News

videoItaly: Romani people attacked in Naples

Naples, 16.10.2013 21:58, (ROMEA) The situation for Romani residents of Naples is deteriorating. On 15 October press agencies reported on an alleged “accident” in which acid was spilled onto a Romani child and his mother from a balcony above them.  full story

Czech Green Party: Roma should be represented in Parliament

Brno, 16.10.2013 17:53, (ROMEA) The chair of the Equal Opportunities Party (Strana rovných příležitostí - SRP), Štefan Tišer, and Jozef Miker, an SRP member running as a candidate on the Green Party ticket in the Ústí Region, traveled to Moravia to support the Greens in their campaign there. Yesterday they met with the Romani community in Brno, today they will visit the Romani community in Břeclav and Hodonín, and tomorrow they will travel to Ostrava, where they will support two other Romani SRP members running on the Green Party ticket, Bc. Antonie Burianská and Elena Gorolová.  full story

Miker (SRP), Romani candidate to the Czech lower house: Roma share a cause beyond political affiliations

Prague, 16.10.2013 17:13, (ROMEA) An unusually high number of Romani people are running in this year's early elections compared to years past. The monthly Romano voďi, published by the ROMEA association, has done its best to interview all the candidates running for the lower house and will run those interviews in addition to publishing analytical material about the elections  full story

Former Czech Human Rights Minister: Romani issues deserve a minister, not just a commissioner

Prague, 16.10.2013 2:32, (ROMEA) The Czech News Agency reports that former Czech Human Rights Minister Michael Kocáb says Romani issues should be addressed by a cabinet member and not just a government commissioner. A cabinet minister would have a stronger position and more say in promoting measures to improve the situation.  full story

Kertészová (SPOZ), Romani candidate to the Czech lower house: It's positive so many Roma are running

Karlovy Vary, 16.10.2013 1:56, (ROMEA) An unusually high number of Romani people are running in this year's early elections compared to years past. The monthly Romano voďi, published by the ROMEA association, has done its best to interview all the candidates running for the lower house and will run those interviews in addition to publishing analytical material about the elections.  full story

Czech Gov't Human Rights Commissioner removed as director of human rights section

Prague, 16.10.2013 0:51, (ROMEA) News server Romea.cz has been informed that as of 15 October, Monika Šimůnková has been removed from her position as director of the Human Rights Section at the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic. She is still retaining her role as the Czech Government Human Rights Commissioner.  full story

AEDH condemns racist statements made by certain members of the European Parliament

Brussels, 16.10.2013 0:42, (ROMEA) The European Association for the Defense of Human Rights (AEDH) firmly condemns statements made by certain members of the European Parliament during the plenary discussion on the situation of Roma people, held on Wednesday 9 October at the European Parliament.  full story

Czech Elections: We have identified 20 Romani candidates running in the early elections to the lower house

Prague, 16.10.2013 0:28, (ROMEA) The early elections are sparking many questions and have been at the center of media attention for several weeks now. Naturally, we also have focused on them, because the historically largest number of Romani candidates since 1990 is running in these elections, whether trying to reach the voters through independent Romani parties or running on the candidate lists of “majority” parties.  full story

Huňaková (Lev 21), Roma candidate to the Czech lower house: Roma want to improve coexistence

Prague, 15.10.2013 23:17, (ROMEA) An unusually high number of Romani people are running in this year's early elections compared to years past. The monthly Romano voďi, published by the ROMEA association, has done its best to interview all the candidates running for the lower house and will run those interviews in addition to publishing analytical material about the elections.  full story

ROMEA report on Czech antigypsyism, media, politics and the lives of impoverished Roma in 2012

Prague, 15.10.2013 21:19, (ROMEA) The ROMEA civic association has decided to publish its first-ever report on the state of the Romani minority in the Czech Republic due to the danger of increasingly direct antigypsyism, extremism and racism in the country. The report primarily covers the year 2012 and part of 2013.  full story

