News Eastern Europe Slovenia

Sport and Integration?

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Sport and Integration?

The Roma Association of Slovenia organized a round table in Murska Sobota entitled Sports and culture within the Roma community – challenges of the future. The discussion, which took place in Mikko, was led by the president of the association, Jožek Horvat Muc, and was attended by Danica Polak Gruden, director of the Office for Nationalities, Damjan Anželj, mayor of the Municipality of Murska Sobota, Miran Kos, vice president of the Olympic Committee of Slovenia, Darko Rudaš, Roma councilor in the Municipality of Murska Sobota, and Dejan Židan, state secretary at the Ministry of the Economy, Tourism and Sport.

Well, regardless of this, sport is not going to solve the issue …

Bulgaria News Eastern Europe Romania

Romania, Music, and AI

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Romania, Music, and AI

A singer with artificial intelligence was created in Romania. She is called Lolita and already has thousands of fans and millions of views on social networks, local media reported in their reports on the subject.

The creator of Lolita is a young man from Bacău, who calls himself Tom. He is a visual designer by profession with over ten years of experience in editing photos and videos.

“Lolita sings in Romanian. She is a project that connects the old with the new. A specific violin sound, traditional music performed by Roma orchestras, is mixed with modern instrumental accents. Several styles are intertwined,” explains Tom, who writes the lyrics of the songs.

Bulgaria News Eastern Europe

Bulgaria: The Pope

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Bulgaria: The Pope

Following a police action (and literally dozens of articles), the “Roma Baron” Hristo Varbanov, known for his nickname Itso the Pope, was detained. He was detained in Kostinbrod during an operation by the “Cobra” unit of the Sofia Directorate of Internal Affairs for property fraud, and for an old affaire of kidnapping.

News Eastern Europe Slovenia

Šutar Act

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Šutar Act

In January, the Financial Administration of the Republic of Slovenia (Furs), based on the so-called Šutar Act, began enforcing cash social assistance against debtors who had repeatedly violated regulations in recent years and failed to pay the fines imposed. They blocked the bank accounts of these people, and blocked even the delivery of the basic social cash assistance, leaving these families without any means.

The Roma community is drawing attention primarily to the social consequences of such implementation of the legislation. In public statements, they highlighted cases of families left without basic resources and demanded changes in the enforcement of fines and greater involvement of social work centers.

Hungary News Eastern Europe Slovakia

Janos Lazar – Slovak View

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Janos Lazar – Slovak View

Two articles in the Slovak press about the Hungarian Constrcion and Transport Minister Janos Lazar comment that Roma are good at cleaning “shitty train toilets.”

These articles stress the discrimination faced by Roma in Hungary.

News Eastern Europe Slovakia

Slovakia and Roma

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Slovakia and Roma

The Association of Municipalities and Cities of Slovakia (ZMOS)  and the Freedom and Solidarity party (SaS)  reject the National Employment Project for 17 million euros. This is a government project aimed at marginalized Roma communities. Both ZMOS and SaS believe that it is too much money considering how many people this project will employ.

The project is to be implemented in 140 municipalities and employ 200 members of Roma communities over 30 months, who will complete 39 hours of training in soft skills during these 30 months.

This would amount to almost 3’000 euros per employed person per month. Way over the average salaries in Slovakia.

Hungary News Eastern Europe

Hungary and Roma

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Hungary and Roma

On Wednesday morning (28 January), Lajos Lőcsei, vice-president of the Hungarian centrist Momentum Movement, and András Fekete-Győr, the party’s founder, delivered several hundred toilet brushes to the Batida mansion of János Lázár, the construction and transport minister. He had said that Roma should be cleaning toilets in trains.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Ladislav Goral

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Ladislav Goral

Ladislav Goral, an important figure in the Czech Roma movement, has passed away at the age of 86. Hew was born in Slovakia but move after the war to Czech lands. As an actor, activist, he made a huge impact on the Roma movement in Czechia.

May he rest in peace. Te avel i phuv lokhi.

Bulgaria News Eastern Europe

Bulgaria: Police Action

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Bulgaria: Police Action

A whole series of articles (we only list two here) about the siege of a property by a special squad of the Bulgarian police. The home of alleged Roma baron Hristo Varbanov, known by his nickname Itso the Pope, in Kostinbrod is under police siege.

