Category Archives: News Eastern Europe

Slovenia People’s Initiative

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Slovenia People’s Initiative

This morning, representatives of newly established people’s initiatives to solve the Roma problem (Sic), which operate under the auspices of the regional one, gathered at the Jordan homestead in Mihovica.

According to them. The “Roma problem” is getting worse and worse and the security and social conditions have become unbearable. They added that if the sate doesn’t protect them they will have to do it themselves.

Slovenia and the “Roma Problem”

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Slovenia and the “Roma Problem”

State Secretary at the Ministry of the Interior Helga Dobrin met with representatives of the Regional Civil Initiative of Southeast Slovenia. The main topic of the discussions was the Roma issue and ensuring security in local communities in southeast Slovenia.

She said that the police will ensure an increased patrol presence as long as necessary but that it is only is only a short-term measure, the long-term goal being Roma integration.

Switzerland and Ukrainian Refugees

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Switzerland and Ukrainian Refugees

The Swiss government has decided that a large part of Western Ukraine, including Lviv, are safe and that Ukrainian refugees from those regions can safely return home… It was announced right after Lviv was bombed.

This will affect quite a few refugees, and many Roma from Transcarpathian Ukraine.

Bad.

Successful Singer

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Successful Singer

“I believe that success is not about skin colour, but about work, talent and attitude,” says Romani singer Štefan Pecha, who breaks stereotypes and brings authenticity to the stage.

The singer with a distinctive voice and unmistakable energy is not afraid to connect tradition with modern music in his work. In the interview, he speaks openly about his Roma roots, the search for authenticity and what it is like to follow your own path on the Czech music scene.

Romani Literature in Croatia

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Romani Literature in Croatia

Romani literature is not small, it is just not taken seriously enough, said author Ruždija Russo Sejdović in an interview at the opening of the Review of Small Literature on Tuesday in Booksa, Croatia, this year dedicated to Romani literature in Europe.

Czechia, Elections, and Roma

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Czechia, Elections, and Roma

According to the findings of Romea.cz, at least sixteen Romani men and women ran for the Chamber of Deputies in this year’s elections, which represents the highest number since the beginning of systematic monitoring of Romani participation in elections. Nevertheless, none of them managed to penetrate the lower chamber of Parliament. The most successful Roma candidate was Josef Tokár (SPOLU, South Bohemia), who received 1,335 preferential votes. Jaroslav Miko (STAN, Prague) finished in second place with 818 votes, and Milan Sýs (Stačilo!, Pardubice Region) took the imaginary third place, who received 598 votes.

Bulgaria: Houses Destruction

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Bulgaria: Houses Destruction

An investment decision by the Vratsa municipality is forcing some of the residents of the “Mladost” district to leave their homes. The demolition of some of the houses in the neighborhood began this morning.

Initially, four of the buildings that are no longer habitable will be destroyed. The rest are being given a grace period so that people can find new homes. New houses will be built on the site instead.

Roma families live in some of the properties being demolished by the municipality. However, people in the neighbourhood claim that the place has been an arena of tension for more than 20 years.

Bulgaria and Local Elections

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Bulgaria and Local Elections

In Pazardzhik, Bulgaria, there are local mayoral elections. Apparently, the DPS party has not been doing well recently in the town, but their candidate is “activating” the Roma vote. Whatever this means, as in Bulgaria, there have been allegations of vote buying among Roma since a long time.

Slovenia and Roma Criminality

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Slovenia and Roma Criminality

Another one of these articles about young Roma robbing a man in the Novo Mesto region. The facts are not to be denied, as the Roma, aged 14 to 16 were arrested by the police and will be indicted. The issue here is that the general trend is to lump all Roma as criminals. This is bad and dangerous.

Europe, Bulgaria, and Roma

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Europe, Bulgaria, and Roma

The headline says it all: Praise of “Roma” in Brussels, and here: A mother gave birth to 6 children by different fathers, keeps them hungry!

