over the last week or so following on from the incidents in athlone and tallaght where children were wrongly removed from their parents by social services the airwaves were cluttered with spokespersons from both pavee point and the irish traveller movement who seemed to be speaking on behalf of the Roma but then descended into trying to push a traveller agenda.
given that the travellers are people with a shared history, culture and traditions including, historically, a nomadic way of life on the island of Ireland and the Roma are a distinct ethnic group , is it wise to have people who are culturally very different speaking out for the Roma and who gave them the authority to do so?