News Eastern Europe Slovenia

Slovenia and Roma

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Slovenia and Roma

The president of the People’s Initiative of Dolenjska, Silvo Mesojedec, is criticising sharly Roma NGOs.

“Instead of finally confronting the causes that led to this situation (non-attendance at school, crime, unemployment), they are now attacking those rare solutions that are trying to establish order.”

The president of the Roma Association of Slovenia Umbrella – Dežnik wrote that almost 1,300 Roma families were pushed into absolute poverty with one political decision.

“The so-called Šutar legislation and the policies of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia have pushed the Roma community back centuries. The elderly, the sick and children have been left without food, water and electricity. Children are hungry today because of the decisions of a state that outwardly presents itself as social and democratic,” he wrote in a statement.

Hungary News Eastern Europe

Hungary, Lazar, and Roma

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Hungary, Lazar, and Roma

An article about the offensive comment of Janos Lazar, Hungarian Minister of Constructuion and  Transport, stating that this could cost Fidesz, Orban’s party votes in the upcoming elections of Apruil 12th.

Europe

Commemorations

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Commemorations

United Nations, EU Parliament, and the Council of Europe commemorated the 27th of January.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Memorial Space

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Memorial Space

Descendants of survivors of the Genocide of the Roma in the Czech Republic expressed reservations in a joint statement about how memorialisation is handled in Czechia. First and foremose, the use of “Gypy” camp insetad of concentration camp, but they mentioned other issues such as the lack of consultation with the families of survivors and the used and choice of vicual materials.

Europe

Holocaust Remembrance Day

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Holocaust Remembrance Day

Holocaust Remembrance Day 

Today makers the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz which has become the Holocaust Remembrance Day. Jews and Roma were singled out for racial reasons, while many others, Poles, Russian prisoners of war, homosexuals, Jehova witnesses, etc. were also victims of this madness.

A short first sample of the press releases on this day. A very honourable mention for the Canadian Prime minister who also included Sinti and Roma.

Germany News Western Europe

Hamburg and Memorial

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Hamburg and Memorial

For 15 years, the Hamburg Senate has been planning to build a documentation center in Lohsepark in HafenCity to depict the deportation of Jews, Sinti, and Roma during the Nazi era. Because the project is stalled, an open letter has now been published.

It is addressed to First Mayor Peter Tschentscher (SPD) and private sponsor Harm Müller-Spreer. The realization of the documentation center at the former Hanoverian Railway Station is in jeopardy, and the Senate’s credibility is therefore at stake. This is the message from representatives of the Auschwitz Committee in Hamburg.

Italy News Western Europe

Fascists and Nazis

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Fascists and Nazis

Twenty-four hours before the Holocaust Remembrance Day celebrations on January 27, 2026, dedicated to the memory of the victims of the Holocaust and all those persecuted and deported by the Nazi and Fascist regimes, Mayor Roberto Gualtieri lashed out: “I read, and I hope it’s not true, that there’s a fiction that’s supposed to air tomorrow about the roundup of the Jews of Rome, where the fascists aren’t even seen. They’re not there; only the Nazis are.” And then he added: “But as witnesses know, the fascists actively collaborated in Hitler’s criminal decision to completely exterminate all Jews.”

France News Western Europe

French Chronicle …

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French Chronicle …

This week, some more news about Roma in France. A reportage about Roma who gather old metal and many other items that French discard near Paris; in Antibes, in the South of France, 4 families are without lodging after the closure of their camp; in Angers, in Western France, a camp with more than hunderd people will be closed.

Germany News Western Europe

Racism in Schools

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Racism in Schools

Another article about racism against Roma in German schools. This time, the story of Melissa who felt excluded as the only Roma child in her class. Changing schools to a special school in Frankfurt enabled her to graduate.

Hungary News Eastern Europe

János Lázár

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János Lázár

A blunt (and Slovak) summary about the cotroversy on János Lázár, the Hungarian minister who said that if there is no migrant workforce, then Roma in Hungary will have to fill jobs such as cleaning toilets on InterCity trains.

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