News

Czech Republic: Welfare recipients to be banned from playing slot machines

15.4.2016 14:54 The Czech lower house approved new regulations and taxing of gambling on 13 April. The law is one of several measures against gambling and will contribute mainly by restricting who is able to play games of chance.  full story

Czech Republic: Analysis finds online hate rising, adult males perpetrate the most

13.4.2016 13:24 During 2015 a noticeable growth occurred in the amount of hate speech on Czech-language online social networks and other communications platforms such as discussion forums linked to articles on news servers. Those are the results of an analysis produced by the People in Need (Člověk v tísni) called "Hate Speech in the Online Environment and Social Networks" (Projevy nenávisti v online prostoru a sociálních sítích).  full story

Czech Republic: New play by the Theater of the Oppressed at "Festival of Humanity and Solidarity" this Friday

13.4.2016 10:36 On Friday 15 April at 19:00 a new play by the Theater of the Oppressed, called "Lost" (Ztracená), will be performed as part of the "Festival of Humanity and Solidarity" at the Rock Café (Národní 20, Prague). The play was created by a group of people who wanted to produce something on the topic of the refugee crisis.  full story

EU Justice Commissioner says situation of Romani people is not improving

13.4.2016 9:59 Discrimination against Romani people continues to be widespread throughout the entire European Union and anti-Romani prejudice is currently on the rise in the context of the overall growth in extremism and radicalism there. EU Justice Commissioner Věra Jourová warned the European Parliament of that fact on Monday.  full story

Czech Republic: Canadian Ambassador attends International Romani Day event, embassy displays Romani flag

12.4.2016 7:09 On Friday 8 April 2016 Canadian Ambassador Otto Jelinek displayed the Romani flag on the building of the Canadian Embassy in Prague to mark International Romani Day. He was joined by David Tišer of the nonprofit ARA ART organization and Adriana Trejtnarová, an intern working on Romani projects at the embassy who is a student at the Czech Agricultural University.  full story

Legendary heavy metal band Sepultura supports Roma on their International Day

10.4.2016 13:09 The legendary heavy metal band Sepultura, who hail from Brazil, posted a clear message of support for Romani people on their official Facebook profile on Friday 8 April 2016. "Sepultura will always support the right to anyone or any group to be free and to live in peace. Respect the differences to build a strong and prosperous society," the group posted along with links to other information about International Romani Day on the website of the Romani media organization Romedia Foundation, based in Hungary.  full story

Czech Republic: International Romani Day marred by conflict at Prague restaurant

9.4.2016 7:50 The third annual celebration of International Romani Day in the Černý Most area of Prague, intended to support intercultural coexistence, was marred by an unpleasant incident yesterday. Josef Baláž, a co-organizer of the event, alleges that a waiter employed at the restaurant visited by concert-goers after the performance told him and the restaurant owner that he and his colleagues would not serve Romani customers.  full story

LIVE ONLINE BROADCAST: International Romani Day celebrations at LaFabrika in Prague

8.4.2016 17:24 The Romani association ARA ART and its partners are holding their second annual celebration of International Romani Day, this year with the theme of "Honoring the Invisible." Paťiv (respect) will be paid to young Romani people who are disrupting the entrenched stereotypes that predominate in Czech society about Romani people.  full story

US Embassy in Prague displays Romani flag in honor of International Romani Day

8.4.2016 17:04 The Embassy of the United States of America in Prague has displayed the Romani flag on its building to mark International Romani Day and US Ambassador Andrew Schapiro has released a video in which he expresses his support for the inclusion of Romani people into society and the principles of equal treatment. "The Embassy of the United States in Prague is celebrating the rich cultural heritage of the Roma and their contributions to the world today. On the occasion of International Romani Day we would like to greet all Romani people everywhere and wish them all the best. Bachtalo Romano D‘ives," the Ambassador says in the message.  full story

Czech Republic: Amaro Records recording studio opens in Brno

8.4.2016 15:31 Yesterday the IQ Roma servis (IQRS) nonprofit organization opened the Amaro Records recording studio in the site of a former gambling parlor located between the "Romani ghetto" and the "normal" city center of Brno. "We were inspired by Barcelona, where a similar recording studio serves foreign nationals and migrants, but our studio is for anyone and everyone," Katarína Klamková, director of IQ Roma servis, explained to the Czech daily Mladá front DNES  full story

