Category Archives: News Eastern Europe

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Hodonín u Kunštátu Memorial

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Hodonín u Kunštátu Memorial

 A meeting of descendants of Roma and Sinti Holocaust survivors took place at the Hodonín u Kunštátu Memorial to the Holocaust of the Roma and Sinti in Moravia on Saturday, 16 May 2026 to honour the memory of the Roma and Sinti victims of Nazism. The event was organized by the Association of Roma and Sinti in the Czech Republic together with the Brno Christian Aid Association.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Podcast

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Podcast

In the twenty-third episode of the SODAcast podcast, its authors Zdeněk Ryšavý and Patrik Banga return to the housing case of Minister for Regional Development Zuzana Mrázová, the debate on the Agency for Social Inclusion, the May Day march against fascism and the vocabulary of some politicians. They also discuss the Sudeten Germans’ congress in Brno and the violence of some football fans.

Hungary News Eastern Europe

Hungarian Roma Anthem

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Hungarian Roma Anthem

Young, mostly Roma, members of the Sugo Tambura band realised their dream on Saturday by performing the Roma hymn at Hungary’s parliament. The new prime minister, Péter Magyar, kept the promise he made to the children when he visited their village on the campaign trail. Roma rights campaigners have seized the moment, calling on the new government to ensure that the symbolism translates into real change.

This is not the most widely accepted Roma anthem, as that one is Djelem Djelem.

Czech Republic Germany News Eastern Europe News Western Europe

Khamoro Festival: Ma bistrass! – Against Forgetting!

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Khamoro Festival: Ma bistrass! – Against Forgetting!

What contribution can art and culture make to remembering the genocide of the Roma and Sinti? This question will be addressed in the discussion in the context of the exhibition of the same name.

This collaborative event between the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future (EVZ) and the Goethe-Institut brings together German and Czech stakeholders from civil society and the cultural sector, inviting them to reflect, discuss, and develop new perspectives for an inclusive and future-oriented culture of remembrance. The discussion takes place in conjunction with the photography exhibition of the same name, which will be on display on Kampa Island in Prague from May 27 to June 10.

News Eastern Europe Slovakia

Alexander Daško

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Alexander Daško

Government Plenipotentiary for Roma Communities Alexander Daško has rejected calls from the opposition movement Progressive Slovakia to resign. He claims that he has achieved concrete results in Roma communities during his almost two years in office and sees no reason to leave.

Daško responded mainly to PS’s accusations of a possible conflict of interest in allocating subsidies to the civic association Lavuta, which is associated with his family and is currently led by his wife. According to him, however, the funds did not come from the Office of the Government Plenipotentiary for Roma Communities.

Bulgaria Europe News Eastern Europe

Bulgaria Anti-Roma Rhetoric

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Bulgaria Anti-Roma Rhetoric

The European Court of Human Rights sided with Roma activists and journalists who argued national courts treated racist political rhetoric too narrowly while ignoring its wider impact on an entire minority community.

Bosnia News Eastern Europe

Bosnia and Hercegovina

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Bosnia and Hercegovina

An interesting article stating that the younger generation in Bosnia and Hercegovina is asking for a change in the country, and for stopping the ethnic divide. This ethnic divide is particularly bad for minorities, Roma, Jews, Turks, who de-facto are not represented and are nowhere at home.

News Eastern Europe Slovenia

Slovenia: Award

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Slovenia: Award

This year, the Andragogic Center of Slovenia awarded the Roma Academic Club an award for exceptional achievements in the field of lifelong learning in the Pomurje region.

The Roma Academic Club, which is based in the municipality of Puconci, has been operating since 2008. It was founded by a group of students from the Roma community with the desire to connect individuals who share a common goal, education.

Bulgaria News Eastern Europe

World Roma Congress

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World Roma Congress

Scholarships for Roma students and a policy against hate speech will be part of the proposals of the Fifteenth World Roma Congress – Sofia ’26 Scholarships for Roma students and a policy against hate speech will be part of the proposals Congress in Sofia.

News Eastern Europe Slovenia

Roma in Slovenia

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Roma in Slovenia

Slovenia is estimating that there are 7,620 Roma residents in 25 municipalities with 80 Roma settlements. Among the municipalities in Dolenjska and Posavje, according to the above estimates, the largest number of Roma is in the municipality of Novo mesto, where approximately 1,180 live in Roma settlements.

