I was born into a poor family in central Hungary, in an environment with
little opportunities. Thankfully I was supported by the Open Society Foundations
with financial aid to complete my high school diploma. If I hadn’t managed this,
I don’t know where I would be today. At the age of 21, I enrolled at a police
academy in Budapest and immediately declared my Roma heritage.
Some of my colleagues were also Roma, but I was the only one who defined
myself accordingly. Although this occasionally caused some friction and distance
within the department, I never experienced serious problems. On the contrary,
some of my senior officers respected me for my confidence. After a short time I
rose to the rank of detective.
During my patrols around Budapest, I noticed that there was one Roma police
officer in the 8th District and one in the neighboring 9th, both quite deprived
areas with a large Roma population, but neither of them knew each other. Hence I
decided to establish a support network for Roma police, and I became a Roma
liaison officer to act as a point of contact between the police and the Roma
community.
I realized that discrimination and integration issues for African-Americans
in the police force in the 1970s were the same as for Roma in Hungary today.
Sometimes Roma fear speaking to the police or distrust them, because of
previous ill treatment or discrimination, so having someone who understands
their background and identity can help them to feel more comfortable. In
addition, for other Hungarians, they can use our liaison officers to better
understand Roma and acknowledge why certain problems may be occurring.
In 2005 I had the opportunity to travel to the United States to take part in
the State Department’s International Visitors’ Leadership Program. I realized
that discrimination and integration issues for African-Americans in the police
force in the 1970s were the same as in Hungary today, and that the National
Black Police Association could serve as an instructive model for FAERLEO.
When I went to Britain to meet with colleagues, I was amazed to see so many
ethnic minorities represented in the police force, and not just officers, but
lieutenants and captains. I accompanied them on their patrols and attended
diversity trainings, a concept which still barely exists in Hungary, and
realized that there is potential to represent all Hungarian minorities in law
enforcement.
My task was not easy; talking about race and ethnicity is still very much a
taboo in Hungary. We were criticized by some for establishing our organization.
People accused us of segregating, but in fact we are like a club or a union.
Anyone in law enforcement can join, and we have many non-Roma members. Stringent
data protection legislation means that we cannot be sure how many Roma police
officers there are, but we hope that more will be inspired and encouraged to
join.
In addition to the symbolic power, being a policeman also presents a viable
career path: You have job security, health insurance, and the ability to obtain
credit to buy a house—all things that are out of the reach of most Roma. But
mainly, for a Hungarian citizen to see a Roma patrolling or responding to a
crime, it sends a powerful message that not all Roma are criminals. We too want
to be safe and to help protect the safety of all Hungarians.
Visitors from other countries in Eastern Europe may witness this and change
some of their perceptions toward Hungary and toward Roma. In the meantime,
FEARELO continues to expand its links with other police forces and Roma liaison
officers across Europe, with the hope of establishing better standards and true
community policing by consent.
