In his statement, Iñaki Vázquez called for a consensus-based approach and for the development of proposals in line with the policy frameworks for the Rroma People agreed at European level and in many regions governed by parties of the same political persuasion as that of the Community of Madrid
On 6 October 2025, our colleague Iñaki Vázquez Arencón appeared before the Committee on Family and Social Affairs of the Madrid Assembly to present some of the key findings arising from the work carried out as part of the Inter-Regional Rroma Strategic Forum (FEIG) project, which addresses the implementation of the National Roma Strategy from a regional perspective.
In his speech, Iñaki highlighted the strategic setback that the scrapping of the Madrid Strategy for the Rroma People would entail, given that the Community of Madrid serves as a model for the whole of Spain; this could be a cause for serious concern regarding the effectiveness and efficiency of public policies aimed at the Rroma Community. Furthermore, this decision would distance Madrid from European strategies and those of other autonomous communities, many of which are governed by the same party that holds the presidency in Madrid.
The view shared by many of the social and political actors involved in this field prior to 2020 was that it had been demonstrated that policies addressing the need for social inclusion were not accompanied by anti-discrimination strategies, primarily to tackle the consequences of antigypsyism and others focused on the disadvantages caused by gender in our society, which place Rroma women at absolutely alarming rates in almost every field.
Iñaki Vázquez urged the political parties supporting the government in the Community of Madrid to reconsider the announced measure and to publish the evaluation of the previous plan, which expired in 2021, as well as the assessment commissioned from a company—the results of which they have been promising to release for the past two years. To this end, he proposed that, in the interests of consensus, the Rroma Community Dialogue Forum – a participatory body that has been virtually paralysed for many months – be reactivated so that it can fulfil the role for which it was created: to promote the participation of the Rroma civil society in the Community of Madrid.
Part one of Iñaki Vázquez’s testimony:
Speech by Samuel Escudero León, a Romani MP from the Más Madrid parliamentary group in the Madrid Assembly:
Iñaki Vázquez’s response to the speeches by the parliamentary groups in the Madrid Assembly:
The FEIG project is organising a superb debate at the Parliament of Navarre, with the invaluable support of the Gaz Kaló Federation, which is hosting the event
On 26 March 2025, the Parliament of Navarre hosted a conference on theImpact of Strategies for the Rroma People in Navarre, organised as part of the 2025 Inter-Regional Roma Strategic Forum (FEIG 2025). This is a pilot project funded by the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and the 2030 Agenda, which aims to contribute to the implementation, monitoring and follow-up of the National Strategy for the Equality, Inclusion and Participation of the Rroma People 2021–2030 from a regional perspective.
The conference was opened by the President of the Parliament of Navarre, Unai Hualde, who noted that “the Rromani People and Navarre share centuries of history and coexistence, and it is only in recent parliamentary terms that a specific strategy has been developed for the advancement of the Romani community, taking a cross-cutting approach to both the issues involved and the stakeholders involved”.
“Events such as this should serve to analyse the progress and results achieved through the work of the institutions and Rroma associations in our region, whilst also providing an insight into the work being carried out at national level and in other regions,” said Hualde.
Inés Jiménez, Director-General for Social Protection and Development Cooperation at the Government of Navarre, went on to state that “the Strategy for the Development of the Roma Community in Navarre, despite having been drawn up before the National Strategy, shares its structure with the latter through three main pillars: equal treatment, inclusion and the Roma community’s participation in society”.
For his part, Fabián Daniel Sánchez, a representative of FEIG, thanked Parliament for being “the first legislative chamber in the country to host a conference organised by the Forum itself”.
“As we mark the 600th anniversary of the arrival of the Rroma in Spain in 2025, we must highlight the undeniable contributions our people have made to Spanish society as a whole, but we also need to make a stand that will help us make progress towards equal opportunities,” he said.
“We have been living, working, dreaming and building this land for 600 years. Let’s make Navarre a community free from antigypsyism,” he concluded.
Finally, Pascuala Amador, from Gaz Kaló, acknowledged “antigypsyism as one of the scourges from which the Rroma People suffers most”, which is why she called for “strategies to be turned into useful tools not only for the Rroma community itself, but also for public authorities and society as a whole”.
This was followed by an introduction to the Inter-Regional Rroma Strategic Forum, focusing on aligning regional strategies with the National Strategy and the European Framework for the Equality, Inclusion and Participation of the Rroma People (2021–2030). The presentation was led by Bianca Elena Galusca, from the Federation of Rroma Associations of Catalonia (FAGIC), and Iñaki Vázquez, representative of La Fragua Projects (LFP).
This was followed by a round-table discussion on the main findings of the evaluation of the Rroma Strategy in Navarre, which, moderated by Víctor Sánchez (UPNA), facilitated an exchange of views between the Regional Government’s Department of Social Rights, Social Economy and Employment, civil society organisations in Navarre and parliamentary groups.
In addition, a participatory debate was held by the Assembly of the Inter-Regional Rroma Strategic Forum (FEIG).
Finally, the event was brought to a close by Fabián Daniel Sánchez, representing the National Association for the Presence of the Rroma (ANPG).
Note from La Fragua Projects: The participation of civil society representatives was also particularly noteworthy, and they highlighted the need to take decisive and coordinated action alongside migrant, refugee, Rroma and racialised communities in order to tackle far more effectively the structural disadvantages they face – disadvantages that can only be reversed through public policy.
Source: Parliament of Navarre and La Fragua Projects Photos: Miguel Oses (Parliament of Navarre)
Throughout 2024, this alliance of Rroma organisations has been driving the ‘2024 Inter-Regional Rroma Strategic Forum (FEIG 2024)’ project, which has analysed the implementation of the National Rroma Strategy across the autonomous communities. This project stems from the need to address this issue, as the National Strategy is a plan promoted by the Central Government, but it is the Autonomous Communities that hold the majority of the powers covered by that plan. This is a structural difficulty that FEIG 2024 (and future editions) aims to alleviate through spaces for deliberation and group discussions with a high level of participation.
In this first year, due to the limited funding received through the national personal income tax scheme administered by the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and the 2030 Agenda, the focus has been on three regions of particular importance to the Rroma People: Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid. This decision follows a series of discussions and analyses with experts, representatives of Rroma and pro-Rroma organisations, and prominent activists.
Furthermore, the FEIG 2024 project has also carried out various training initiatives for the Rroma and pro-Rroma civil society on the analysis of public policy and the need to implement social and political advocacy initiatives.
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