World

videoSpeech by President Barroso at the European Roma Summit

BRUSSELS, 4.4.2014 11:00, (ROMEA) Six years ago, at the time of the first Roma Summit, I spoke about Roma inclusion for the first time at European level.  full story

UNICEF: Prioritize children to speed up Roma inclusion in Europe

BRUSSELS/GENEVA, 4.4.2014 10:31, (ROMEA) On the eve of the third Roma summit in Brussels today, UNICEF calls on European governments to firmly place children at the centre of Roma inclusion policies.  full story

Serbia: McDonald’s fined for discriminating against Roma

Belgrade, Serbia, 31.3.2014 17:47, (ROMEA) The Nicefoods restaurants company, which operates the McDonald’s fast food chain in Serbia, must pay a fine for not letting Romani children into one of its restaurants. The Serbian press agency, Tanjug, reports that a court in Novi Sad handed down the decision last week.  full story

Ukrainian Interior Minister demands radicals disarm

Kiev/Rivne na Volyni, Ukraine, 26.3.2014 20:26, (ROMEA) Yesterday the Ukrainian Interior Ministry ordered all paramilitary organizations in the country to immediately lay down their arms. The move is a response to threats made by ultra-right radicals from the Right Sector group who have declared "war" on Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov for the recent death of one of the ultra-right's most brutal leaders, Oleksandr Muzychko.  full story

Commentary: For whom is the bell tolling in Ukraine?

Prague, 25.3.2014 23:05, (ROMEA) This article was written for the print edition of Romani vod'i magazine at the start of March.  full story

Ukraine: Neo-Nazi leader shot dead during arrest

Kiev/Moscow, 25.3.2014 19:03, (ROMEA) Oleksandr Muzychko, also known as Sashka Bily ("Sasha White"), was killed last night in the town of Rivna na Volyni in northwestern Ukraine. The Ukrainian media first reported the case as one of murder and speculated that it might have been an action by "Russian diversionists" related to the international arrest warrant alleging that he murdered and tortured Russian captives in the Caucasus.  full story

Analysis: What the Czech media ignore about Ukraine

Prague, 24.3.2014 19:19, (Romano Voďi) This article was written for the print edition of Romano vod'i magazine at the start of March.  full story

World commemorates International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

Prague, 21.3.2014 20:01, (ROMEA) 21 March is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. In 1966 it was officially so declared by the UN General Assembly.  full story

Ukraine: Neo-Nazi leader Yarosh tones down rhetoric ahead of elections

Kiev, 12.3.2014 18:07, (ROMEA) The leader of Ukraine's neo-Nazis, Dmytro Yarosh, is planning to run for president during the May elections. Ukrainian National News (UNN) reported the announcement last week.  full story

videoRomani activists discuss the Ukraine crisis

Kiev/Crimea, 12.3.2014 17:12, (ROMEA) On Monday, March 10, Roma Radio Patrin and Terraforming broadcast live Skype interviews with Romani activists discussing their perspectives on the current crisis in Ukraine. The interviews marked the first time that Roma Radio Patrin has also broadcast a video feed of its online radio program.  full story

Romani Women’s Day: We Are Not A Problem, But An Opportunity!

Budapest, 8.3.2014 21:26, (ROMEA) This year, to coincide with the 8th of March International Women’s Day, Romedia Foundation launched a call to action to Roma Women Organizations from all over Europe. The initiative, devised under the auspices of UNESCO’s Global Alliance on Gender and Media, following Romedia’s participation at the The First Global Forum on Media and Gender in Bangkok, 2013, intends to draw attention to the need for a global means, including media partnerships, promoting a fair and equal media representation of Romani women in the media, contributing to an increased visibility of one of the most vulnerable minority groups in Europe.  full story

Appeal by the International Charitable Foundation “Roma Women’s Fund “Chirikli” and Roma Council of Ukraine

Kiev, 8.3.2014 19:28, (ROMEA) We, representatives of the Roma community appeal to the politicians, armed forces, and to all those, who have influence on the future of our country.  full story

Roma in Ukraine call for calm: UN day march pledges support

London/Kiev, 8.3.2014 19:22, (ROMEA) When Roma migrants head a march up Whitehall shortly to mark UN Anti-Racism Day they will carry a banner calling for a peaceful resolution of the crisis in Ukraine.  full story

videoPress TV: French politician makes anti-Roma remark

Paris, 8.3.2014 19:07, (ROMEA) A far-right politician in France has made a verbal attack against Roma community, saying they should be “concentrated” in “camps,” Press TV reports.  full story

Russia issues international arrest warrant for leader of Ukraine's "Right Sector"

Prague, 5.3.2014 18:43, (ROMEA) Russia has issued an international arrest warrant for the leader of the Ukrainian ultra-nationalist Right Sector movement, Dmytro Yarosh. Russian press agencies quoted a representative of Russia's Investigative Committee, Vladimir Markin, as announcing the news.  full story

US State Department: Discrimination, violence against Roma in Czech Republic

Washington, D.C., 27.2.2014 23:35, (ROMEA) Societal discrimination and violence against Romani people was a serious problem in the Czech Republic last year, according to the US State Department's annual report evaluating adherence to human rights worldwide. The State Department said the most problematic of the 200 states it evaluated are North Korea, South Sudan, Syria, and other countries in Africa and Southeast Asia.  full story

World-famous Spanish guitarist Paco de Lucía has passed away

Mexico, 26.2.2014 20:06, (ROMEA) Paco de Lucía, the phenomenal Spanish guitarist, passed away in Mexico yesterday at the age of 66. The news was announced by the artist's family and local officials in his native town of Algeciras in Andalusia.  full story

Ukrainian Parliament abolishes language law, neighboring states protest

Kiev, 26.2.2014 18:46, (ROMEA) Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania expressed their dissatisfaction today with a decision taken by the Ukrainian Parliament on Sunday to abolish a law on languages that was adopted in 2012. All three countries have large national minority populations living in several places throughout Ukraine and are therefore calling on the new leadership of the country to respect their rights.  full story

Swiss Supreme Court: Calling someone a "dirty" or "lousy foreigner" isn't racism

Bern, Switzerland, 24.2.2014 17:20, (ROMEA) Deutsche Presse-Agentur reports that the Swiss Supreme Court ruled today that cursing people as "dirty asylum-seekers" or "lousy foreigners" cannot be considered racial discrimination. The ruling concerned the case of a police officer convicted of making such remarks who was merely fined as punishment.  full story

Csaba Olah: As a Roma, integration means something different to me

Budapest, 22.2.2014 23:15, (ROMEA) This blogpost was written as a reaction to the recent statements of Ms. Viviane Reding, European Commissioner, on the situation of Roma and the need from their side to integrate and to have a normal way of living.  full story