Helsinki street patrol tries to improve life of Eastern European beggars in the capital

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Back in June, the Helsinki Deaconess Institute launched a project entitled Rom po drom - romanit tiellä (”the Roma on the Road”) in cooperation with the City of Helsinki.
     
The goal of the project was to examine how and why migrant beggars from Eastern Europe have come to Finland, to help them in job hunting and to assist them in their distressful life situation in general, as well as to motivate them to return home.
      In practice, the project is conducted by social worker Marjatta Vesalainen and male nurse Tuomo Leinonen, who have now been patrolling the streets of the capital for almost four months.
      When asked whether or not they still have faith in their project, Leinonen says: ”Yes we do. This is the only project under way in this field.”
      ”The problems of the Roma have been kept quiet for many decades, but this work will also continue for dozens of years”, Leinonen notes.
      In addition to beggars, the street patrol has also met rose pedlars and street musicians. So far they have not encountered any of those vendors selling false gold items who are said to have been stopping cars on highways.
      ”The Roma have many ways to survive”, Leinonen concludes.
     
A man with an accordion on his back turns up. He is Nelu Lupu from Bacau in Eastern Romania. The man has come to Finland in order to find some work.
      ”Anything. I could clean, sweep streets, care for cattle”, Lupu responds to a question about his ideal work.
      The beggar patrol of the Helsinki Deaconess Institute has been trying to find jobs for the Roma.
      ”We have taken them to employment offices, phoned poultry farms, piggeries, cattle farms”, reports Vesalainen.
      ”No jobs have been found”, she says.
     
Typical obstacles to finding work include illiteracy as well as lack of language and occupational skills.
      Vesalainen points out that Roma migrants have managed to find work comparatively well for example in Spain, as their native language is a kindred language of Spanish.
      ”Roma can learn how to speak Spanish in a couple of weeks”, Vesalainen adds.
     
Furthermore, the street patrol has helped the beggars in many other ways, for example by escorting them to the pharmacist’s or to see a doctor.
      The Roma have been given food for malnutrition, their messages have been translated into Romanian and into Finnish, they have been given an opportunity to borrow a mobile phone in order to phone their children in Romania, among other things.
      Some people obviously think that this has gone too far.
      ”People seem to be very concerned about the fact that we are helping the Roma. Did they expect that the goal of the project would be to sweep the beggars away from the streets?”
     
With the autumn, the shouting and abuse has been increasing.
      Marjatta Vesalainen says that just recently when she bent down to discuss with a beggar somebody shouted:”Get them the hell out of here!”
      ”A pregnant woman was kicked, when she was on her knees on the ground. She came crying to tell me what had happened”, Vesalainen reports.
      She adds that these beggars have come to Finland as ”they have really miserable circumstances in their native countries”.
      ”Grass will grow on my grave before the problems of the Roma have been solved in Europe”, she predicts.
      Wandering around Europe may even increase the beggars’ misery, as many of them have stayed away from home too long, resulting in a loss of all benefits.
     
The street project is also expected to create some ideas of how to improve the status of the Roma in their native countries, primarily in Romania.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Migrant Roma beggars in centre of Helsinki live in tents under bridge (5.2.2008)
  Finnish Roma and Ministry of Interior knew of influx of Central European beggars in advance (10.1.2008)
  Majority of residents in Helsinki region want to ban begging (7.1.2008)
  Beggars on their knees cause consternation on Helsinki streets (23.10.2007)

Links:
  Helsinki Deaconess Institute
  Rom po drom - romanit tiellä Project (in Finnish)

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