Category Archives: Bosnia

Bosnia and Hercegovina – Romanes Day

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Bosnia and Hercegovina – Romanes Day

A very small number of Roma speak their mother tongue. The question is why this is so. Are the Roma additionally exposed to discrimination due to the use of the Romani language, or is it not being given enough attention? And the activities so far have not produced concrete results.

Ago and Beko from Kakanj speak the Romany language every day, thereby emphasizing their tradition, and the language is passed down from generation to generation in their family. “It’s important for us, it’s part of our tradition. The first language is Romanes, and then it gradually goes to Bosnian.”

Bosnia: Saint Georges

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Bosnia: Saint Georges

The feast of St. Georges or Đurđevdan is one of the most Roma feast in the Balkans. Here, two articles about it in Bosnia and Hercegovina, close to Sarajevo.

Bosnia and Roma

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Bosnia and Roma

The Association of Roma women Center for Mothers “Izvor života” Vitez held a conference and a workshop as part of the project “Let’s learn the Romani language” financed by the European Union in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and implemented by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP.

The overall goal of this project is: to nurture and spread the culture of the Roma in Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to preserve their identity, but also to be accepted by other peoples in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Bosnia and Roma

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Bosnia and Roma

Romanes, language of Roma was introduced in elementary schools in Tuzla Canton, which thus became the first canton in Bosnia and Herzegovina to systematically contribute to the creation of an educational environment without discrimination and the preservation of the rights of national minorities. Years of lobbying and advocacy have finally borne fruit, say the Roma Association “Euro Rom” Tuzla.

Bosnia, Roma, and Education

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Bosnia, Roma, and Education

Roma students do not come to class because they do not have transportation. Children who live in the Konik settlement do not attend classes in six elementary schools in the capital, since the beginning of the school year, on September 4.

Bosnia, Religion, and Education

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Bosnia, Religion, and Education

The journalist and activist Dalibor Tanić wrote an open letter to Minister Naida Hota-Muminović on the topic of a lesson on religious holidays found in the textbook “My environment” for the third grade of elementary school, authored by Zinaida Livnjak. The lesson cites Catholic, Orthodox, Muslim and Jewish religious holidays but also adds “Roma” Holidays!

Tanić says rightly that Đurđevdan and Aliđun/Ilindan are not religious holidays, but traditional ones. Roma religion does not exist. Roma, not only in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but throughout Europe are also Muslims, Catholics, and Orthodox.

Another case of ignorance on the part of the author and the authorities …

Bosnia, Dodik and Djokovic

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Bosnia, Dodik and Djokovic

The president of the Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik started insulting the family of the tennis player Djokovic. He said: “Though, I can tell you, these Djokovics are a bit hard on the motherfucker, ugh… Our people experience it emotionally, and when you get into work aww.. Quite a gypsy, I can tell you… Those associates of his, lose more…”

This provoked protests from Roma organisations.

Bosnia and Roma

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Bosnia and Roma

The head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ambassador Brian Aggeler was in Mostar. He insisted that there is a need to improve education and the status of Roma besides fighting corruption in the country.

Bosnia: Human Trafficking

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Bosnia: Human Trafficking

Two people were sentenced recently in Bosnia Hercegovina for human trafficking. They had forced people to beg and steal in Paris by threatening them and their families back home. Apparently, they managed to earn around 1.5 mio EUR between 2012 and 2015.

The threats were recorded, which provided the evidence and they were sentenced to 12 years each.

Bosnia and Romanes

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Bosnia and Romanes

The fifth-grade students of “Vuk Stefanović Karadžić” Elementary School used their trip to the Doboj National Library to learn something about the Romani language, which is unknown to many of them.

“It’s the first time I’ve heard of the Romani language, and it seems very difficult to master. I found it very interesting and it reminds me a little of the German language, because some sounds are marked by two letters,” said Stefan Radovanović, while his school friend Nikša Pejičić believes that Roma fairy tales more beautiful than the ones he had the chance to hear and read so far.

