A new movie to watch.
Fairly quiet in the French news this week on Roma. An article on the future “transition” camp for Roma near Montpellier which prompted many protests; a fire in Nantes near a Roma camp; an expulsion request of 4 families in Villeneuve d’Asc; and the camp at the end of the Roissy runway near Paris opens again – this clearly showing it would be simpler to lodge those Roma rather than just displace them.
A reportage on the Saines Marie de la Mer pilgrimage with all the confusion and stereotypes that the French show between Manouches, Sinti, Roma, Travellers… They seem not to want to get it right.
The person arrested for the murder of a young teacher, Ashling Murphy, is a Slovak, and apparently also Rom. This is bad. A Slovak MP, Peter Pollak, urged to refrain from collective guilt on Roma.
The Slovak view on the intervention of the Slovak MP Peter Pollak on the arrest of a suspect for the murder of the Irish teacher Ashling Murphy.
Zilli Schmidt, one of the last survivors of the Auschwitz concentration camp, received the Federal Cross of Merit in Mannheim on Friday evening. Mayor Peter Kurz (SPD) paid tribute to the 97-year-old for her political commitment as a member of German Sinti and Roma. Zilli Schmidt was persecuted by the National Socialists as a “Gypsy”. Her parents, her two sisters and her daughter Gretel were murdered in Auschwitz. After the Second World War, Zilli Schmidt built a new life in Mannheim. Under the title “God has planned something for me!” she published her biography two years ago.
Another case of a successful Sinto who doesn’t out himself for fear of losing clients.
All too common still
An exhibition entitled “Last Seen” opened in Munich.
It shows pictures of people who were deported by the Nazis and later killed, with several of Sinti and Roma.
A memorial for the Sinti and Roma murdered during the National Socialist era is to be erected in Saarbrücken. According to the city, the memorial will be erected at the parish church of St. Michael in St. Johann.
On the anniversary of the Wannsee Conference where the fate of Jews was sealed, the head of memorial ponders about parallels between the past and the present.
Around 60 youngsters from the Albert Einstein School (AES) will now be able to guide their classmates through an exhibition entitled “The Path of the Sinti and Roma”. They have been trained accordingly. The students are involved in a project called “School without Racism – School with Courage”.
The controversy on the Documentation Centre and the memorial of the Hannover Railway station is being solved. The Documentation Centre will have its own building.
The controversy arose as the initial location of the centre was in a building shared with a company who is linked to Nazis.
A book written and concepted by Roma children aims at changing perceptions of Roma.
A large manifestation is expected in the UK today to protest against the new police laws. Among others, thee laws will criminalise trespass in a way that is aimed at Roma and Travellers.
More news this week on Roma, but again, mostly on Montpellier where a large Roma camp will be closed in March and replaced by a temporary camp. Future neighbours of this camp are vehemently protesting and the mayor of the commune where it will be located is saying that people will get killed.
Other news are more of the same. A camp re-opens in the South of France; a camp burns down near Paris; neighbours of a Roma camp near Paris convince the mayor to close a camp; and finally, one of the oldest insertion villages in France, in the northern town of Roubaix, closes.
A court in Milan reversed an order from the municipality to evict three Roma families in a camp.
A legal case on final injunctions against illegal occupation of land, i.e. camping.
An editorial on the new law currently being debated in the House of Lords which not only threatens protests but also criminalises Roma and Travellers way of life.
A new project “Thara” in Austria aims at helping Roma acquiring new skills and learnings so as to have more chances of finding jobs.
An article on the Roma community of Coventry.
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