Moving south from Sweden, where elections today will determine whether Sweden’s open door policy toward immigrants and refugees will continue, to France and Germany where a dispute has grown between the two countries about what to do with the Roma (also known as gypsies).
From the New York Times:
BERLIN — European tempers over the treatment of Roma immigrants flared again on Friday, as President Nicolas Sarkozy of France said the Germans were preparing to follow France’s lead and expel migrant Roma, while German officials denied they had said any such thing.
The altercation marked a significant widening of the diplomatic repercussions spreading across Europe after France in July began deporting Roma to their homes in Romania and Bulgaria.
Read on.
Is this just one more example of the growing rise in ethnic nationalism?
Look for the Roma to appear soon on the list as refugees being resettled in the US. Afterall, there are lots of precidents. How is this attempt by France to keep France for the French any different than the Bhutanese wanting Bhutan for the Bhutanese? When Bhutan expelled the Nepalese and sent them back to Nepal, we scurried in (critical of Bhutan) and promised to take 60,000! (See the latest post here at RRW on how many have arrived.) One could say Burma has done the same—expelled those it believes not to be truly Burmese. Now we take their minorities. So, will the Roma be next? Just wondering.