World

Hungary: Football hooligans assault and injure refugees at Budapest train station

5.9.2015 21:44 News server SME.sk reports that last night and in the early hours of this morning Hungarian football hooligans assaulted refugees camping at Budapest's Keleti train station. The hooligans injured several people and two refugees were hospitalized.  full story

First RomaVersitas Summit now underway and broadcast online

4.9.2015 23:50 The Roma Education Fund's RomaVersitas summit began yesterday in Budapest and ends tomorrow. Approximately 60 Romaversitas students from Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Kosovo, Macedonia, Moldova and Serbia, countries where REF supports RomaVersitas Student Centers, are participating in the three-day summit.  full story

European Roma and Travellers Forum calls summer demolitions of Romani dwellings "unprecedented"

3.9.2015 22:03 The European Roma and Travellers Forum has released a statement called "Evictions Unlimited" on what it calls an "unprecedented upsurge" in the demolition of Romani housing and eviction of Romani people both in EU Member States and in countries such as Albania. Whether the demolitions and evictions have involved the use of force or not, the ERTF says they have all been "marked by the policy of rejection".  full story

Slovak PM: We can't integrate "our own" Roma, to say nothing of refugees

2.9.2015 17:32 Czech news server Novinky.cz reports that on 29 August, during a speech commemorating the anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said: "Europe is facing an uncontrolled influx of refugees from all over the world. European policy on migration has absolutely failed."  full story

Gifted Romani musician succeeding brilliantly in USA

1.9.2015 23:15 "In my career as a teacher of more than 20 000 students from 94 countries, Tomáš clearly belongs in the top 10," said Professor Pratt Bennet on 30 August when he was interviewed for the Czech Television program "168 Hours". Bennett teaches at the famous Berklee College of Music in Boston, which accepted Romani musician Tomáš Kačo from the Czech Republic last year.  full story

Austria: 20 000 demonstrate in support of receiving refugees

1.9.2015 19:26 The Austrian Press Agency reports that at least 20 000 people, according to Austrian Police estimates, gathered for a demonstration against the inhumane treatment of refugees yesterday in the center of Vienna. Approximately 450 police officers patrolled the marchers and the event took place without incident.  full story

Austrian Interior Minister: Countries that reject refugee redistribution should lose EU money

31.8.2015 20:04 Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner said today she is in favor of increasing the pressure on EU Member States that disagree with a fair redistribution of refugees among the EU-28. In an interview for ZDF, German public television, she said she would cut off financial aid to such countries if she could.  full story

Hungary arrests five over refugee deaths, Austrian authorities save intercepted children

30.8.2015 23:06 A court in the Hungarian city of Kecskemét remanded four men into custody on 28 August who are suspected of having contributed to the deaths of the 71 refugees in a refrigerator truck that was discovered in eastern Austria last week. Agence France-Presse reports that those arrested will remain in custody until 29 September at the request of Hungarian prosecutors.  full story

French authorities complete razing of Romani camp near Paris, not everyone rehoused

29.8.2015 1:08 Yesterday French authorities razed one of the largest Romani camps on the outskirts of Paris and police forced between 200 - 300 people to evacuate the site. The Associated Press reports that the local authority of the municipality of La Courneuve promised to provide substitute accommodation for the displaced, but only a few individuals received it, namely, mothers with children and persons with illnesses.  full story

Germany criticizes Facebook for fomenting xenophobia, says Europe is rich and can deal with refugees

28.8.2015 22:41 The Berlin-based daily Tagesspiegel reported yesterday that German Justice Minister Heiko Maas said Facebook is not acting strongly enough against users who disseminate hatred of refugees through the social networking site. Maas has contacted the leadership of Facebook's European division and wants to discuss rectifying the situation with them.  full story

UN Committee criticizes Czech Republic over Roma discrimination and xenophobia

28.8.2015 21:50 The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) published a report today on its review of the Czech Republic, which took place on 12 and 13 August in Geneva. Its report begins with an overview of positive steps, including the adoption of the Romani Integration Strategy and an amendment to the Schools Act that promotes inclusive education.  full story

Austria reports 71 refugees died in refrigerator truck, four of them children

28.8.2015 19:37 A truck found yesterday in the east of Austria turned out to contain 71 dead refugees, four of them children. Hans Peter Doskozil, Chief of Police in the Austrian state of Burgenland, announced the number at a press conference today.  full story

Austrian Police discover as many as 50 dead refugees in refrigerator truck

27.8.2015 22:43 Austrian Police have found what may be as many as 50 dead refugees in a parked truck in the east of the country near the border with Hungary. The exact number of dead refugees found in the refrigerator truck and other details will be announced tomorrow at 11:00 CET.  full story

German ultra-right exploits refugee reception issue to foment domestic unrest and violence

27.8.2015 1:52 Deutsche Welle (DW) reports that Germany is expecting a record high number of people to apply for asylum there this year. According to DW, the German Government is determined to only grant asylum to people actually fleeing ongoing wars, not to those whom they have termed "bogus" refugees from the Balkans.  full story

Canada now accepting more Roma asylum-seekers from Hungary as evidence of persecution accumulates

26.8.2015 20:50 Canadian newspaper The National Post reported on 23 August that Canada is beginning to accept more Romani asylum-seekers from Hungary after all but rejecting them across the board just a few years ago. The Conservative-led Government launched a much-criticized crackdown on allegedly "bogus" refugees in 2009-2010.  full story

France: Fatal shooting at Romani camp, six-month-old among the dead

25.8.2015 20:26 A shooting in northern France today at a Romani camp in Roy resulted in four dead and three seriously injured. The dead include an infant and a woman.  full story

Austrian Chancellor criticizes Czech Republic for rejecting EU quotas on refugee reception

25.8.2015 19:33 Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann criticized the Czech Republic, the Baltic countries and Poland for rejecting redistribution quotas for refugees within the European Union. Speaking on the "Morgenjournal" program on radio station Ö1, Faymann declared that without quotas it will be impossible to stabilize the situation on the EU's external borders which are being crossed by thousands of refugees primarily from Africa and the Middle East, but Czech PM Bohuslav Sobotka has a different opinion on the matter.  full story

France: Roma immigrants evicted, travelling community kept from halting

24.8.2015 21:22 British newspaper The Independent reported on 16 August that a shantytown known as Samaritain in La Courneuve suburb north of Paris was slated for demolition "within days". The 80 families living there, most of them Romani, were not scheduled for rehousing by the local council  full story

Ethnic, religious, sexual minorities now suffering more discrimination in occupied Crimea and Donbas

23.8.2015 20:55 The Interfax-Ukraine News Agency reports that human rights activists have issued a report entitled "In the Crosscurrents: Addressing Discrimination and Inequality in Ukraine" that finds discrimination has significantly increased against minorities in occupied Crimea and Donbas. Dimitrina Petrova, Executive Director of the Equal Rights Trust, presented the report at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Friday.  full story

Council of Europe: Rejecting refugees on religious basis is pure discrimination

23.8.2015 0:51 Slovakia has found itself at the center of world media attention and under fire from the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, considered the "watchdog of democracy" on the continent, because of the country's willingness to mainly receive a group of Christians from among the barrage of refugees heading for Europe. Big international media outlets did not notice the Slovak plan until several weeks after Bratislava began speaking of it in June.  full story