The Equality Authority welcomes reports from Geneva today that the Government is considering recognising the minority ethnic status of the Traveller Community. “The Equality Authority is heartened by this new approach to the recognition of the status of the Traveller Community by the Government and commends Minister Shatter’s initiative in this important area of concern. The Authority looks forward to continued progress on the recognition of the many diverse groups, families, communities and people, by the State, and the subsequent entitlement to equal treatment for all who live and participate in Irish society today” stated Angela Kerins, Chairperson.

The recognition of Traveller ethnicity has significant practical implications in the promotion of equality of opportunity for Travellers and in the elimination of discrimination experienced by Travellers.

These practical implications include:

– International agreements and EU legislation will not name specific ethnic groups from particular States within their provisions on ethnicity. Traveller ethnicity needs to be recognised to ensure Travellers can enjoy the protections and benefits that flow from these agreements and this legislation alongside other ethnic groups;

– Traveller ethnicity is a key factor that has to be taken into account in identifying and responding to the needs of the Traveller community. Culture and identity will shape the needs of a group. Policies and programmes that respond to needs will only be effective to the extent that they take into account the culture and identity of the group concerned;

– Equality is not only concerned with access to resources or access to decision making. The achievement of equality must involve access to recognition, status and standing in society and to relationships of respect, care and solidarity. The recognition of Traveller ethnicity is central to any equality of status or standing for the Traveller community. The recognition of Traveller ethnicity also provides the basis for new relationships of respect, care and solidarity between the Traveller and settled communities.

Notes for Editors

The Equality Authority has a broad statutory mandate to promote equality of opportunity and to combat discrimination in the areas covered by the Employment Equality Acts 1998 and 2011 and the Equal Status Acts 2000 to 2011.

The Equality Authority is the specialised body for the promotion of equal treatment on the grounds of racial or ethnic origin within the meaning of Article 13 of the ‘Race’ Directive and also on the ground of gender under the amended Gender Equal Treatment Directive of the European Union.

The Traveller community in the Equal Status Acts is defined as “the community of people who are commonly called Travellers and who are identified (both by themselves and others) as people with a shared history, culture and traditions, including historically, a nomadic way of life on the island of Ireland.”

In 2006 the Equality Authority published an in depth position paper on ‘Traveller Ethnicity’ which recommended that the Government should recognise Travellers as an ethnic group and that this recognition should be reflected in all policies, programmes and institutional practices that impact on the Traveller community.