World

Romani author and painter Ceija Stojka has passed away

Vienna, Austria, 30.1.2013 2:05, (ROMEA) The author and painter Ceija Stojka passed away on Monday, 28 January 2013 in a hospital in Vienna. She would have turned 80 in May. Her death was confirmed on Tuesday, 29 January 2013 by her editor, Karin Berger.  full story

Czech Senator warns against hatred, racism, nationalism, xenophobia

Prague, 25.1.2013 17:14, (ROMEA) Speaking today at a gathering in the Czech Senate to commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Senate Vice-Chair Alena Gajdůšková (Czech Social Democratic Party - ČSSD) said, "The greatest denial of the memory of the victims of the Holocaust victims would be if people were to allow a similar tragedy to repeat itself anywhere in the world. It would be an insult to the victims of the Shoah to allow antisemitic opinions and statements to be presented publicly without responding to them appropriately."  full story

Roma Education in 2013: Time for Europe to Remedy its Democratic Deficit

Budapest, 25.1.2013 10:35, (ROMEA) 2013 is the European Year of Citizens, dedicated to the rights that come with EU citizenship. The European Commission wants to know what kind of Europe citizens want to see in 2020. While the focus is on EU citizens “in cross-border situations,” there are basic fundamental human rights issues that need to be addressed within Member States, issues more pressing than the cheaper roaming charges and easier online shopping celebrated by Commissioner Reding.  full story

NGOs call for advertising boycott over anti-Roma statements in Hungarian media

Budapest, 25.1.2013 10:26, (ROMEA) The ERRC is joining with a coalition of Hungarian NGOs in asking domestic companies and Hungarian divisions of multinationals to take a stand against racist commentary in Hungary. The NGOs are asking, among others, Vodafone, T-Com, FedEx, IKEA and Procter and Gamble to reconsider advertising in a Hungarian newspaper which published an article talking about Romani people in unacceptably racist and prejudiced language.  full story

Zeman says he would not meet with the Dalai Lama if elected Czech President

Prague, 23.1.2013 16:29, (ROMEA) Speaking during a debate organized by the European Values (Evropské hodnoty) think-tank devoted primarily to foreign policy, presidential candidate Miloš Zeman (Strana práv občanů ZEMANOVCI - the Citizen's Rights Party for Zeman) said that if elected president of the Czech Republic he would refuse to meet with the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama - unless the Dalai Lama was visiting in the capacity of a big investor. Karel Schwarzenberg (TOP 09), who will be Zeman's opponent during the second round of presidential elections, did not participate in the discussion, reportedly for lack of time.  full story

How to vote in the second round of the Czech presidential election

23.1.2013 14:43, (ROMEA) Voting in the second round of the presidential elections in the Czech Republic will take place on Friday 25 January 2013 from 14:00 - 22:00 CET and on Saturday 26 January 2013 from 08:00 - 14:00 CET. Voters can choose between candidates Karel Schwarzenberg and Miloš Zeman.  full story

Canada advises Romani people to stay home in Hungary

Budapest, Hungary, 22.1.2013 22:05, (ROMEA) Czech Radio reports that the Canadian Embassy to Hungary is urging Romani people not to attempt an overseas move. Since this past weekend, the embassy has been conducting a campaign in the poorest of Hungary's regions, specifically in the town of Miskolc, which has the country's highest population of Romani residents. Canada has tightened its immigration laws and has reduced the opportunity for people to receive asylum there.  full story

China: Yet another Tibetan self-immolates to protest human rights violations

Prague, 18.1.2013 22:46, (ROMEA) Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports that the first Tibetan to self-immolate in 2013 set himself on fire in China a few days ago to protest Chinese policy in Tibet. Since 2009, a total of 96 Tibetans have self-immolated so far.  full story

Romania: Police investigate group offering Romani women money for sterilization

Bucharest, Romania, 15.1.2013 17:15, (ROMEA) Agence France-Presse reported today that the prosecutor in Timisoara, Romania has begun investigating a nationalist group called NAT88 for soliciting Romani women to undergo sterilizations. The group will be investigated on suspicion of "public promotion of a fascist and racist ideology".  full story

videoHungary: Hundreds protest governing party over anti-Romani commentary

Budapest, Hungary, 14.1.2013 16:42, (ROMEA - UPDATED) Several hundred supporters of the opposition in Hungary demonstrated yesterday against racist statements made about the Romani minority by a co-founder of the conservative governing party Fidesz in front of the party's headquarters in Budapest. The protest was organized by the Democratic Coalition group of former socialist PM Ferenc Gyurcsányi.  full story

videoGermany: Thousands prevent neo-Nazi march through center of Magdeburg

Magdeburg, Germany, 12.1.2013 23:59, (ROMEA) Thousands of citizens in the German town of Magdeburg prevented a neo-Nazi march through the center of town today. Approximately 800 neo-Nazis carrying black flags had to settle for marching through the Salbke quarter on the town's southern border.  full story

