| The focus of this study is on relations between majority and Roma populations in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), the role of the European Union (EU) in minority rights, and the application of the theories of Realistic Group Conflict (RGCT) and Social Identity (SIT) to the Roma issue. A case study of countries in the CEE region is illustrative of Roma majority-minority relations. The majority of the countries in the CEE region passed the Copenhagen Criteria (CC) in minority rights, even though most of these countries did not change the way they treated the Roma. Therefore, violation of Roma rights in the CEE region continues despite the EU conventions and legislation, which in reality, does nothing to curb the prejudice and intolerance. RGCT and SIT explain why the people and the governments in this region are able to ignore Roma and minority issues. |
