An interview of the former plenipotentiary for the Roma, Ábel Ravasz on the fact that the renewed investigation of the police brutality against Roma in Moldov nad Bodvou has been given to the very same policeman who dismissed the case in 2016 and brought cases against the Roma for perjury.
The pilgrimage of Saintes Marie de la Mer was in full swing the last few days. But with a bittersweet aftertaste, with several Roma accusing the municipality to want to replace them with actors …
Sad.
An article about a young Romni who is graduating from high school and who could not find anyone willing to go with her to the prom. It turns out she was the victim of constant abuse in her class, with people referring to her origins and making disparaging comments such as being given a piece of copper with the words, “Your people are definitely collecting copper, so let’s contribute”.
Several famous people have proposed going with her to the prom ball.
The summer of 2013 police raid in the Roma settlement in Moldava nad Bodvou began with an investigation of the police actions. The prosecutor in charge stopped the original investigation in 2015 and 2016. Instead of the policemen’s misconduct, he accused the Roma of not having told the truth and to have committed perjury. They were subsequently indicted and condemned.
After almost ten years, and after the decision of the European Court of Human Rights in favour of the Roma, the investigation goes back to the beginning, namely, to investigate the police.
However, the case ended up with the same investigator from Banská Bystrica, who stopped the original investigations in 2015 and 2016.
No Comments …
In 2009, Václav Cojocara and Ivo Müller participated in an arson attack Roma on a home in Vítkov in the Opava region. They were caught and condemned to a prison sentence. Now, they have been conditionally released as they purged part of their sentence and showed good behaviour.
Whether this is a good idea remains to be seen…
The staff of a cafe in Lučenec, Slovakia, made a mistake when they refused to serve a guest because he was Rom. After almost six years of litigation, the Bratislava I District Court issued a judgement condemning the café to pay 1,500 euros and apologise.
In August 2017, a refused to serve Ladislav Rácz and his friend. He said it was because he did not have a club card which costs 300 euros. Ladislaw said “When I asked him if it was by chance because we are Roma, gypsies and we are darker, he said that it is not for such a reason and that we should leave the area immediately.”
Ladislaw friend, non-Roma, went to the cafe. They served her without any problems. “She asked the waiter that she saw on the door that entry was only possible with a club card. The gentleman clearly told the camera that it is only for Roma, that they cannot serve Roma.”
Another article in the press about the Romano journalist Patrick Banga whose first book won the prestigious Czech Magnesia Litera award in the new author category.
It does not please certain people. According to the article, Patrik Banga now reads almost every day that he bribed the entire jury of the Magnesia Litera award. Many people cannot accept the fact that the book award went to Rom.
Bad
Mehmet Daimagüler, the German antiziganism commissioner, criticises the Police and the fact that they are profiling Roma.
At least 35% of young Ukrainian men and women polled by sociologists have prejudices against Roma, and another 28% towards LGBT fellow citizens. These comes out of a study “The impact of war on youth in Ukraine”, which was conducted by the Cedos analytical centre and the Info Sapiens research agency.
Well, even though these number are high, they are lower than a while back.
The president of the Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik started insulting the family of the tennis player Djokovic. He said: “Though, I can tell you, these Djokovics are a bit hard on the motherfucker, ugh… Our people experience it emotionally, and when you get into work aww.. Quite a gypsy, I can tell you… Those associates of his, lose more…”
This provoked protests from Roma organisations.
The Polish stand up performer recently made jokes about Roma of Limanowa. They told him he would not be welcome, but he nevertheless went, leading to protests.
Again, as usual, racist statements and jokes about Roma do not receive the same treatment as for other minorities.
The statements of the Labour MP about racism continue to draw criticism.
The British Labour MP Diane Abott had to resign following an outcry after a letter she wrote to a newspaper in which she suggested that “prejudice” experienced by “white-seeming people” is distinct from racism against black people.
This when one in three Roma and Travellers have experienced racism in the UK.
Racial discrimination has increased in Switzerland. One of the statement made is that this increase is also due to the increased willingness to report those cases.
Maybe …
The Slovak historian and member of the Science Adademy Ondrej Ficeri debated Roma issues:
High unemployment, poor hygiene, low literacy, crime and, most recently, an epidemic of infectious diseases.
He specialised in the Study of the Roma and claims that the situation will not change easily. In the discussion, however, things went really bad. In the debate, they discussed “whether and how to change the mindset of some Roma, who do want sewage and drinking water, but do not want to pay for it.”
According to Ficeri, “No, that cannot be changed in my opinion. But even so, it is the responsibility of the municipality to ensure adequate housing and re-educate residents to pay at least for unavoidable services such as rent, water, electricity. Hopefully it will be beneficial at least in the long run, even though it may seem like throwing peas against a wall at the moment. We cannot do nothing.”
So basically, Roma are incapable to adapt and change … Nice statements.
Well, the latest survey of the attitudes of the German police come as no surprise. 17% stated they would have issues if Roma settled in their neighbourhood … And there is more.
The city of Berlin will henceforth give more money to fight anti Roma racism.
Good news.
A recent comprehensive survey highlighted the high level of racism against Roma in the UK, with up to two thirds of the Roma shaving experienced abuse or attacks.
Bad.
With the current economic crisis and the war, racism against Siti and Roma is on the increase in Germany.
Dosta [enough], is an antiziganism documentation centre that documents and analyses antiziganist incidents in Berlin. In the past two years, the reporting office has documented a total of 372 incidents – the highest number of cases since the start of the project. The number of unreported cases is likely to be significantly higher.
In one such case, a woman reported that an examiner from the job centre asked why her child was not in school. When she answered that he is ill, he shouted out loud: “Children have to go to school here, otherwise you will all be sent back to Romania on the bus.”
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