Maria Spirova
Activities Report


  
February 2003  
Consultations with European Roma Rights Center (ERRC) and Human Rights Project (HRP).
                            Initial Meeting with Emil Cohen, mentor.

March 2003 
Participation in the first IPF training session in Budapest
Preliminary research at the CEU library and the ERRC
Meetings with Rumjan Russinov, (OSI Roma Participation Program), Gabor Toka (CEU), and Claude Cahn and Savelina Danova, ERRC.
Finalization of the mentors – contacts and coordination with second mentor Krassimir Kunev from the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee (BHC)
Preliminary information gathering on Bulgarian Roma political parties.
April- May 2003:
Work on sections one and two of the project. (See project description)
Participation in the International Roma Day Events, Budapest.
Attendance of  EU Accession Monitoring Program Conference, April 16-17, 2003
Research at the ERRC and CEU library.
Consultations with mentors, ERRC staff and other researchers.
Draft version of two sections should be ready by the time of the second training session in Budapest, June 1-13, 2003.

June 2003  
Participation in the second training session in Budapest
Additional work with the ERRC.
Presentation of the outline of the project, discussion with the mentors, field work
July  2003
Field work: interviews Roma political formations and with Roma NGOs.
Interviews and other field work
Data analysis using UNDP dataset on the trend of political integration among the Roma in Bulgaria
Publucation of an artcile in Gitan, a Roma magazine in Bulgarian, and of a short piece in a regioanl newspaper in Pleven, Bulgaria 

August 2003
Completion of the draft research paper.