Hungarian Government increases pensions for Holocaust victims

Hungary, 3.1.2013 16:57, (ROMEA) Agence France-Presse reports that as of 1 January the Hungarian Government has raised by 50 % the pensions it pays to the Jewish victims of crimes committed by the Nazis during the Holocaust. The wire service report points out that the opposition has frequently criticized the conservative cabinet of Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán in the past for his alleged indifference to antisemitism  full story

videoSlovakia: Romani man decapitated while still alive

Žihárec, Slovakia, 1.1.2013 0:05, (ROMEA) Slovakia has been shaken by the brutal murder of 37-year-old Daniel Horváth, a Romani man who was decapitated while still alive, according to a court autopsy. Last Friday police charged three men aged 17, 18 and 39 with Horvath's murder. "The suspects face between 20 and 25 years in prison, with the possibility of life in prison," said Nitra police spokesperson Renáta Čuháková.  full story

Canada may lift Czech visas once asylum process speeds up

Ottawa, 21.12.2012 18:27, (ROMEA) The Canadian media is reporting that Canada will accelerate the administration of asylum-seekers' requests for citizens of the Czech Republic. That country and 26 others are now on a list of so-called "safe states" where the Canadians believe people are not usually at risk of persecution, unlike people in other parts of the world.  full story

ROMEA acceptance speeches at Alice Garrigue Masaryk Award ceremony

Prague, 13.12.2012 6:24, (ROMEA) Today US Ambassador Norman Eisen gave the 2012 Alice Garrigue Masaryk Award to representatives of the ROMEA civic association at the American Center in Prague on the occasion of International Human Rights Day.  full story

Czech Republic: Alice Garrigue Masaryk Award goes to ROMEA this year

Prague, 10.12.2012 16:25, (ROMEA) On the occasion of the anniversary of International Human Rights Day, US Ambassador Norman Eisen will present the Alice Garrigue Masaryk Award to representatives of the ROMEA civic association on Wednesday, 12 December 2012 at 18:00 CET in the American Center in Prague. The US Embassy in Prague is giving the Alice Garrigue Masaryk Award for 2012 to the ROMEA association for its longtime promotion of human rights matters of concern to Romani people in the Czech Republic.  full story

France cancels payments to Romani migrants in exchange for their departure

Paris, 11.12.2012 17:18, (ROMEA) The online news server of the French political weekly Le Point reports that on 7 December the French Government announced it had abolished the financial aid it had been giving to migrant Romani people who agree to return to their country of origin. The change concerns mainly Romani people from Romania, whose country is an EU member but is not yet included in the Schengen area providing for the free movement of people within the EU.  full story

Hitler's selected speeches published in Czech translation

Brno, 8.12.2012 18:04, (ROMEA) A selection of speeches made by the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler between 1939 and 1942 has been released in the Czech language. Publisher and translator Pavel Kamas told the Czech Press Agency that he wanted to provide people with these speeches, which have been practically unavailable before now, so they could freely form their own opinions of them. Experts contacted by the Czech Press Agency have pointed out that the speeches are propaganda tools and could be misleading if not accompanied by expert commentary.  full story

Germany will try to ban extremist NPD once again

Berlin, 7.12.2012 0:30, (ROMEA) After meeting on 5 December, the Interior Ministers of all 16 German states recommended initiating a new attempt to have the courts ban the ultra-right National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD). It is not clear whether the federal government will also join such a step. The first attempt to ban the NPD foundered at the Constitutional Court in 2003 and concerns predominate that the failure of another attempt could just strengthen the extremists.  full story

Romani scholar: Czech press reports on Romani origins oversimplify, promote stereotypes

Prague, 5.12.2012 17:57, (ROMEA) The Czech Press Agency has published an article on the genetic origins of Romani people in Europe which seems to be very imprecise. According to the wire service, Romani people in Europe are descended from the "Dalit caste" in India, which reportedly represents the lowest level in the professional caste hierarchy there. The ancestors of today's Romani people are said to have left the Indian subcontinent 1 000 years ago. The British newspaper The Daily Telegraph has also reported that these claims have been proven by a new genetic study.  full story