The discrimination reported in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe is a legitimate reason to demand change. Although the governments in most cases do not promote laws or practices that in themselves harm the Roma, they have made no attempt to improve the Roma situation either and have instead neglected the racial discrimination that continues. In striving to enter the European Union, however, these governments have now recently been forced to introduce new laws aiming at the prevention of racist crimes and discrimination. As a result, the Czech government announced the formation of a Human Rights Council in January 2001 to advise the government on human-rights issues. The council submitted proposals to counter discrimination against the Roma minority in education, housing, and employment in May 2001.

Additionally, new initiatives have been proposed to help the Gypsies improve their living conditions, continue their education, and search for jobs. Many of these initiatives have already proven successful in certain communities, showing that coexistence is possible. The Central and Eastern European countries should press on to formulate policies that combat ethnic discrimination more effectively.