Author Archives: Roma Foundation

Hungary and Extremists

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Hungary and Extremists

Far right parties in Hungary (Mi Hazank and other groups) are planning a march through the central city of Szolnok as a “Demonstration against Gypsy Crime, declaring that, “We will bring law to the ghettos!” And the police backed down on their interdiction of the manifestation.

Let’s not forget that this has already resulted in Roma being killed…

Bad.

“Traditional” Dance

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“Traditional” Dance

The 21st annual festival Te prindžaras amen – Let’s Get to Know Each Other, which will take place on Sunday, September 14 at the Museum of the Slovak Village in Martin, will be dedicated to traditional forms of dance of various Roma groups in Slovakia.

Unfortunate that the picture reflects more stereotypes that tradition …

Slovakia, Plenipotentiary, and Transparency

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Slovakia, Plenipotentiary, and Transparency

The Plenipotentiary of the Slovak Government for Roma Communities will be obliged to submit a periodic report to the government on his activities for the previous calendar year. This follows from the change in the Plenipotentiary’s statute, which was approved by the government on Wednesday.

This is a worthwhile change …

Digital Archives

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Digital Archives

Works from the National Film Archive of the Slovak Film Institute have undergone the process of digitization and are progressively available in DCP (Digital Cinema Package) format, and therefore can also be screened in digital cinemas.

The almost thirty-two-minute film Upre Roma [Upward Roma] (1955) by Dimitrij Plichta is not only an example of contemporary Slovak documentary work, but also the first film in the history of Slovak cinema that attempts to portray the Roma ethnic group with empathy.

Serbia and Education

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Serbia and Education

At the beginning of another school year, the Municipality of Beočin provided school supplies for 205 Roma students attending two primary schools.

The distribution of school supplies in recent days was carried out by the coordinator for Roma issues of the Municipal Administration of Beočin Ismet Ademovski and the pedagogical assistant at the Primary School “Jovan Grčić Milenko” Feruz Drmaku.

Serbia: Cultural Centre

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Serbia: Cultural Centre

The Roma Cultural Center “Života Milosavljević” was officially opened in Kragujevac, formed as part of the project “Roma Club – a place of cultural, social and educational emancipation and integration of Roma at the local level”, funded by the European Union and implemented by the City in cooperation with local partners.

Maribor and Cohabitation

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Maribor and Cohabitation

There are apparently 3’500 Roma around Maribor, Slovenia. This radio article looks into the cohabitation of Roma and non-Roma. It aims to report on the shortcomings in integration and on what steps are still needed for greater inclusion, education and employment of Roma.

How about reduction is racism?

Bulgaria and Stereotypes

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Bulgaria and Stereotypes

This time a story of a wedding that lasted 15 days in the Kumulka Mahala in Burgas. Apparently the child of a notorious thief.

Bad.

  • “Градски легенди” от сърцето на “Кумлука” – една история за 15-дневната сватба на Пандурито, крадеца-ветеран и…. In Flagman. 08.09.2025. https://www.flagman.bg/article/360106#google_vignette

Slovakia, Roma, and Politics

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Slovakia, Roma, and Politics

Miroslav Heredoš, of the OZ Voľná ​​zóna organisation, and a candidate of the far right, in addition to being an anti-vaccination etc. calleed on the Slovak government and the government plenipotentiary for Roma issues, Alexander Dašek, to immediately start visiting the settlements and listening to the problems of the Roma and solving them; because if they do not do this, the Roma will vote for Igor Matovič in droves again in the next elections.

Well, what is the issue there?

Bulgaria: Desegregation

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Bulgaria: Desegregation

For the third consecutive year, Montana Municipality will work on a project for educational desegregation and integration of students from the Kosharnik district, announced Mayor Zlatko Zhivkov.

Free transportation to five of the schools in the city has been provided for 218 children from the Roma district. This is a basic condition for them to attend class. Also, most of them – 198 students will be provided with teaching aids and materials. An educational mediator will establish the school-family relationship and monitor for manifestations of discrimination.

Pilis, Hungary

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Pilis, Hungary

Pilis, a town of 12,000 inhabitants an hour from Budapest, resembles many other towns in the Hungarian countryside. A shopping centre with ABCs, the grocery stores where you can find everything. A Kossuth Road, a key figure in the 1848-1849 uprising against the Habsburgs, crossed by the national highway. A street and even a small park named after Petofi, the iconic 19th-century poet. A monument to the Treaty of Trianon, which dismembered Hungary after the First World War and permeated the national narrative.

But since September 1st, Pilis has stood out by implementing radical measures to prevent settlements deemed undesirable. The far-right municipality, which came to power last fall, is closing the town to criminals, drug users or dealers, people without employment or social security for more than a year, applicants who do not speak or understand Hungarian, and business owners with tax arrears or those under bailiff proceedings.

Roma, of course will fall under some of those categories, whether true or not …

French Chronicle …

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French Chronicle …

Not much in the French press this week about Roma. Well, they are all wondering whether the government will fall, so Roma stories are not needed to fill gaps…

The news is mostly out of Angers, in the Loire region. First, a camp being displaced raises fears among residents of the new location. Second, a new administrative procedure for managing the arrival of Roma and travellers. Probably swell for the administrations, not necessarily efficient. Third, a series of burglaries; and a young 16 years old raped by 6 Roma, one of which was her lover for whom she agreed to prostitute herself.

Sad.

Italy, Roma, and the Genocide

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Italy, Roma, and the Genocide

In Naples, Chi Roma e… chi non guided young Roma and non-Roma people on a journey of education and testimony, culminating in a trip to Auschwitz. There they discovered the story of the Sinti boxer Johann Trollmann, known as Rukeli, a symbol of resistance and identity. The story of Rukeli (which means “tree” in the Sinti language), persecuted by the Nazis, became for the young people involved in the project a symbol of resistance against all forms of discrimination. After their trip to Auschwitz, their daily experiences of anti-Gypsyism intertwined with that of Rukeli, who died in a camp in 1944. The association Chi Rom e… chi no chose to tell his story in an ensemble film, directed by Alessandro Rak. The film, born from artistic workshops with young Roma and Neapolitan students from the Galileo Ferraris Technical Institute in Scampia, denounces marginalization and affirms dignity and memory.

Really???

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Really???

A 17 year old Greek was arrested after having stealing at least two Romane children and abandoning them in various places. He confessed to the acts, saying he did it because he “can’t stomach gypsies” and because he wanted to “show how useless they are.”

Slovakia and Social Benefits

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Slovakia and Social Benefits

Movement Slovakia criticizes amendment on benefits, calls measure an attack on Roma. According to opposition MP Peter Pollák, the measure deepens poverty, discriminates against Roma and the government uses it to save on the most vulnerable.

The amendment to the Employment Services Act, which includes the Work Instead of Benefits initiative, deprives thousands of the poorest people of material need benefits, according to opposition MP Peter Pollák (Movement Slovakia, For the People, KÚ). “Instead of giving people a ladder, the government is taking away the last thing they have – less than 90 euros per month. That is the last safety net for the poorest. Meanwhile, family expenses are rising due to government consolidation, food and energy are becoming more expensive, and the government is saving on those who have the least,” said Pollák.

Baruvas

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Baruvas

Over forty Roma high school and university students from all over the country participated in the twenty-sixth Baruvas meeting (Romanes “we grow”) in the Jizera Mountains at the end of August. The program offered workshops on hate speech, Roma history, Romani language and traditions, working with emotions, activism, a healthy lifestyle and a space for sharing and support.

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