Monthly Archives: April 2015

News Western Europe

Obama mourns Dachau victims

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US President Barack Obama mourned the victims of the Dachau concentration camp on the 70th anniversary of its liberation by Allied troops. He stated that: “Dachau is a lesson in the evolution of darkness, how unchecked intolerance and hatred spiral out of control.” and he cited Rroma and Sinti victims. He vowed that such a thing should never happen again.

News Western Europe

François Hollande remembers Rroma victims

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The French president François Hollande mourned the victims of the only Nazi concentration camp on the French territory – The Struthof. During his visit, he mentioned the Rroma victims who are too often overlooked and forgotten.

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Sweden Municipality hires wrong translators

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The Swedish municipality of Helsingborg hired Rroma translators instead of Romanian translators in order to communicate with Romanian immigrants. Needless to say that most Romanians did not understand a word, showing that contrary to people’s beliefs, not all Romanian immigrants are Rroma …

News Western Europe

Bologna: A campaign against discrimination

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The Italian press reports on a campaign in Bologna against discrimination of migrants. Once again (we already reported on this), the campaign focuses on Rroma. The theme has always been immigrants and work, and shows posters of Rroma who work in various jobs.

Well done.

France News Western Europe

Frances defends itself on Rroma policies at the UN

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France had to defend itself in the United Nation after having been criticised on its policies towards Rroma, especially in their camp closures as well as for tolerating an increasingly anti Rroma discourse in the country. Noting that the prime minister Valls himself made statements that can only be qualified as very depreciatory if not racist towards Rroma (they cannot integrate etc.), one cannot but agree with this assessment of the UN.

France insisted that its policies were not geared against minorities but rather were done because of the illegal nature of these camps and also to “protect” their inhabitants against insalubrious living condition. The latter argument could be taken as valid if France would respect its own recommendations to find alternative lodging to people in those camps.

France News Western Europe

France: Camps closure again, and a few other news …

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A camp was closed and evacuated in Nantes, this case a camp of Manouches, as these were in caravans and cars. In Pringy, Rroma are squatting a disaffected factory.

The mud that was dumped on a Rroma camp in Hautbourdin in the north of France still makes the news, this time on a report of people helping Rroma in the region to integrate; and in Nantes, the press reports that for picking up the Mai lily.

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Amnesty International condemns the Czech Republic for segregation

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alJazeeraAmnesty International condemned the fact that the Czech Republic has failed to comply with a European court order to stop placing Roma children in schools for the mentally disabled regardless of the students’ capabilities. Placing Rroma in schools for mentally disabled people has a long tradition in the Czech and Slovak republics as well as in Hungary and Romania. This is simply no longer acceptable in the 21. Century.

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Amnesty: Who are Rroma

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amnestyAmnesty wrote a FAQ sheet on Rroma. Not bad, but still perpetuating some stereotypes. Rroma “travelled from place to place”. This is clearly false in many places, in the Balkans but also in Western Europe. Pity that they couldn’t get over their stereotypes.

News Eastern Europe

Police Brutality in the Slovak Republic

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The Slovak Police raided the village of Vrbnica on April 3rd to seek people who faiuled to show up for prison sentences. Rroma activists state that the police action was brutal and violent, and showed their injuries. The police had not been using cameras, making any proof of these allegations extremely difficult, but this raid and the violence is reminiscent of another case in Moldava nad Bodvou.

Fact is, the police there is prone to use violence against minorities and has an extremely negative view of Rroma. This has to change.

News Eastern Europe

Turkish PM pledges to help Rroma

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The Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has pledged to help Rroma with an 11 legal article commitment during a meeting in Istanbul with Rroma representatives. This is pretty much a first, as the dominant AK party has been more eager to evict Rroma rather than to help them, as in the case of the Sulukule neighbourhood in Istanbul. Fact is, “Çengene”, the name Turks give to Rroma is still very much of a swearword in that country. Let’s see what comes next.

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Rroma conference in Ulm

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More than 100 organisations from various countries around the Danube gathered in Ulm, Germany, to discuss the situation of Rroma in Europe. Consensus seems to be that the Rroma are the losers of the changes that followed the fall of communism, and that in spite of the Rroma decase that started in 2004, their situation has gotten worse.

