The Roma organisation from Scotland, Ando Glaso, is organising a series of music events under the theme of barvale nights..
or 18 years, Jenny Rasche from the Harz Mountains has been dedicated to helping Roma children in Romania, where she now lives. Through her efforts, a slum on the outskirts of Sibiu has been completely transformed; Roma children without prospects have grown into young adults with a future. For her work, this dynamic woman was honored with the Kindernothilfe (Children in Need) Honorary Award on November 14, 2025. Reporter Antje Schneider also closely documented this work for years in the MDR series “Jenny and the Roma Children,” which can be viewed in the ARD Mediathek (ARD Media Library).
Pavol Ľupták, member of the Slovak parliament raised his hand to ask for space to speak at yesterday’s parliamentary committee on finance and budget, no one probably expected what the deputy would say.
“Some Gypsy steals firewood and gets support for it,” Ľupták was indignant at the committee. “I walk around a Gypsy settlement, and I see on the cart that they steal such (large) logs from the forest, living trees. Support for heating also means supporting the theft of Gypsies,” the coalition member claimed.
His comments were widely condemned, but unfortunately are also widely believed by many in that country.
Municipalities where Roma settlements are located receive several million euros from the state every year, which they should have spent on financing the support and integration of Roma. This is money that is primarily intended to improve living conditions in these settlements.
But in practice, this is far from the case. One such example is the municipality of Ribnica, which has been led since 2018 by Samo Pogorelc, recently one of the mayors who has been the loudest in demanding measures from the state in connection with the “Roma issue”. He became known to the wider public in June this year when he was attacked and injured by two members of the Roma community at a firefighter’s party. This was after he declared that he would not provide water to Roma who refuse to integrate.
Diepholz’ district museum is dedicating a special exhibition to Mariechen Franz, a sintiza who died shortly before her 17th birthday in 1944 in Ravensbrück. The exhibition will open next Saturday. The exhibition thematises the persecution of Sinti and Roma under the Nazi based on the example of Mariechen Franz.
Prof. Christian Padure is planning an international Romanes Olympiad for Romanes open to youngsters between 11 and 17. This will take place in Romania.
On the occasion of the International Day of the Romani Language, on November 5, a panel discussion entitled “Our Language – Our Identity” was held in the gallery of the Cultural Centre in Bijelo Polje.
On behalf of the Municipality of Bijelo Polje, Miloš Kljajević said that this panel pays tribute to the rich cultural heritage of the Roma and the power of the language that has transmitted their stories, traditions and identity for centuries. He emphasized that the Romani language is a living witness to the long and complex history of the Roma.
A Forum on minority education was recently held in Vienna. At this meeting, every summer, issues regarding the languages of Croats, Ugric, Roma and Slovenes in education are discussed.
Question is, what is the impact?
On Friday, the Roma in Krško, Slovenia, convened a meeting with the police, due to the increasing number of vehicles confiscated from Roma recently. They were told, among other things, that they were not hunting Roma, but debtors.
Really?
Silva Mesojedec sent a letter to the Domovina editors in which he presents his eleven-point analysis of the state of the Roma issue, its causes and possible solutions. To quote her letter:
1964: 64 Roma lived in Žabjak (census of Roma in Dolenjska).
1971: the study mentions 37 Roma families and 200 Roma.
1984: 214 Roma are mentioned.
2014: there are about 700 Roma.
Today, the number is around 1,000 Roma.
Until 1984, the state at least systematically monitored the number. Then – nothing more. This is not a coincidence, but evidence of a completely wrong attitude towards the Roma issue: if you don’t measure the problem, you don’t solve it either. There are no statistics, no strategy, no responsibility.
In brief, Roma multiply. Ever had doubts about statistics? 10% of the population in the Balkan are Roma. The 64 in 1964 was an illusion …
The musician and activist Harri Stojka is calling for the swift construction of a memorial for Roma and Sinti in Austria at Schmerlingplatz in Vienna. “There, at a historically significant location in the heart of Vienna, a visible symbol of remembrance and recognition should be erected.”
On Saturday, the Roma and Sinti who were murdered during the National Socialist regime were commemorated in Lackenbach. Along with numerous state politicians, the Minister of Justice, Anna Sporrer (SPÖ), participated. Of the 4,000 Roma and Sinti who were interned in the Lackenbach camp since the summer of 1940, only 300 to 400 survived the liberation of the camp in the summer of 1945.
The next seminar in Romani Studies with Profs. Elena Marushiakova and Vesselin Popov.
https://romanistudies.ch/seminar-series/2025-2026/26-november-2025/
Almost no news about Roma this week in France. An expulsion, five days before the winter expulsion truce in France. And a testimony of a Romni who was deported to the French camp of Rivesaltes and who says the French were worse than the German.
Deputy President of the Bujanovac Municipal Assembly Dr. Dejan Stojanović tells Bujanovačke that the start of the session has been postponed. As a reason for the postponement, he declared they had a problem with microphones. Effectively, two Roma councillors were absent, meaning there was no majority in the council.
Apparently, the council needs 21 votes for a majority, but without the Roma and another councillor who is in jail, they only have 20 votes.
The show brings the most important news from the country and the world every day in Romanes and Serbian. It deals with topics from Roma life, showing the efforts and measures that are being taken for the emancipation and integration of this, the largest European minority community.
Here, the guest is Luan Coco, director of the Centre for Education of Roma and Ethnic Communities.
The idea for the Budapest Roma Symphony Orchestra, known as the legendary “100 Violins” orchestra, was born in 1984, at the funeral of the famous Hungarian soloist Sándor Jarók Sr. That day, hundreds of Roma musicians from all over Hungary gathered to pay their last respects, and from that emotional moment of togetherness came the idea to found an orchestra that would preserve the spirit of the Roma musical tradition.
A year later, in 1985, the visionary László Berky and his associates founded the orchestra that would become a symbol of the Roma artistic soul and the cultural heritage of Hungary. Today, almost four decades later, the “100 Violins” orchestra continues to travel the world, bringing audiences music that transcends the boundaries of languages, nations, and styles.
The segregation of Roma pupils in Czech schools is failing to be addressed. The European Commission has repeatedly ordered the Czech Republic to deal with inequalities in education. Fines of hundreds of millions of euros are looming over the Czech Republic.
The Faculty of Arts at Charles University publicly celebrated the International Romani Language Day for the first time on November 5th this year. The event, initiated by students of Romani studies in cooperation with teachers and the Institute of Ethnology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, offered not only expert contributions, but also a panel debate and authorial readings by Romani writers. The meeting showed that this language is not just a legacy of the past, but a living tool of communication, cultural expression and personal identity.
The best Russian Roma 7-String guitars musician, a composer of many songs, a teacher, a father, a friend, passed away yesterday. With him, some of the traditional Romani music from Russia also passed away. From a Servi family from Saratov, he moved to Moscow where he played for a long time in the Theatre Romen. He was internationally known with tours in the US, but mostly for his participation in Madonna’s Sweet and Sticky tour which saw Madonna sing in Romanes.
May he rest in peace and continue to play in the after world.
Te Javel I phuv lokhi, i leskiro drom puterdo.
English (UK) English (UK) 
Deutsch
Français