UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 2 (UPI) -- Human rights advocates warned Thursday that discrimination and ethnic violence against the Roma, or Gypsy, people was on the rise in Europe.
Two independent U.N. experts on human rights used Thursday to mark Roma Holocaust Day and urge the world to stake steps to counter the increase in hostility to the Roma.
"There must also be a stronger message that Roma are a valued part of societies -- not only in words, but in concrete actions -- to protect Roma and improve their living conditions and inclusion," U.N. Special Rapporteur Mutama Ruteere said in a written statement.
Rita Izsak, a U.N. independent expert on minority issues, said governments should adopt a "zero tolerance" policy when it comes to discrimination against the Roma.
Roma Holocaust Day is to commemorate the massacre of around 3,000 Roma inmates by the Nazis at the Auschwitz concentration camp during World War II.
Ruteere said teaching European school kids about the 1944 massacre would be a constructive step toward dialing down prejudice against the Roma.
