Press Release: Council of Europe Deputy Secretary General concerned at mounting anti-Gypsy feelings in Europe

In a statement on the occasion of International Roma Day (8 April), Council of Europe Deputy Secretary General Maud de Boer-Buquicchio has encouraged the continent's many Roma and Traveller populations to 'take control of their own destiny' by spearheading moves to improve their living conditions, which are the result of centuries of rejection and discrimination. This day is the anniversary of the First International Roma Congress, which took place in London in 1971 and is seen as the beginning of a co-ordinated effort to promote the rights and interests of Roma people at an international level.