'There is No Other,' Roma people to say in upcoming symposium

Ali Daylam, a renowned name in working to better the lives of Roma people in Turkey, talked to Hürriyet Daily News before the International Roma Symposium to be held in Ankara on Oct. 22?The problems facing the Roma people in Turkey could be clustered under four headlines: Housing, employment, health and education. These four headlines are intertwined so much that they affect one another, hence the lives of Roma people, through a vicious circle,? said Ali Daylam, a renowned name in working to better the lives of Roma people in Turkey, when speaking to Hürriyet Daily News before the International Roma Symposium to be held in Ankara on Oct. 22.

Daylam is the president of the Mediterranean Roma Associations Federation, as well as the Roma Education, Culture, Folklore and Sports Association (Romklüp). For Daylam, the problems begin at a very early age for the Roma people, of whom only a staggering 0.2 percent are university graduates. ?Many young people leave schools at different stages. The reasons are discrimination they face at schools and economic insufficiency,? said Daylam.

Many young people, even children, have to contribute to the household economy in Roma communities. ?They collect garbage with their families, or put their musical talent to use for daily jobs,? said Daylam. ?That?s why most of the Roma people work without any social security, hence do not have access to health services. This creates a vicious circle, where they have to continue living poor and isolated lives, unable to change their lives as they cannot acquire the intellectual and economic powers to do so.?

The upcoming symposium is the final event in the ?There is No ?Other?? project, run by Romklüp, and supported by the European Commission?s...