The European Commission decided Wednesday that it will take legal action against France over the expulsion of more than 1,000 people of Roma ethnicity, also known as Gypsies.
The commission held a meeting to discuss the overall welfare of Roma people and whether EU law, which guarantees free movement of EU citizens within the union, is being fairly implemented by member nations.
"France is not enforcing European law on free movement as it should, so we are launching an infringement process against France," said EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding, France 24 reported. “If France changes its laws quickly, we will stop this procedure,” she added.
In an earlier interview with the BBC on Sept. 14 about the expulsions, Reding said, "This is not a minor offense in a situation of this importance. After 11 years of experience in the commission, I even go further: this is a disgrace."
The law guaranteeing the rights of EU citizens to move freely within the territory of the EU member states was adopted in 2004.
Nearly 1,000 Roma were expelled last month from France and returned to their previous countries of residence, Romania and Bulgaria. There is concern that Roma from other countries are also being sent to the two Baltic nations.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has blamed them for the increase in the country's crime rate, and demolished dozens of makeshift camps where the Roma lived. France's new security measures came after several clashes between Roma rioters and police.
At that time President Sarkozy said that the Roma “problem” threatens public order and safety and ordered the disbandment of 300 Roma camps. A French government memo leaked earlier this month, signed by the chief of staff for France's Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux, stated, "Three hundred camps or illegal settlements must be cleared within three months; Roma camps are a priority."
About 12 million Roma live in the territory of the 27 member states of the European Union. According to Romani.org, a website about the Roma people, the Roma are descendants of people from northern India who emigrated to Europe approximately 1,000 years ago, and they have often been the targets of prejudice and persecution.
Historians estimate that more than 500,000 Roma were killed by the Nazis during World War II.
