An Interview with Janos Lang, the artistic director of the Ando Glaso Festival in Glasgow, UK.
For the twelfth time, the “Djelem Djelem” cultural festival in Dortmund, Germany, invites visitors to numerous events in September. At Germany’s largest Sinti and Roma cultural festival, visitors can immerse themselves in the art, culture, history, and present of the Sinte*zze and Roma.
From September 1st to 15th, the Sintiand Roma cultural festival will focus on themes and events surrounding art, history, and the present that affect the Roma. The festival invites visitors to experience and celebrate these cultures with concerts, exhibitions, films, training courses, and encounters. Most of the events are free of charge. The festival is organized by the City of Dortmund together with numerous partners, including AWO Dortmund, Romano Than e.V., and Keuning.haus.
In mid-September, a 3 days Czech-German conference on the current challenges facing genocide research will be held in Lety. Entitled “The legacy of Romani and Sinti survivors across the generations”, the conference will bring together activists, the descendants of such survivors, historians, researchers, and representatives of public institutions to discuss current forms of commemorating this tragedy, the ethical challenges connected to researching the genocide of the Roma and Sinti, the intergenerational transmission of trauma, and memory policy.
Another case of an attack by Roma on non-Roma in Slovenia. That these occur is bad, but that the press simply expands this to a “Roma behaviour” is bad and dangerous.
In Maribor the Romano Pralipe Roma Association presented the challenges and opportunities of the Roma community. The initiative for a joint action plan with local institutions received support. The president of the association, Fatmir Bechiri, pointed out that approximately 3,500 Roma live in Maribor and the wider area, so cooperation with the local community is of key importance.
“If there were no local community, the position of Roma in Maribor would be greatly weakened,” he said. He also stressed that Roma in Maribor want to show activity and willingness to cooperate: “Roma in Maribor are more active and want to cooperate, they do not have the same problems as elsewhere in Slovenia.” Bechiri called for greater responsibility within the community: “The Roma community must engage as much as possible for its family. The most important things are the children’s school obligations, as well as taking care of operating costs and good cooperation with the local community.”
Edward Dębicki, a renowned Polsko Rom musician and Holocaust survivor is at the centre of a controversy in Gorzów Wiełkopolski. This is not his hometown, as he comes from former Eastern Poland, and was resettled when Poland was shifted 300 km westward.
The controversy was whether he could be granted a municipal apartment at a significant discount. Ultimately, the resolution was rejected. The vast majority of councillors voted against it.
So much for survivors …
The Roma activist Pavel Sliško Krtek died at 51 and was buried on August 27.
May he rest in peace, and te ovel i phuv lokhi.
An archaeological dig is taking place in the New Forest in the UK on the site of a compound where Roma were forced settled. The compound was later replaced by a ‘Gypsy Rehabilitation Centre’ which says a lot about the ideological background of those initiatives.
An editorial against a racist article in the Czech press. This is unfortunately still too common in the country, where stereotypes and clichés dominate the view about Roma.
The German State of Thuringia has decided not to renew the position of an Antiziganism Commissioner in the state. Rational behind this decision, is that the “broad-based strategy” of “integration policy for all people” does not require a dedicated representative for Sinti and Roma.
Well, this decision is being criticised, with right.
An action to remove 101 illegal buildings near the Stara Zagora “Lozenets” quarter is underway. In the months before it, 14 buildings were voluntarily removed; another 30 are awaiting a court decision under an appeal procedure. A total of 450 illegal Roma buildings in and near the quarter have been removed in recent years.
Two articles about a dead baby, around one and a half month old in Burgas, Bulgaria. His parents – aged 19 and 23 – have been detained by the police to clarify the case. Both are of Roma origin.
Sad story, but why indicate that the parents are Roma?
The Stara Zagora municipality in Bulgaria has started the demolition of more than a hundred “illegal” Roma houses. According to the municipality, there was no way that these houses could be regularised. A few families have apparently accepted the offers for municipal housing, but most have not.
Bad.
Roma in Bulgaria are pushing back against discrimination with several legal actions.
Good!
The traditional pilgrimage of Sinti and Roma to Mariazell in Austria.
News in France are dominated with the relocation of Roma in one neighbourhood of Nantes. Locals are fighting against this, and Roma who are being expelled of one camp went to court, claiming that the expulsions are illegal. In brief, chaos.
Other than that, an article about the forgotten (in France) genocide of the Roma.
The director of the Office for Roma Inclusion of the AP Vojvodina Ljiljana Mihajlović, together with provincial deputy Jelena Jovanović, visited the Vršac College of Education and Medicine with the aim of supporting the enrolment of a new generation of students for the preschool teacher program in the Romani language.
The mayors of Novo Mesto, Kočevje, Ribnica and Črnomelj have harshly condemned the video of Minister of Labor Luka Mesco, which he recorded in the Roma settlement of Pušča in Prekmurje. According to them, it contains false and offensive statements. In it, the minister says, among other things, that we have mayors in Dolenjska who have been in office for 20 years, but have never even been to a Roma settlement. He holds Pušča, a model Roma settlement, up as an example regarding kindergarten attendance and employment, and says that this should be transferred to Dolenjska. The mayors demand explanations for his statements, especially which mayor he was talking about and why he has not done anything to solve the Roma problem in three years. They also invite him to Roma settlements in southeastern Slovenia, but not to film where things are functioning.
The mayors of Novo Mesto, Črnomelj, Kočevje and Ribnica have once again stressed the need for increased employment of Roma before a session of the government working group for addressing Roma issues. In their assessment, work is not paying off for the majority of the Roma population due to “disincentive social legislation”.
On August 21, 2025, at the age of 51, Romani activist, proud Romani and good person Pavel Sliško, whom we all knew as Pavel Krtek, left us forever. His passing saddened not only the Romani community in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, but also everyone who knew him.
May he rest in peace. Te ovel I phuv loki.
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