Beyond the charts and graphs presented below, this exploratory demographic survey reveals a tragic tale of a people who have in the seven centuries since their first arrival in Kosovo been the target of the most pernicious forms of racism. More recently, the plight of the Roma has escalated to a story of terror, unwanted flight, destroyed homes, broken families, lack of access to the necessary means for survival, and lack of official recognition. The civic invisibility of the Roma poses the greatest danger to this ethnic minority population, for it is impossible to alleviate or at least mitigate these realities without acknowledgement from groups in power.

The punishing wounds of racism inflicted on the Roma in Kosovo and their brethren across Europe stem from persistent stereotypes of "Gypsies" (a pejorative term) as being a nomadic, criminal and unclean race. These negative stereotypes, many of which are transmitted through folklore, children’s tales and media depictions, continue to damn the Roma to a sub-human status; their plight made unworthy of international attention.

These stereotypes pervade the minds of people at the official level as well, often resulting in obstacles to Roma receiving vitally needed humanitarian aid. For example, when an official with an Italian aid agency under contract with the UNHCR was asked to provide clean water for drinking and cooking to Roma in Obilic, Kosovo, the official said he failed to see any urgency in this request because Roma have been "used to" surviving in conditions of squalor for centuries anyway. The request was then taken directly to a UNHCR official and was met with a similar reply.¹

Voice of Roma hopes that a thorough reading of this report will result in a concerted effort to counter the stereotypes and discrimination that have prevented the Roma from receiving the humanitarian aid and other forms of assistance they urgently need. A new attitude on the part of governmental and nongovernmental agencies could finally, for the first time, welcome and create a safe environment for Roma to participate in the creation of a civil, multi-ethnic society in Kosovo. Only then can policies be designed and programs implemented that provide Roma with the tools they need to become permanent, active, and respected citizens in the new Kosovo.

It would be difficult to find someone better suited to the complex task of chronicling the current plight of the Roma of Kosovo than Paul Polansky. For nearly a decade, Polansky has labored to draw attention to the terrible plight of Roma throughout Eastern Europe. He spent much of the early 1990s interviewing and documenting the stories of Romani victims of the Holocaust in the Czech Republic, and later became a researcher, United Nations advisor on Romani issues, and advocate for the Roma in Kosovo. Polansky has won the trust of Eastern European Romani communities who have for good historical reasons kept the prying eyes of outsiders at bay. In 1999, Polansky was sponsored by the Society for Threatened People International to report on the situation facing Roma in the aftermath of the NATO war against Serbia. Polansky traveled to approximately 300 villages and his initial findings were published in The Gypsies of Kosova: A Survey of Their Communities After the War.² This study builds upon Polansky’s earlier findings. On behalf of and with funding from Voice of Roma in the Summer of 2001, Polansky again traveled to Kosovo and Macedonia to collect information on the Romani situation, deliver humanitarian aid and assistance, as well as facilitate programs designed to help Roma become self-sufficient.