Erdelezi

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Erdelezi

A few articles in the Balkan press on the celebrations of Erdelezi or Đurđevdan – simply Saint Georges day in the orthodox calendar – which fell on May 6th, and is celebrated by all Roma in the Balkans.

Italy: More about the family

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The Family of Roma at the centre of the controversy and the mob in Rome are Bosnian Roma.

– Pope Backs Bosnian Roma Family Against Italian Rightists. In: Balkan Insights. 10.05.2019. https://balkaninsight.com/2019/05/10/bosnian-roma-family-defy-italian-rightist-protests/ [link-preview url=”https://balkaninsight.com/2019/05/10/bosnian-roma-family-defy-italian-rightist-protests/”]

Bosnia: Racism

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A really shocking article from Bosnia. Residents from Mostar are protesting because “many” Roma are coming to Mostar, are stealing, sexually harassing women, burning tires, and generally attacking inhabitants.
Well … Let’s not forget that these brave Bosnians were all in agreement to ethnically cleanse Roma out of their respective regions. As a result, they effectively deprived most Roma of their homes and of a living.

– Med staroselci vre: »Izpostavljeni smo krajam, spolnim nadlegovanjem ter fizičnim napadom Romov«. In: Democracija. 15.08.2018. http://www.demokracija.si/tujina/v-mostarskemu-naselju-vre-izpostavljeni-smo-krajam-spolnim-nadlegovanjem-ter-fizicnim-napadom-romov.html [link-preview url=”http://www.demokracija.si/tujina/v-mostarskemu-naselju-vre-izpostavljeni-smo-krajam-spolnim-nadlegovanjem-ter-fizicnim-napadom-romov.html”]

Holocaust Remembrance: Bosnia

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– Head of Council of Europe Office in Sarajevo paid respects to Roma victims of the Holocaust in Donja Gradina. In: Council of Europe. 02.08.2018. https://www.coe.int/en/web/sarajevo/-/head-of-council-of-europe-office-in-sarajevo-paid-respects-to-roma-victims-of-the-holocaust-in-donja-gradina [link-preview url=”https://www.coe.int/en/web/sarajevo/-/head-of-council-of-europe-office-in-sarajevo-paid-respects-to-roma-victims-of-the-holocaust-in-donja-gradina”]

Bosnia

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Schooling is difficult for Roma in Bosnia. In Modrički Lug, a van was is planned to be bought in order to ferry Roma children to the nearby city of Vukosavlje, where they can pursue their school career. There is no upper secondary school in the city, and due to poverty, most cannot afford the transport. The purchase is a local Roma initiative.

– ROMS DE BOSNIE-HERZÉGOVINE : GRANDE PAUVRETÉ VS. DROIT À L’ÉDUCATION. In: Le Courrier des Balkans. 23.05.2018. https://www.courrierdesbalkans.fr/Roms-de-Bosnie-Herzegovine-grande-pauvrete-vs-droit-a-l-education [link-preview url=”https://www.courrierdesbalkans.fr/Roms-de-Bosnie-Herzegovine-grande-pauvrete-vs-droit-a-l-education”]

Džurdjevan

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Pictures and a a story around the celebrations of St. Goerge’s day among Bosnian Roma.

– AP PHOTOS: Bosnian Roma celebrate St. George’s Day. In: The Washington Post. 10.05.2018. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/ap-photos-bosnian-roma-celebrate-st-georges-day/2018/05/10/cd66ca50-5431-11e8-a6d4-ca1d035642ce_story.html?utm_term=.c687d1e7eead [link-preview url=”https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/ap-photos-bosnian-roma-celebrate-st-georges-day/2018/05/10/cd66ca50-5431-11e8-a6d4-ca1d035642ce_story.html?utm_term=.c687d1e7eead”]

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