Czech Republic: Municipality in Ostrava plans to ban right-wing radical meeting

Ostrava, 15.10.2013 16:55, (ROMEA) The local council of the centrally-located municipal department of Moravská Ostrava a Přívoz in Ostrava is planning to ban an anti-Romani event organized by right-wing radicals for this coming Saturday who have announced their intentions to gather and march through the town. Jana Pondělíčková, spokesperson for the Moravská Ostrava a Přívoz local government, told the Czech News Agency that the demonstration would coincide with an open house being held at the Ostrava Town Hall in the vicinity and the municipal department is concerned the ultra-right gathering poses a risk to security and will cause transportation complications.  full story

Czech Social Democrats' main candidate in Ústí latest victim of neo-Nazi hack

Děčín, 14.10.2013 23:46, (ROMEA) The neo-Nazi hackers of the Czech internet are continuing their assaults. After hacking the Twitter account of Vladimír Špidla (Czech Social Democratic Party - ČSSD) this morning, the Facebook profile of Jaroslav Foldyna, the leader of the party's candidate list in the Ústí Region, was hacked this evening.  full story

E-mail, Twitter accounts of former Czech PM hacked to spread racist slogans

Prague, 14.10.2013 20:53, (ROMEA) Someone has hacked the e-mail and Twitter accounts of Vladimír Špidla, the former Czech prime minister and current shadow environment minister for the Czech Social Democrats (ČSSD) and used them to spread racist messages. Špidla blames right-wing extremists for the hack and has yet to regain control of his accounts.  full story

Jarmila Balážová: Czech Green Party bravely runs Romani candidates despite social atmosphere

Prague, 14.10.2013 19:39, (ROMEA) In recent days one of the most significant political events in the post-1989 era ever to concern Romani people and their participation in real decision-making (i.e., not just "advising" the authorities) about matters that influence hundreds of thousands of citizens of this country has taken place. A great deal has already being written here about Romani education, inclusion, integration, segregation, the "special" schools and the inability of Romani people to become more involved in designing the politics and strategies that influence their lives.  full story

Commentary: Romani unemployment endangers the Czech economy

13.10.2013 21:56, (ROMEA) According to estimates by the Czech Labor Office, the number of unemployed Romani people has significantly grown in recent years. While official statistics are not kept about the ethnicity of the unemployed, the Labor Office has produced its estimate for the Office of the Government to use as part of its reporting on how it is fulfilling its obligations as part of the Decade of Roma Inclusion 2005-2015.  full story

Czech court overturns acquittal of former neo-Nazi party members

Prague, 12.10.2013 19:29, (ROMEA) At the end of September a Prague appeals court overturned the first-instance acquittal of former members of the now-defunct Workers' Party (Dělnická strana - DS) and other right-wing extremists charged with promoting neo-Nazism. Court spokesperson Zuzana Steinerová has confirmed the eight defendants will have to appear once more before the Prague 1 District Court.  full story

Horváth (Změna), Roma candidate to the Czech lower house: I have a recipe for improving coexistence

Děčín, 12.10.2013 1:06, (ROMEA) An unusually high number of Romani people are running in this year's early elections compared to years past. The monthly Romano voďi, published by the ROMEA association, has done its best to interview all the candidates running for the lower house and will run those interviews in addition to publishing analytical material about the elections.  full story

UK: Family from Czech Republic awaits welfare fraud trial

Nottingham, UK, 11.10.2013 23:20, (ROMEA) Members of a family of Czech citizens whom detectives say have abused the British welfare system, depriving the taxpayers of hundreds of thousands of pounds, are now awaiting trial in Britain. The online edition of the Nottingham Post has reported that the five family members in Nottingham, England will go on trial on 4 November.  full story

Czech Republic: Romani family says police broke into their home and beat them for no reason

Ústí nad Labem, 11.10.2013 21:16, (ROMEA) A visit by relatives to a Romani family residing at the Mojžíř housing estate in Ústí nad Labem ended with police intervening and beating up several people. The police raided the family last Sunday shortly after 10 PM on the basis of a complaint from a neighbor bothered by noise coming from their apartment.  full story

David Tišer, Roma candidate to the Czech lower house: My dream is fulfillment for all

Prague, 10.10.2013 23:23, (ROMEA) An unusually high number of Romani people are running in this year's early elections compared to years past. The monthly Romano voďi, published by the ROMEA association, has done its best to interview all the candidates running for the lower house and will run those interviews in addition to publishing analytical material about the elections.  full story