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Facebook wants to combat online hoaxes through expert fact-checking

16.12.2016 21:50 The Facebook social networking site is designing many instruments for preventing the dissemination of fake news or hoaxes, according to company vice-president John Hegeman, who announced the decision in New York. Facebook users will have the option of flagging untrue news items more easily than they do now, and facts that are called into question will then be verified by teams of experts including the ABC News television station in the USA and the Associated Press wire service.  full story

Analysis: Czech media spread Islamophobic disinformation about court-ordered removal of Virgin Mary statue in France

16.12.2016 20:41 During the weekend of 4 December, the Czech News Agency published a news item saying that the French municipality of Publier, located on the intersection of the border with both Italy and Switzerland, must remove a statue of the Virgin Mary from public land on the basis of a decision by an administrative court tribunal in Grenoble. What is the reason for this decision?  full story

Online HOAX alleges Swedish Christmas lights cancelled because of Muslim demand

16.12.2016 19:01 Now that Christmas is upon us, the Internet is once again full of hoaxes alleging that Sweden has banned Christmas lights at the request of Muslims. The online hoaxes are spreading around Europe and the USA, alleging that the report is proof of a Muslim assault on "our" Christian traditions and values.  full story

Russian news servers spread hoax that "Western media" are faking reports of civilians rescuing children in Aleppo

16.12.2016 17:28 Last month the Facebook social networking site saw a massive dissemination of a collage of photographs from Aleppo, Syria that allegedly "proved" that "Western media" reports about the situation in Aleppo were being manipulated. Those sharing the photographs alleged they had been manipulated to show different Syrian men rescuing the same little girl in three different places.  full story

Fake news item spreads online alleging George Soros has died

16.12.2016 16:51 At the beginning of the week of 14 November a fake news item began to spread online alleging that George Soros has died, including in the Czech language. The news item was quickly refuted and labeled false and is just the latest in a chain of untrue, falsified news items about the deaths of famous figures.  full story

ERRC Seeks Human Rights Monitors

16.12.2016 12:51 The European Roma Rights Centre invites applications from individuals for Human Rights Monitor positions in the following countries: Czech Republic, Serbia, and Slovakia.  full story

Karel Karika: Czech children's comics were inspired by what is today a socially excluded neighborhood

15.12.2016 23:30 Karel Karika was born in 1960 in Ústí nad Labem, where he has lived and worked his entire life. He graduated from the Secondary Technical School in Teplice.  full story

Oksana Marafioti, successful American author with Romani roots, visits Czech Republic

15.12.2016 21:00 On the occasion of the 2016 Roma Spirit Awards, the Embassy of the United States of America in Prague welcomed Oksana Marafioti, an educator and significant writer with Romani roots. She arrived at the beginning of last week and practically never stopped during her full program - after giving an interview for the January issue of Romano Voďi she visited Romani organizations in Brno and Prague.  full story

Richard Samko on receiving the 2016 Roma Spirit Award: Give Romani people a chance!

15.12.2016 20:18 On Saturday 10 December 2016, Human Rights Day, I received the Roma Spirit Award in the category of Media. I would like to once again thank everybody who nominated me.  full story

2016 Roma Spirit Awards in the Czech Republic: Ctibor Nečas, R-Mosty, Evangelical Academy, Richard Samko and Olga Fečová

15.12.2016 19:21 The 2016 Roma Spirit Awards for aid to the Romani minority and efforts at good coexistence were won this year by the R-Mosty company, the Evangelical Academy, and Czech Television journalist Richard Samko. The award for cultural contribution went to teaching assistant Olga Fečová, while the scholar Ctibor Nečas won in the Individual category.  full story

Macedonia: The Queen of Romani Music, Esma Redžepova, has passed away

15.12.2016 2:14 Esma Redžepova, who was acknowledged worldwide as the Queen of Romani Music, passed away on the morning of 11 December in Skopje, Macedonia at the age of 73. The hospital where the singer was being treated announced her death.  full story

Dušan Červeňák: "I don't believe in projects much - you can't work with people from behind a desk"

15.12.2016 1:11 "This work is not about education, but about aid to those who need it," says DUŠAN ČERVEŇÁK, vice-chair of the Ostrava-based group Romipen. After 12 years of practical experience in Ostrava's excluded localities, where he has worked as a Romani adviser and field social worker, he decided this spring to establish his own nonprofit organization.  full story

Filip Sivák: Critical thinking is the greatest benefit of an education

15.12.2016 0:07 On 9 December, the ROMEA organization handed out its traditional Romano Suno awards for the Literary Competition for Romani Students at the American Center in Prague. The contest was announced on the occasion of International Romani Language Day.  full story

Germany: Pegida speechmaker charged with arson against mosque

14.12.2016 22:35 On 9 December the German media reported that the Federal General Prosecutor has filed charges against a man named Nino K. alleging that he committed arson attacks against a mosque during the week prior to the September celebration of the state holiday of German reunification. He is also charged with committing arson against the Congress Center in Dresden and planting fake bombs on a bridge there.  full story

Czech Police refuse to publicize whether they are investigating death threats made on Facebook against Romani celebrity

14.12.2016 20:46 The Police of the Czech Republic are refusing, despite repeated questions posed to them by news server Romea.cz, to say whether they are investigating any of the reports of the multiple death threats that have been made against the Romani singer Radek Banga. Romea.cz has been informed that several criminal reports have already been filed in the matter.  full story

Facebook renews original page for "We Don't Want Islam in the Czech Republic" with 160 000 fans

13.12.2016 14:43 Last Thursday, Facebook once again blocked the hate page of the group "We Don't Want Islam in the Czech Republic" (Islám v ČR nechceme - IvČRN) which had more than 70 000 fans and had been used to send death threats to a young woman who wanted to aid Afghans. On Friday Facebook then renewed the original page of the IvČRN, which was blocked in January.  full story

Czech Islamophobes have a problem: Konvička has quit yet another political party and Facebook has closed their hate page

13.12.2016 12:41 The Islamophobe Martin Konvička has left the political party "Alternative for the Czech Republic" (Alternativa pro Českou republiku) after unsuccessfully running as its candidate in the October Senate elections in the Tábor area. On Facebook he has posted that he stopped believing in the party's project.  full story

Czech opposition leaders express support for Romani celebrity's protest against xenophobic band

12.12.2016 21:03 The chair of the TOP 09 party, Miroslav Kalousek, and former Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg recently invited Romani musician Radek Banga and his wife to a friendly lunch. The politicians wanted to express their admiration for Banga's protest against an award being given to the xenophobic band Ortel during the "Czech Nightingale" contest, which he did by walking out of the auditorium during the live broadcast and not being afraid to publicly criticize the entire situation.  full story

Slovakia: Many youth support the ultra-right, study finds

12.12.2016 15:59 Many young Slovaks support the ultra-right party called Kotleba-People's Party Our Slovakia (LSNS). Marian Kotleba, the Governor of the Banská Bystrica Region and the party leader, also enjoys great popularity.  full story

Impoverished native Italians rebel against Moroccan immigrants inhabiting social housing

12.12.2016 6:53 Impoverished native Italians are rebelling against the provision of social housing to immigrants. The inhabitants of Rome's low-income San Basilio quarter recently prevented a Moroccan family from moving into an apartment building for the socially vulnerable there.  full story