Martin Horvath grew up in Unterwart with his sister and two brothers, and whenever he talks about his childhood, there’s always a very special light in his eyes. Characterized by a strong sense of community, it was a happy, sheltered childhood.
Half a million Romani and Sinti people were persecuted and murdered in Europe by the Nazi regime. Many thousands of them came from Austria. However, there is still no nationwide memorial in Austria for the victims of the genocide. Now it seems within reach, but the location is still under discussion.
The European University of Flensburg presented the results of a two-year study on the history of Sinti and Roma in Schleswig-Holstein to the state parliament, thus filling a previously under-researched historical gap. They focused on Deportations of Sinti and Roma in Schleswig-Holstein during the Nazi Era.
A special rapporteur of the UN Human Rights Council criticized the lack of awareness of racism in Austria following a visit there. “There is a widespread reluctance to fully acknowledge the existence of racism,” Indian political scientist Ashwini K. P. told the APA news agency on Monday at the UN headquarters in Vienna. She clearly stated her opposition to the planned headscarf ban for girls, arguing that it would reinforce prejudices.
She had also received “disturbing reports and accounts” of discrimination against Roma and Sinti. She was also “deeply concerned” about the increase in anti-Semitic incidents.
A Forum on minority education was recently held in Vienna. At this meeting, every summer, issues regarding the languages of Croats, Ugric, Roma and Slovenes in education are discussed.
Question is, what is the impact?
The musician and activist Harri Stojka is calling for the swift construction of a memorial for Roma and Sinti in Austria at Schmerlingplatz in Vienna. “There, at a historically significant location in the heart of Vienna, a visible symbol of remembrance and recognition should be erected.”
On Saturday, the Roma and Sinti who were murdered during the National Socialist regime were commemorated in Lackenbach. Along with numerous state politicians, the Minister of Justice, Anna Sporrer (SPÖ), participated. Of the 4,000 Roma and Sinti who were interned in the Lackenbach camp since the summer of 1940, only 300 to 400 survived the liberation of the camp in the summer of 1945.
A study on poverty driven migration examines the topic of poverty migration from a sociological perspective in order to understand the situation of those affected from a scientific perspective. ITts focus is on the everyday lives of those in need and how they deal with potential stigmatization. Using key question-based interviews with Slovak and Romanian citizens, the living conditions of those in need were examined. The results show that those in need lack vital basic necessities in their countries of origin, which is why commuter migration to Western Europe is the only option.
Young Roma, sponsored by the Oberwart Roma Service’s holiday care program, whose aim is to look after Roma children during the school year but also during the holidays, went to visit the Eisenstadt Studio of Romano Dikipe.
Romano Dikipe is a Roma TV program in Austria.
A scandal currently seems to be on the front pages of several Austrian newspapers. The case of a wedding of 12 years old who, according to the press was no longer a virgin.
As usual, this is being described as common practice among all Roma. This is not the case, and concerns mostly a minority of all Roma communities.
In her textile “paintings,” Małgorzata Mirga-Tas connects the past and present of the Roma. At the Kunsthaus Bregenz, she tells stories of her community, marked by pride in their own culture.
The traditional pilgrimage of Sinti and Roma to Mariazell in Austria.
A reportage on Arte on Ceija Stoika and her paintings.
A very recently (2025) restored documentary about Burgenland Roma from 1954. The young boy in the movie just died this week in Vienna. May he rest in peace.
The commentaries and the story are still fraught with stereotypes and misconceptions and with a view on assimilation versus integration. Still worth looking at it.
https://www.filmarchiv.at/de/filmarchiv-on/video/f_02z3zg4rN50IbrQMa8LJl5
A three-day excursion by students from the Pedagogical College from Klagenfurt (Pädagogische Hochschule Kärnten, Viktor Frankl Hochschule) took place in Prekmurje and Porabje from 14 to 16 May 2025 as part of the seminar Research Learning in the Slovenia Region.
On the first day of the excursion, the students visited the Roma Information Center, which also includes Radio Romic and the Romano Pušča Kindergarten. According to the article, they learned about an example of good practice in the inclusion of preschool Roma children.
Well, Slovenia is not really successful there …
For National Council President Walter Rosenkranz (FPÖ), the erection of a memorial to the Roma and Sinti persecuted and murdered under National Socialism is “a long overdue step.” “I very much hope that the ongoing search for a location will soon lead to a positive outcome,” he said in his opening speech at the event marking International Roma Remembrance Day in Parliament.
Some of the events in Austria.
Kateřina Čapková currently works at the Vienna Wiesenthal Institute for Holocaust Studies, where she researches the various political strategies towards Roma and Romnja during the Nazi era. In the future, Austria will also increasingly be a focus of her work. Her goal: to finally make historical findings accessible to the general public.
Čapková is a Czech historian and university professor specializing in the history of Roma. Her academic career began in the 1990s at Charles University in Prague. While still a student, she worked in the Department of Jewish Studies at the Institute of Contemporary History of the Academy of Sciences.
The desecration of graves in Vienna continues. The graves of Lovara as well as Sinti in several cemeteries are particularly affected. Investigations are ongoing. So far there are no concrete clues as to the group of perpetrators. The relatives hope that the crimes will be solved quickly.
The commemoration of the Oberwart attack which killed 4 Roma in that town exactly 30 years ago was held on Tuesday evening in this town.
On the night of February 5, 1995, a pipe bomb killed four Roma in Oberwart: Josef Simon, Peter Sarközi and Karl and Erwin Horvath. The men wanted to remove a sign with the inscription “Roma back to India”
May they rest in peace.
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