish institutions may open up doors in the future for systematically monitoring crimes against this group. In the meantime, their promotion of Romani interests will most certainly help to advance Polish society’s understanding of the Roma in Poland.
LGBT Organizations: Community-based Victim Support
Institutional assistance has been organized by two of the interviewed LGBT organizations. Psychological and legal counseling is provided by the Campaign Against Homophobia and Lambda Warsaw. According to Robert Biedroń of the Campaign Against Homophobia, the organization has »a very strong group of lawyers,« including three full-time lawyers on duty who help people in specific cases. The organization assigns legal representatives who act in the court as a »court friend,« which is the institutionalized way of taking action in court as a nongovern- mental organization (see Chapter 2). Mr. Biedroń acknowledges that many cases of violence against homosexuals are reported.Marta Abramowicz stresses the importance of reporting hate crime incidents to law enforcement officers. In fact, persons who are victims of hate crimes and seek help from the Campaign Against Homophobia are usually advised to contact the police. As Abramowicz says, »If such incidents are not reported to the police, there is nothing that can be done about them in a legal sense.« A criminal investigation is required before the wrong-doers can be prosecuted or the victim is eligible for compensation. Also, despite large-scale monitoring of hate crime against homosexuals and bisexuals (see victimization surveys discussed in Section 4.1.3.2.3), there is no direct link between monitoring and assisting victims in particular cases: »As far as the report is concerned, these data are anonymous, whereas the civil rights ombudsman and the police need cases with specific names in order to start working on them and hand them over to the court. […] Of course, not many people decide to do it [i.e. report the case to the police or prosecutor’s office].« Monitoring activities have no legal repercussions beyond laying the groundwork for local and institutional mobilization over the long term. However, the victim’s cooperation with law enforcement helps result in prosecution for the crime. According to Abramowitz, the majority of victims do not report cases to the police or the prosecutor’s office. Lambda Warsaw seems even more focused on providing assistance and support to the LGBT community. Yet the field of hate crimes is not the main domain of their activity. It runs many support groups specialized in subjects addressing various interests among different LGBT groups and their families. Krzysztof Kliszczyñski, a member of the Lambda association, explains that the organization’s specific profile, in-community psychological support groups, does not leave much space for specialized assistance in hate crimes:
»If it is a case of breaking the law, they [victims] ask for direct contact with a lawyer. The person does not have to say what the problem is. We have regular meetings with a lawyer once or twice a month. […] We are not an organization perceived as fighting against social discrimination. We are the institution bringing help to homosexual persons. […] When somebody calls with the information that she or he has lost their job and wonders what to do, we do not talk about legal but only psychological aspects of the problem.«
Lambda concentrates on providing psychological and/or legal help as needed. Therefore it seems that even though LGBT organizations in Poland show a relatively high level of awareness as far as hate crimes are concerned, this type of work still need to be further developed and improved to create better established programs or assistance networks.
Association for Crisis Intervention: Reaching Out to Victims
The Association for Crisis Intervention was established eighteen years ago and since its inception, has carried out numerous projects. One of its sources of information include people who come to their office to consult a lawyer or a psychologist. Information comes also from minority groups with whom the association’s staff talks when carrying out particular projects, as well as from stories told by participants of anti-discrimination workshops. The Association for Crisis Intervention has never received an institutional grant, and as a consequence has no full-time personnel. The office maintenance cost and all operational expenses are covered by project funds. The crisis intervention-oriented monitoring focuses on groups such as Roma, refugees, female victims of domestic violence, as well as homosexual persons. Ms. Lipowska-Teutsch admits:
»We certainly haven’t reached all groups exposed to violence. Another such a group is people suffering from AIDS. The oppression is so intensive that they are hidden somewhere. There are organizations that help them, but everything is concealed so the neighbors won’t attack them.«
She also said that at times homeless people have sought help from the Association for Crisis Intervention, but the organization did not work with them on a daily basis. The crisis intervention team goes mostly to visit Roma settlements in the Małopolska region.
»The Roma say that they are attacked by skinheads, mostly young men. The police […] say that the Roma are inclined to call all bachelors with short hair skinheads, even those who are not an organized group. Roma respondents complain about arson attacks, home intrusions, taunts in the street and so on. […] Roma people are not let into restaurants, shops; video stores refuse to rent to them. When Roma visited us to take part in a workshop at the »From the Roma Perspective Project,« they were accosted every time. Getting on a bus [they heard insults like:] ‘stinkers’ and ‘niggers.’ […] Roma women […] told us they had been attacked at the train station by an elderly woman when they wanted to use the public toilet. She was shouting some insults at them and pushed them.«
The crisis intervention team helps to negotiate a compromise between antagonistic groups. Organizing meetings and discussions may help in various difficult social situations. The association intervened in a case of an Armenian who lived in a small Polish town and ran a small business. He complained that the police and local authorities persecuted him, but what hurt him the most was the fact that the local media called him a »Muslim« and an »Al-Qaida ally.« The Association for Crisis Intervention provided him with legal help and organized a workshop about hate crimes and the mass murder of Armenians. Many teachers, policemen and representatives of local authorities took part in it. The other example of such an intervention was a discussion organized by the association when two German citizens of Polish origin were accused of offending religious feelings and were kept in custody for several months. The association organized a discussion around the question »Is Kraków a Religious City? And if Yes, What Religion is It?« The event drew a number of prominent scholars as well as clergymen.
The Association for Crisis Intervention also spearheaded the project »This is Our Case,« aimed at encouraging Roma women to take part in the process of getting the Roma community out of isolation and oppression. Roma, especially the women, are very often unaware of social programs offered by some organizations. Individuals, working for non-governmental organizations and not necessarily representing these groups, make decisions about how money from these projects is being spent.
»It’s necessary to go and talk, answer questions, give examples, think over what are the consequences [of a discussed project] for a specific family or a settlement. A big part of the Roma community is attached to oral communication. To gather reliable data about oppression of minority groups, one should behave in a culturally adequate way […], to earn trust and encourage people not to be afraid to talk about what has hurt them.« (5)
4. Nigdy Więcej. Katalog Wypadków Brunatna Księga; Nigdy Więcej, Nr. 17, zima-wiosna 2009, p. 93. See also: Gazeta Wyborcza, 16 Jan 2008; Nowa Trybuna Opolska, 16 Jan 2008.
5. Interview with the Association for Crisis Intervention (Anna Lipowska-Teutsch).
(OPP)
