An article that totally misses the point. A project, that aims to “help” people with a different mother tongue (read Roma and Turks). What they miss is that Roma always grow up with several mother tongues, local and Romanes, and in the Balkan, Ottoman Turkish.
No further comments …
An unfinished apartment block, where Roma families have settled themselves and are raising their children there, continues to be a major problem according to the people of the neighbourhood. Residents have repeatedly filed reports that public order is being violated.
Now these issues in Humni Dol were discussed at a second working meeting between representatives of the local government as well as with Roma mediators. It is doubtful they will find solutions …
Approximately 40 Roma men and women met in a cinema in Hrádek nad Nisou on Friday, February 21, to discuss the current situation of Roma in the Czech Republic. The main topics were social benefits reform, a very controversial one, employment, and equal status of Roma in society. One of the organizers of the meeting, Miroslav Tancoš, announced on this occasion that he plans to establish a new Roma political party.
The Freedom and Solidarity Party (SaS) points out the government’s failure to address Roma issues. On Wednesday, at a press conference in the village of Doľany in Spiš, MP Vladimír Ledecký (SaS) pointed out that the government plans to invest 1.1 billion euros over the next three years as part of the Action Plan for the Strategy for Equality and Inclusion and Participation of Roma in projects that, according to him, will not help this population group in any way.
He pointed out that these expenses are not explained or justified in any way. He is therefore submitting a resolution to the National Council of the Slovak Republic, which responds to “the passivity of government officials and the inefficient use of resources intended for supporting the Roma community”.
Another reportage on the Roma settlement in the village of Kolačkov (Stará Ľubovňa district) which is threatened by a landslide. The municipality says they have no space to relocate it…
The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Michael O’Flaherty released today three Memoranda examining the human rights situation of Roma and Traveller communities in Finland, Ireland and Slovakia. Each Memorandum presents country-specific findings and recommendations based on the Commissioner’s visits to these countries, addressing pressing human rights concerns faced by the communities.
In the last ZDF political talk show “Markus Lanz” on February 25, 2025, one of the topics discussed was how the AfD managed to win the constituency in Gelsenkirchen (In the Ruhr). The Moderator and journalist Markus Lanz quickly found a clear answer: He talked about how many problems foreigners cause locally: the young Sinti and Roma are criminals, drop out of school, many of them are unemployed. Completely generalizing and ignoring the fact that structural problems like these are very closely linked to racism and discrimination, Lanz reproduces racist language towards a group that is already exposed to discrimination almost unnoticed to this day.
The village of Kolačkov (Stará Ľubovňa district) has a Roma settlement that is threatened by a landslide. The Roma settlement should be moved but the municipality claims it has no land to do so, also because two nature protection zones, one for birds and one for a small stream.
Basically, they would prefer the Roma to leave …
The discussion on the Action Plan for Roma communities is moving to parliament, where SaS is demanding a reassessment of its priorities. The Freedom and Solidarity Party (SaS) points to the government’s failure to address the Roma issue. On Wednesday, at a press conference in the village of Doľany in Spiš, a member of the National Council of the Slovak Republic, Vladimír Ledecký (SaS), pointed out that the government plans to invest 1.1 billion euros over the next three years as part of the Action Plan for the Strategy for Equality and Inclusion and Participation of Roma in projects that, according to him, will not help this population group in any way. He pointed out that these expenditures are not clearly explained or justified. He is therefore submitting a resolution to the National Assembly of the Slovak Republic, which responds to “the passivity of government officials and the inefficient use of resources intended to support the Roma community”.
An article that doesn’t help anyone. A journalist investigating of a Romni who allegedly sold counterfeit sports tickets was threatened by Roma, apparently, one threatening to “pull out a machete and kill him”.
Typical tabloid fare…
The Czech Ministry of the Interior has published a summary report on extremism for the second half of 2024. According to the document, the anti-system movement is weakening, while the influence of online radicalization is growing, especially in right-wing extremist circles. At the same time, a significant part of extremist and populist groups continues to support the Russian regime and spread its propaganda.
80 years ago, in the small locality of Dubnica nad Váhom in Western Slovakia, 26 Roma were murdered by Nazis. 6 women who were ill and 20 men were transported from the detention camp and murdered on the site of an arm factory.
There was a commemoration of this event in Dubnica nad Váhom.
The Slovenian Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development has approved European funds for the Public Call for Co-financing of a network of multifunctional Roma centres. The total value of the project is 5.5 million euros, with the European Social Fund Plus contributing 4,427,500 euros. The project’s goal is to improve the socio-economic situation of the Roma community, strengthen their inclusion in society and provide better conditions for a quality life.
It needs more than centres like this to change the situation …
In the Duše Škof Hall (former castle hall) in Murska Sobota, Slovenia, awards were presented to the best Roma athletes and teams in 2024. The best Roma athlete of the past year is Alja Horvat, a member of the national champions of the ŽNK Mura Nona team in the under-17 competition, and the best Roma athlete is wrestler Mitja Cener, a member of the Sobota Wrestling Association, who achieved exceptional success in the Balkan championship and domestic competitions.
Roma in Southeastern Slovenia have a very bad reputation, and not a week goes by without some headlines in the Slovenian press about the Roma “problem”.
But not all Roma are like that. At the initiative of Silva Mesojedec from the Regional Civil Initiative (RCI) and Darko Rudaš, president of the Forum of Roma Councilors from the Roma settlement Pušča in Prekmurje, members of the RCI and also members of the People’s Initiative (LI) Šentjernej recently went to visit and see Pušča near Murska Sobota. There, they found a clean settlement, well ordered, with people working. The settlement has ca. 600 inhabitants.
Switzerland admitted this week that they committed a crime against humanity when they took away the children of Yenische in the so-called Kinder der Landstrasse between 1926 and 1973. Over 600 children were removed from their families. The press also mentions Sinti and Manouches. They were not really affected by this, as the action was truly centred in the Swiss German part of the country and against Yenische.
However, this legal brief and the Swiss government denied the genocidal aspect of this action.
The story of Romanian beggars who have been in Neuchâtel since end of last year. And now, they are not part of a criminal beggar gang, as the Swiss press often claims.
Only one article on Roma in France this week. When there are enough other news, Roma are not needed to fill in the papers…
In Neumünster, the shop windows of the Sinti Union Schleswig-Holstein office were smeared with a swastika and other nazi symbols. This happened, according to Kelly Laubinger, the managing director of the office during the night to Saturday.
Well, reminder: Tomorrow there are elections in Germany and the AfD candidate once stated that Roma and Sinti are alien to Germany… Does it remind you of anything?
Together with descendants of Erna Lauenburger, Margitta and Manolito Steinbach from the Menda Yek e.V. association and the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe Foundation as well as the Documentation and Cultural Center of German Sinti and Roma, the Berlin City Museum has expanded the BERLIN GLOBAL exhibition to include the biography of Erna Lauenburger.
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