When there are so few Roma, why are there so many articles about them being a “threat”?

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Czechia and Minorities

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Czechia and Minorities

The Czech Constitution rejects calling any group of people “parasites” or considering somebody “inferior”, Senate President Miloš Vystrčil (Civic Democratic Party – ODS) explained at the commemorative ceremony for the Romani and Sinti victims of the Holocaust in Lety u Písku, referring to the recent words of Foreign Minister Petr Macinka and Government Commissioner for Climate Policy and the Green Deal, Filip Turek, both of the Motorists for Themselves party. The gathering honored the memory of the victims of the concentration camp for Roma and Sinti that was established in Lety in 1942.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Michal Mižigár

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Michal Mižigár

In his speech to the commemorative ceremony in Lety u Písku, Czech Republic, Romani scholar Michal Mižigár pointed out that the memorial on the site of the former WWII-era concentration camp for Roma and Sinti is not just a reminder of the past, but also a call to address current racism against Romani people. He spoke to the long struggle for the dignified memorial, the present-day segregation of Romani children in the schools, the forced sterilization of Romani women, and the need to involve Romani men and women in decision-making on matters which affect them.

News Eastern Europe Slovakia

Alexander Daško

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Alexander Daško

Since the beginning of Alexander Daško’s tenure as the Slovak government’s plenipotentiary for Roma communities, we would like to point out that instead of defending the interests of marginalized communities, he has become an obedient implementer of this government’s policy. Now, serious doubts have surfaced about his conflict of interest and possible handing over of subsidies to his family, said Ingrid Kosová, a member of the Slovak National Council.

“The public has not yet received a convincing explanation of the issues surrounding more than 700,000 euros for a civic association associated with Alexander Daško, which is currently led by his wife. Equally serious is the information about his wife’s participation in subsidy committees, while Daško refuses to admit an obvious conflict of interest,” the member of parliament added.

There are now calls for his dismissal or  for him to resign.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Commemoration in Lety

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Commemoration in Lety

On Sunday, 10 May 2026 at 12:00 CET the commemorative ceremony honoring the memory of the victims of the WWII-era concentration camp for Roma and Sinti will be held on the grounds of the Lety u Písku Memorial to the Holocaust of the Roma and Sinti in Bohemia. The gathering is held by the Committee for the Redress of the Roma Holocaust in the Czech Republic with the support of the Czech Culture Ministry and the Foundation for Holocaust Victims.

News Eastern Europe Slovakia

Roma Funds in Slovakia

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Roma Funds in Slovakia

After the 2023 elections, Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer) appointed loyal party member Alexander Daško as the plenipotentiary for Roma communities to decide on the redistribution of money for projects. Daško was given significant authority to gradually decide on the use of approximately 430 million euros out of the total billion that the European Union has allocated to support Roma in Slovakia until 2027. The remaining money is distributed by the ministries of labor, education, and health.

Now he is losing this, and the funds will be managed by the head of the Government Office, Juraj Gedra.

Croatia News Eastern Europe

Croatian Roma Funds

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Croatian Roma Funds

The Croatian state has published the list of recipoients of the 380’000 Euros allocated to Roma in the country.

  1. ​Roma Association in Croatia “KALI SARA” (Zagreb): 238,000 euros (over 60% of the total budget)
  2. ​Roma Resource Center (Darda): 58,900 euros
  3. Roma Women’s Association “Bolja Budućnost” (Zagreb): 27,000 euros
  4. Roma National Forum Association (Beli Manastir): 21,500 euros

​The funds are intended for information, publishing, culture and events such as the “World Romani Language Day” or the commemoration of the suffering of the Roma in World War II (Samudaripen).

The article bemoans the lack of fund in the Međimurje region.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Khamoro Festival

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Khamoro Festival

The already traditional international Khamoro festival presents the best of Roma culture from around the world. Visitors can look forward to concerts, an accompanying program and meetings with prominent figures of the Roma music and art scene.

The festival brings a diverse mix of genres from traditional Roma music to modern projects and offers a unique opportunity to experience the richness of Roma culture in the heart of Prague.

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