Category Archives: News Eastern Europe

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovénie

Slovenia and the Roma “Problem”

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In the Slovenian municipality of Škocjan, the population feels there is a real Roma “problem”. The question asked is whether a Roma councillor in the municipal council (OS) could help solve the problems? The municipality of Škocjan does not have one, because it is not a “Rom” municipality. About 350 Roma live there, which is 10 percent of the entire population, 20 percent of Roma children attend .

Hongire Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est

Hungarian Census 2022

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The preliminary results of the Hungarian 2022 census have been published. One astonishing fact is that according to the census, the Roma population decreased by more than a third, passing from 315’000 in 2011 to 209’000 now.

These numbers are totally out of whack with reality, as the estimated number of Roma in Hungary lies between 600 and 800’000… According to the Hungarian press, the decrease is due to people not stating their ethnicity in the census.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovénie

Slovenia and Roma

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Bojan Kekecis a member of the National Council of the Republic of Slovenia. Last week, he gave an interview about the changes to some laws that relate to the Roma issue. “Living with them is very difficult. I don’t know how they would look in Ljubljana or other places when a beehive or grain in a field is set on fire. Such actions are unacceptable. There is a lot of crime and misdemeanours.”

No comments …

Bulgarie Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est

Bulgaria: Brawl

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Another one of these stories that make it always to the press and give the impression all Roma are like this: A fight between two Roma families in Razlog escalated terribly. A 20-year-old boy was stabbed in the stomach and hospitalized. The attacker with the knife fled and is currently being sought. The families are from different parts of the country, but work in Razlog. Last night they sat down to eat and drink at the hotel where they are staying in the city. They got drunk and fought, after which 50-year-old Zivko K. grabbed the knife and wounded 20-year-old Valentin. Seeing what he had done, he fled the scene of the crime.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Pologne

Poland and Roma

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In his last address to the management of the Ministry of Interior and Administration, the Ombudsman points out that the Roma settlement in Koszary, in the Limanowa commune, is inhabited by approximately 120 people. Many of them live in buildings arbitrarily built from random materials. These buildings are in poor technical condition – they are neither insulated nor plastered.

This is not new, and this discussion has been going on for years by now.

Bad.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovaquie

Slovakia: Football Tournament

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The EQUAL CUP football tournament is taking place in Záhorí under the auspices of the Human in Danger organization, with the participation of students from Lozorn and Plavecký Štvrtek. As part of the Better Future for Young Roma project, which is financed by the Volkswagen Slovakia Foundation, the organization Human in Danger works with young people from marginalized Roma communities (MRK) in western Slovakia, primarily in Záhorí.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Ukraine

Lviv: Tent School

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Another article in the Ukrainian press about the tent school set up in a Roma refugee camp by a catholic priest. There are quite a few photos that show the precarity of the camp. Maybe it would be better to lodge these IDPs correctly and send the children to a regular school…

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovaquie

Erik Žigmund

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Erik Žigmund is a successful Slovak musician, and a Rom. He says: “There are very few Roma in Trenčín, I was probably the only one in the whole school”. He also said he was bullied in school. He speaks about a friend who died and abot commemoration in this interview.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Ukraine

Lviv, Roma, and the Church

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On October 9, the Roman Catholic Church organized a school where both children and adults can study in the Roma camp near the bypass road of Lviv.

This is good, but is also coupled with a strong push to convert, even though the vast majority of Roma there are Orthodox.

Bulgarie Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est

Bulgaria and Roma

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The Bulgarian press focuses on bad stories on Roma. Here, on a police operation in three Roma settlements in Kazanlak. This followed the stabbing of a policeman in the Roma settlement “Kazmera” by a 20-year-old criminal from the neighbourhood.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovénie

Slovenia and a Missionary

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An interview with Matic Vidic who is employed by the Slovenian Army where he takes care of spiritual care in the Novo mesto and Cerklje ob Krka barracks. He is a permanent deacon in the diocese of Novo mesto, and he teaches religious education to children. He also does pastoral work with Roma and wants to help Roma to improve their lives and to improve the bad relations between the local population and Roma.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovénie

Slovenia and Roma

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The Slovene Ombudsman Peter Svetina visited the municipalities of Škocjan, Sevnica and Radeče, where he met with mayors. In Škocjan, he was informed about the problems they have with individual Roma. At the same time, Svetina emphasized that positive discrimination against the Roma minority cannot discriminate against the rights of the majority population. After the meeting he clarified the statemen, saying Roma population have legislation which protects them, “but positive discrimination cannot discriminate against the rights of the majority population”, but the right balance must be found. “Also, protective legislation does not give the Roma population a free hand for criminal acts”.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Pologne

Infamia

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An interview with Anna Maliszewska, the director and author of the series “Infamia”. She explains how difficult it was to give an objective portrait of Roma and how she did not manage to get any of them to come to the castings. She also spoke of Dr. Joanna Talewicz, who has been working for the Roma community for years and how she helped her in shaping the series.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovaquie

Roma and the Slovak Election

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An article on the press reaction to the fact that around 80% of the Roma in Eastern Slovakia voted for the Oľano party. It wouldn’t be an issue but for the implicit attempt in those articles to portray the Roma as stupid, who let Igor Matovič, the Ol’ano leader, fool them. Worse, as the author says, is that the media is also assuming that the Roma vote was bought.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Serbie

Vojvodina and Education

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The city of Subotica financed free textbooks for vulnerable children from the Roma population again this year. This is a measure aimed at preventing school dropouts and has been in place for a number of years. The ceremony of handing over textbooks was held today at the “Matko Vuković” Elementary School.

Bosnie Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est

Bosnia and Roma

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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.

Montenegro Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est

Montenegro: Exhibition

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The NGO “Koračite sa nama – Phiren Amenca” opened the exhibition “Racial diagnosis: “Gypsy” – the Nazi genocide of the Roma and Sinti and the long struggle for recognition” paid a special tribute to the victims of the Roma and Sinti victims of the Holocaust during the Second World War.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovaquie

OĽaNO and Roma

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The big surprise of the last elections in Slovakia was the re-emergence of the OĽaNO party, which took almost all localities in Eastern Slovakia with a large Roma minority.

Electoral fraud was immediately suspected. But no concrete cases were found so far. The explanation of this success was presented by Igor Matovič, the party head, together with Peter Pollák, a Roma representative of this party. They said that it was the fear of the populist (and anti-Roma) Fico who drove Roma to vote en masse for OĽaNO.

Nouvelles d'Europe de l'est Slovaquie

Slovak Parliament

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There will be 6 Roma in the new Slovak Parliament. 6 out of 150, so not quite yet at the population level. 4 of them are from the OĽaNO party.

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