The American billionaire George Soros has opposed France's deportation of Roma citizens and urged the EU to create a better plan for their integration.

“The deportation of Roma now underway in France runs the risk of violating French and European law. Men, women, and children in Europe cannot be expelled on grounds of their ethnic origin without legal process to determine whether they have committed crimes,” Soros said Wednesday in an open letter to the European leaders condemning the deportation of Roma in France.

At the end of July, French Foreign Minister, Brice Hortefeux, vowed to dismantle half of the illegal Roma camps in the country in three months and to sent all who have violated the law in any way back to Bulgaria and Romania.

According to the French Immigration Minister, Eric Besson, about 635 Roma citizens have been repatriated to Romania in Bulgaria since July 28.

Among the initiatives under the Open Society Foundations, to which Soros is a Chair, are programs for helping the integration of Roma in society.

“The French government was right to call for measures to improve employment and development opportunities for Roma in their countries of origin, in this case Bulgaria and Romania. But the scale of the problem demands a comprehensive and effective plan for Roma inclusion at the EU level,” Soros said.

According to him, the structural funds administered by the European Commission should include funding for education from early childhood, when it is most needed to integrate Roma children in school.

“Given the fact that one-third of the entrants into the labor force by 2015 will be Roma in countries such as Hungary, Europeans could not afford another lost generation of Roma,” Soros said.

The Open Society Foundation has announced it has given nearly USD 150 M to improve the education, health, and employment of Roma.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!