Monthly Archives: May 2015

Hungary News Eastern Europe

Die Zeit: Time that the EU does something against the Orban Regime

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Die Zeit asks why the EU and the European Commission tolerate that Hungary openly discriminates against its Rroma minority, tolerates a mayor who is a little dictator, and openly flouts all European principles.

Well said!

Hungary News Eastern Europe

Közmunka: A form of slavery?

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Közmunka, a form of de-facto forced labour is currently being widely used in Hungary to replace public services. Officially, this is to be a community work program meant to get people off social help, but it has turned into a pool of cheap workers, even on some road projects funded by the EU… What is being paid is far below what one needs to survive.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Czech Social Inclusion Agency: For Rroma but without Rroma

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A controversy has started about the Czech government agency on social inclusion meant to favour the Rroma inclusion, but which has no Rroma members. Rroma activists such as Karel Holomek and Gyulla Banga and many others are protesting against this and have led a dozen Rroma to issue a declaration citing their ambition to become the representative of the Rroma community.

Bulgaria News Eastern Europe

Bulgaria: Ethnic unrest in Garmen

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In Garmen, a village in Bulgaria, ethnic tensions have flared. Following fight between Rroma teenagers and ethnic Bulgarians, there have been appeals to peace by the Rroma population and appeals for an anti Rroma manifestation on June 2nd. A probable background of the fight may be the “illegal” nature of the Rroma settlement, i.e. the fact that many buildings were built without the necessary authorisations and the non-Rroma citizen protesting against theft and criminality in the village. Meanwhile, even the deputy mayor of the village has been apparently beaten up by Rroma teenagers, showing that the tensions are far from ebbing.

Ireland News Western Europe

Ireland: Garda members arrested over role in Rroma children case

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In 2013, Garda members took away children from Rroma families based solely on their appearance (i.e. they were not dark), as there was deemed to be a fair incertitude as to whether the children were really with their parents. A senior Garda member is now in custody following leaks to the press regarding this case. Highly unusual!

News Eastern Europe Slovakia

European Commission against Slovakia

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The European Commission (EC) has started a legal action against Slovakia on the basis of the ongoing discrimination against Rroma children in that country. The EC says that a unusually high number of Rroma are placed in schools for mentally disabled children, a practice that is ongoing since the 1950’s in that country. Well Done for the EC, Shame on Slovakia. Especially since the government states that this high number is due to Rroma incest .

Hungary News Eastern Europe

Hungarian Justice Minister had to apologise

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Following his remarks on refugees and Rroma, the Hungarian Justice Minister, László Trócsányi had to apologise. Well, kind of, as he denies his statements could be deemed racist, and that he just wanted to highlight the priority for Rroma inclusion.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Czech Police trains Rroma experts

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Forty Czech police officers, 4 of them Rroma, have been selected as Rroma experts to deal with Rroma in ghettoes. Let’s see what this brings, the Czech police has a track record that is far from clean when dealing with Rroma.

News Americas News Eastern Europe News Western Europe

Hungarian Rroma refugees in Canada granted a reprieve

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Following the condemnation of a Canadian lawyer for having mishandled the cases of Rroma refugees, a couple of Hungarian Rroma are getting a second chance and the court is now re-considering the refugee status.

News Americas News Eastern Europe

Rroma offer guided tours of Budapest 8th District

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Budapest’s 8th district seldom features in guidebooks. While the buildings were once grand and beautiful, they are now dilapidated and gritty. The neighbourhood is mostly Rroma, with a high level of unemployment, and is reputed for crime and prostitution.

Rroma are now offering guided tours through the neighbourhood to show the other facets of this part of town, including sights such as the Jewish cemetery, but also much more simply, the fairly normal if often poor normality of this part of town.

News Western Europe

Norway: Children at risk of foster care

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A report by the Council of Europe Human Right Commissioner, Nils Muižnieks, claims that a quarter of Norwegian Rroma children in Olso are in or at risk of being put in foster care. Upon more careful reading, one finds that 60 children are in, and another 60 are at risk of being put in foster care. So all in all 120 children, which, if this is true, means there are 460 Rroma children in Oslo. Who knows … It would be better to say the exact numbers instead of clamouring some phony eye catching headline which is obviously not correct.

Belgium News Eastern Europe News Western Europe Slovakia

Homeless Slovak Rroma in Brussels

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The story of the few homeless Rroma in Brussels (we reported on it), is drawing lots of attention in the Belgian press and now also in the Slovak one. Even the European Affairs Minister Miroslav Lajčák stepped into the fray and stated that “We provide assistance to all of our citizens that approach us with a request for help, but this wasn’t the case in this instance.”

Lots is made of a few isolated cases, and the Rroma who migrated and integrated are barely mentioned. Again, only stereotyped views of the Rroma are pushed by the press.

Hungary News Eastern Europe

Jobbik mayor accused of forcing Rroma out

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The far-right Jobbik mayor of Ózd, in north-east Hungary is currently being accused of forcing poor Rroma resident out of their homes. He did change the housing regulations making it easier to evict “undesirable”, read Rroma, tenants.

Bosnia Croatia Kosovo News Eastern Europe Serbia

IDPs in Serbia

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According to the UNHCR, 21 thousands internally displaced (IDPs) Rroma live in utter poverty and a third of them live in buildings not intended for housing. These Rroma were mostly displaced during the Wars between Serbia and Croatia as well as during the Bosnian conflict and the Kosovo war.

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