First we hope that he 6 children did not happen in one go … and then, this kind of pandering to the worst negative stereotypes against Roma but also against Europe is really bad. Let’s just remind these people that without Europe, they would have a lot more to complain about.

Czech Elections

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Czech Elections

Czech Roma are becoming more interested in elections every year. According to estimates, about 150 thousand of them have the opportunity to vote. The prevailing opinion in society is that many mainly vote for Andrej Babiš’s ANO party, but Ľavica is also popular.

Slovak Action Plan

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Slovak Action Plan

The SaS opposition party draws attention to the allegedly inefficient use of public funds within the government’s action plan to address the issue of excluded Roma communities. According to SaS MP Vladimír Ledecký, the document is expected to cost more than a billion euros, with 60 million of them going to planting trees around Roma settlements.

World War Two Murder

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World War Two Murder

Towards the end of the war, at least 47 people including at least 37 Roma were brutally murdered by Hungarian Nyilas soldiers near Dunajská Streda on the Klátovský branch of the Little Danube at the end of World War II. They do not have their own grave.

Slovenia and Crime

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Slovenia and Crime

The Police in Novo Mesto, Slovenia, reported a robbery committed by a group of young men aged between 12 and 14. According to the article information, they are Roma from Žabjak. The victims were two young men from whom the group took money, and then one of them was slapped and hit with a stick.

Bad.

Slovenia and Stereotypes

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Slovenia and Stereotypes

According to the article, in the small town of Maglenča, Slovenia, stands the Roma Ethno-House, a unique cultural and tourist facility of the indigenous Croatian Roma – the Lovari. Well, Lovara are not indigenous to Croatia. They came in the late 19th ad early 20th century following the abolition of slavery in Romanian lands.

The exhibits unfortunately push stereotypes.

Fascination

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Fascination

Another article about Roma graves in Slovakia. As usual, they dwell on the luxury, about the fact that families go and visit them, etc. No one writes an article about the neglected graves in those communities.

Slovakia, Police, and Roma

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Slovakia, Police, and Roma

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has allowed the Public Defender of Rights (VOP) Róbert Dobrovodský, as a third party, to enter the proceedings in the case of Miko and Jano v. Slovakia. This case concerns a police intervention in the village of Milhosť in 2023, in which, according to the findings of the Office of the Public Defender of Rights, serious violations of fundamental rights and freedoms, including the rights of minors, occurred.

On March 28, 2025, Róbert Dobrovodský, Public Defender of Rights, submitted an extraordinary report to the National Council of the Slovak Republic. In it, he revealed facts that indicate a violation of fundamental rights and freedoms by the actions of the Police Force.

“The case of the death of a person after the intervention of the Košice police, which shook Slovakia at the end of 2024, violence during interrogation, the case of a beaten homeless person in front of a department store, an unprovoked slap on a handcuffed person, an official intervention against Roma from Milhoste, the detention of a person with broken heels in an illegal reserved area for more than three days, the violation of the rights of a person held by the Bratislava police without proper registration for more than 12 hours, or the official intervention in March 2023 in the Police Detention Unit for Foreigners in Sečovce against foreigners,” Dobrovodský warned at the time.

Montenegro and Roma

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Montenegro and Roma

Another article about the lack of Romano representation in the parliament of Montenegro. The problem is somewhat more complex than the article states: Reserved seats for minorities are pretty much useless, and traditional parties shun Roma representatives.

This requires action from the Roma community which, in many countries has a close to 10% voting block, to act.

Czechia: Regional Coordinators

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Czechia: Regional Coordinators

A working meeting of regional coordinators for Roma affairs, Roma advisors, field workers, representatives of local governments and state administration took place in Pardubice on September 18 and 19. The aim of the two-day event was to deepen cooperation between institutions and methodologically support the implementation of integration measures. The main focus was on the prevention of anti-Gypsyism in public administration and intergroup relations. The event was co-organized by the Pardubice Region, the Department of Human Rights and Protection of Minorities of the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic and the Government Commissioner for Roma Minority Affairs Lucie Fuková.

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