Italy News Western Europe

Italy: Rroma Petition the Pope

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Rroma are petitioning the Pope to prevent evictions from their camps due to the so-called “Year of Mercy” Jubilee in Rome. Authorities in Italy tend to “park” Rroma in makeshift camps that are under NGO and police surveillance. These camps are still provisional, although many of them exist since decades.

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Canada toughens legal assistance requirements

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Following a scathing report on lawyers who did not defend Rroma refugees from Hungary properly, the Ontario state has passed a slate of new measures requiring competency tests for lawyers. There were a number of cases that were lost due to the incompetency of lawyers, resulting in several expulsions back to Hungary.

Hungary News Eastern Europe

Hungary: Rroma only schools

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The Hungarian supreme court allowed Rroma only religious schools in that country. The Hungarian minister for Education, Integration, and Human resources had been supporting the views from the schools who had lost a case in lower instances. The EU and the Chance for Childrne Foundations were clearly against it.

So are we… Segregation on any reason is not an answer. The answer is integration.

France News Western Europe

Meanwhile, in France

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Hautbourdin, the commune where the mayor dumped mud on a Rroma camp to force its eviction is still in the French headlines. In some papers such as La Voix du Nord, there is some understanding towards those actions, stating that mayors do no longer know what to do, while in other papers, such as Nord Éclair, one reports on counteractions of people incensed at the actions of the mayor.

Clearly, he was not right. And there should be consequences.

In Lyon, Rroma started squatting an empty building, while close to Paris, the fire brigade was called due to a fire in a Rroma camp (one of the excuses used by the authorities to close them). And clearly, the tour de presse could not be complete without three Rroma being arrested for burglary.

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Critics already started on the European Roma Institute

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Several critiques were already aimed at the newly created European Roma Institute, especially. Yaron Matras, a renowned linguist and Rroma specialist led the charge: It already questions the “Roma led” side of the initiative; lobs a few well aimed barbs at the “Roma Decade” also initiated in part by the Open Society Foundations and a de facto failure; but mostly fears that such an institute would prevent free academic research, as people who were meant to be part of the ERI, openly criticised the fact that research so far has been devoid of Rroma input and scholars, and is thus biased.

We can side with the concerns of the academics, as such an institute can easily turn into a watchdog for political correctness, on the other hand, we have to side with the ERI, saying that many scholar writing on Rroma wrote fairly idiotic thing too, and in total impunity. This is not to say that all research is bad, but it is often very limited (a small group in a specific country), and perpetuates fake research such as the one from Wlysslocky, a 19th century “scholar” who wrote totally inept facts but is still cited by all scholars…

So let’s hope and see!

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Creation of a European Roma Institute

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The Open Society institute, together with the European Union announced the creation of a European Roma Institute, aimed at celebrating and showcasing the rich Rroma culture.

According to George Soros, “the Institute will celebrate Romani heritage while also recording the Romani experience and acting as a vibrant creative hub. It will be a place for Roma in the arts to work together and connect with the creative community across Europe for the exchange and development of ideas. Through its events, exhibitions, and performances the Institute will seek to educate the wider public on the richness and greatness of Roma culture and achievement. Institutionally, it will also act as a policy advisor to the Council of Europe and member states, seeking to establish partnerships with similar bodies around the world.”

The key element lies in the last point. If it can successfully influence policies in Europe and contribute to diminish the stigma still associated with this minority, then, this is great. Otherwise, critics such as Yaron Matras (see below) may well prove to be right.

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Zigeuner / Gypsy

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The German Paper the TAZ launched a controversy when they published an article entitled “Political Correctness: Me, a Gypsy” (Politische Korrektheit; Ich, Zigeuner). The author, starting with the “Zigeunerschnitzel” argues that in some countries, such as in Hungary, Rroma call themselves Cigany, so – Tsigan / Gypsy. There is thus nothing bad in using the word, it depends on its utilisation, as in any other case.

The article is written by a young intern from Hungary, Tobor Racz who is a Cigan … It prompted some fiery reactions from various quarters, most notably from the page “Sag Nicht Zigeuner.

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Turkish article criticises Italy, France, and Serbia on Roma

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An article in Daily Sabah, a Turkish based paper, sharply criticised the handling of Rroma in Italy, France, and in Serbia. Especially on the Italian side, their critique is to the point and seldom mentioned in the Press in Europe: Namely that in many cases in that country, Rroma are artificially segregated into camps and prevented from integrating. Police and NGO are working hand in hands on this. And these Rroma in camps are only a minority … Like iN France.

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