John Kerry on International Romani Day: Today we celebrate the rich cultural heritage of Roma and their contributions to society

8.4.2016 14:28 The Secretary of State of the United States of America, John Kerry, has issued a statement on International Romani Day thanking the Romani nation for their rich cultural heritage and wishing Romani people worldwide a future free of discrimination. News server Romea.cz publishes the press release in full here:  full story

Czech Human Rights Minister on International Romani Day: Quality education, more awareness of Romani culture, history, language all important

8.4.2016 11:56 According to Czech Minister for Human Rights, Equal Opportunities and Legislation Jiří Dienstbier, a quality education is an essential prerequisite for improving the position of Romani people in society. It is also important to increase awareness of Romani culture, history and language.  full story

European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture: Building the Future by Honoring the Past

8.4.2016 9:43 The European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture (ERIAC) is a joint initiative of the Alliance for the European Roma Institute*, the Council of Europe and the Open Society Foundations. Following the approval of the establishment of ERIAC by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in September 2015, preparations are in progress for the creation of the Institute. Based on the proposal of the Alliance for the European Roma Institute, the German Government endorsed the idea of inviting the European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture to set up in Berlin.
 full story

Slovak MP "symbolically" declares himself Romani in official online profile

7.4.2016 14:04 Ondrej Dostál, a legislator seated on the National Council of the Slovak Republic who chairs the Civic Conservative Party, has "symbolically" chosen "Romani" as his nationality when filling out his official online profile for the legislature. The Markíza television station reports that Dostál also listed his nationality as "Romani" during the census for the same reason  full story

Jan Husák: Educating everyone together challenges each of us to adapt

7.4.2016 12:02 When it comes to the 2007 judgment of the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg in the matter of D.H. and Others versus the Czech Republic, contradictory positions are currently being taken on this issue in Czech society, with some publicly condemning this judgment while others defend it. Even though both sides of this dispute predominantly connect it with the obligation to abolish the "special schools" and lay the groundwork for educating everyone together, after familiarizing myself with this unique judgment I see its essential message as being something else, namely, its interpretation of indirect discrimination.  full story

Iraqi Christians who refused asylum offer from Czech Republic will remain in Germany to seek asylum there

4.4.2016 23:38 The group of 25 Christian refugees from Iraq who left the Czech Republic this weekend for Germany will now be remaining there. Kateřina Rendlová, spokesperson for the Czech Police's immigration division, reported on the website of the Czech Police that those refugees have now sought asylum from Germany.  full story

Commentary: Romipen is democratic, enriching not just Romani people but Czech society, Europe and the world

4.4.2016 21:27 Friday 8 April will be International Romani Day. In the Czech Republic the largest number of events on this day will be held in Brno.  full story

Germany sends Christian refugees back to Czech Republic for deportation to Iraq

4.4.2016 0:51 A group of 25 Iraqi refugees who have been living temporarily at the Okrouhlík center near Jihlava in the Czech Republic refused that country's offer of asylum and asked for their passports to be returned to them on Friday. They spent the night at a residential hotel elsewhere in Jihlava before chartering a bus on Saturday and traveling to the German town of Essen.  full story

videoCzech Republic: NGO campaign draws attention to anti-Romani prejudice

2.4.2016 20:43 A new campaign against prejudice toward Romani people has been launched in the Czech Republic to mark International Romani Day this year by the ARA ART organization. The campaign is called #PrayForPrej and one of its main ideas is that Romani people do not live according to prejudiced expectations, but fully participate in Czech society, and people should not believe the lies disseminated about them.  full story

Local councilor convicted of drugs charge, Czech Constitutional Court says he should not have held been in custody

1.4.2016 20:43 Marcel Cichý, a local councilor and educator in the Czech town of Trmice charged with contributing to international drug sales, was convicted and sentenced on Friday to two years in prison, conditionally suspended for four years. His cousin Ladislav Cichý, who was also charged in the case, will be going to prison for eight and a half years, while another cousin, Pavel Kišš, got a three-year prison sentence suspended for five years.  full story