Peter Bešenyei is a Roman Catholic priest who dedicated himself to the pastoral care of the Roma in eastern Slovakia for over thirty years. In that he is an exception in the Catholic clergy. He lived for several years in the Luník IX housing estate. like the other residents in an apartment without water and electricity.
An exhibition of the works of Małgorzata Mirga-Tas is currently open in the Lucerne Art Museum.
Quite a few articles in the French press about the deportation of Roma during World War Two wit a special commemoration on the “Dzy of Deportation” on Roma in the deportaion Museum in Tarbes, France.
A traffic accident that occurred in the early hours of Thursday, April 25, at the intersection of Thivon and Kanapitseri streets in West Athens, with a 12-year-old girl as the victim. The accident actually occurred in a parallel universe, invisible to most of us. What was the little girl doing there, at this time, alone? Who left her? Where were her parents? Those would be normal questions. But the girl is a Romni, “Gypsy” as most people still say. So, it’s not at all strange that he was all alone on the streets at 2:00 in the morning, “that’s what they do” (said with disapproval and perhaps some disgust). And the issue will end there.
The Human Rights Foundation, in collaboration with Carta di Roma and the contribution of Unar National Office Against Racial Discrimination, has created a podcast to enhance the role that Roma and Sinti had in the Liberation. Starting from an extraordinary interview recovered from the Shoah Foundation by Amilcare Debar, a Sinto from Cuneo, partisan, battle name Corsaro.
The Roma band Trio Romano, which has been appearing regularly at the Balkan Fiesta for several years, will perform again this year – this time at the tenth anniversary edition of this event. The Fiesta will take place on Saturday, April 26, 2025, from 8:00 PM at Café Nona on Národní třída in Prague. It will also be the last year under the roof of the New Stage of the National Theatre.
The second year of the Having a Dream project will take place on May 3, 2025 in Pardubice. Nine inspiring Roma personalities, including three ROMEA scholarship holders, will perform on stage. The aim of the event is to support education, personal development and intergenerational dialogue. The event is held under the auspices of the Deputy Governor of the Pardubice Region, Pavel Šotola, and the Government Commissioner for Roma Minority Affairs, Lucie Fuková. Visitors can look forward to panel discussions, workshops, cultural performances and a ceremonial procession through the city centre.
After conducting individual investigative actions, the Ljubljana District Prosecutor’s Office has filed an indictment with the Kočevje District Court for threats to Ribnica Mayor Sam Pogorelec. Pogorelec had hosted representatives of the Ribnica Roma, with whom they discussed providing water to the Roma settlements of Otavice and Goriča vas. Following this, he was threatened by a Rom who objected to the mayor’s view that water would only be provided if Roma show “good behaviour”.
Maja Odrčić Mikulić, a long-time civil servant and director of the People’s University, is known for her work in the fields of social and education. The surprise came when she ran for the position of representative of the Roma minority, as it was the first time she had publicly identified herself as Roma – without any prior public mentions or connections to this community.
According to Croatian law, changing one’s ethnicity does not require proof – a personal statement is sufficient. Thus, she gained the right to run with one signature.
On Sunday, May 11, 2025, a memorial service will be held at the Roma and Sinti Holocaust Memorial to honor the victims of the Nazi regime. The event is organized by the Roma Holocaust Compensation Committee under the auspices of the government commissioner Lucie Fuková.
Soldiers. A Story from Ferentari was only published in Czech this year. It tells the autobiographical story of a famous anthropologist Adrian, who is writing a dissertation on Romani music and moves into the Bucharest ghetto of Ferentari. There, former Romani prisoner Alberto becomes his guide, and the mismatched pair eventually becomes a couple facing the surprising twists and turns of an unexpected intimate relationship.
Upon arriving at the tiny apartment, an unexpected sight awaited the Australian woman. Although the apartment building seems cramped, the apartment that the young woman visited did not look any different from a normal Slovak household. The apartment was smaller, but considering what she saw outside, she was surprised by the cozy and clean environment.
Well, stereotypes are hard to kill …
On March 20, five people died in a fire in a Roma settlement in Veľký Šariš near Prešov. This tragedy also highlighted the conditions in which Roma people often live. The Office of the Government Plenipotentiary for Roma Communities is currently trying to legalize dwellings in excluded communities.
A brawl between Roma and locals in Slovenia ended up badly, with several injured. According to the articles, it was the Roma who aggressed the others.
Bad.
An article about the fact that Roma drop out of school in Slovenia. According to the article, only 10 to 20 percent of Roma children complete primary school. What is problematic, is what they ascertain as being its cause: Successful Roma who abuse the social system and are role model as they have more money than the others.
They also add that speaking Slovenian is an issue, as most Roma children do not speak it when they arrive in kindergarten.
The new exhibition “Roma Rising” at the Brno Museum of Roma Culture is intended to be the antithesis of the traditional ideas about Roma. It presents a total of 60 black-and-white portraits of prominent Roma men and women from 13 European countries and Canada. They have been on display since the middle of last week.
Residents of the Košice housing estate of Luník IX still remember the pope’s visit there.
“Dear brothers and sisters, too often you have been the subject of prejudice and merciless judgments, discriminatory stereotypes, derogatory words and gestures. Thanks to this, we have all become poorer. Poorer in humanity,” with these words Pope Francis addressed the Roma in the Luník IX housing estate. The news of his death also affected the local community.
On February 28, 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) issued a fundamental judgment that affects the lives of thousands of Roma children in Central Europe – and especially all of us who are trying to ensure that our children have a chance at a decent education. In the case of Salay vs. Slovakia, the court ruled in favour of a young Roma man who was unfairly placed in a special school for children with mental disabilities as a child, even though there was no reason for this.
All too common still.
It used to be an elite institution where no Roma students attended. However, after merging with a neighboring elementary school, Merhautova Elementary School became a school where most of the students are Roma and, in recent years, Ukrainian. Does this sound like a recipe for disaster? But that did not happen at the Brno elementary school. Children and parents expressed their opinion in a satisfaction survey that “Merhautka” has the best internal climate of all Brno schools.
The proof that integration works.
A draft resolution in the Slovak parliament to apologize to Roma for being isolated by the state in settlements during the COVID-19 pandemic divided the parliament and provoked one of the harshest exchanges of opinions in recent years. The main protagonists were Progressive Slovakia MP Ingrid Kosová – of Roma origin – and the former mayor of Humenné, long-time MP for Smer Jana Vaľová.
Kosova stated: “It is a shame for Slovakia and a shame for all mayors and mayors who have not yet put a serious end to this situation”. Vaľová defended herself, stating how much she had done for the Roma community, but also saying “they do not pay their bills”.
EN 
DE 
FR