Czech Republic

Czech Republic: Demonstration supports 100+ families at risk of eviction in Brno

7.12.2016 19:46 More than 100 households in the apartment buildings of the Brno-Zábrdovice quarter are living in uncertainty. The buildings' owners are changing and the new owner plans repairs to the properties.  full story

Czech court overturns fine against attorney who objected to expert by alleging he was Jewish

7.12.2016 14:08 The attorney Petr Kočí has successfully appealed a fine against him for alleging court expert Michal Mazel was of Jewish origin. The attorney was defending a member of an ultra-right party and claimed Mazel's alleged origin would bias him against the defendant  full story

Commentary: Online social networks censor photos of Syrian war, ignore dissemination of hatred

7.12.2016 13:14 Recently Facebook covered over a couple of photographs on my profile with a grey rectangle because they were not appropriate for children. One photo, from wartime Aleppo, showed the corpse of a child with his leg bent at a right angle at the tibia and other corpses mutilated by a bomb explosion after an attack by Assad's army and the Russians.  full story

Czech Education Ministry and Labor Ministry will buy school lunches for the disadvantaged next year

7.12.2016 7:10 On 22 November 2016 the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport ((MŠMT) announced that it has allocated another CZK 30 million [EUR 1.1 million] to cover the cost of providing school lunches to socially disadvantaged children free of charge, according to a press release posted to its website. The recipients of the subsidy program for 2017 will again be nonprofit organizations who will arrange for payments for school lunches for pupils at primary schools whose parents are unable for financial reasons to afford them, MŠMT said.  full story

Report on the coerced sterilization of Romani women in the Czech Republic describes last 50 years through testimony

6.12.2016 20:29 The European Roma Rights Centre in Budapest (ERRC) has published a detailed report about the coerced sterilization of Romani women in the Czech Republic. The document of more than 80 pages describes the last 50 years primarily through the testimonies of individual women.  full story

Some Czech schools don't teach enough about democracy

6.12.2016 9:08 One-third of primary and one-fifth of secondary schools in the Czech Republic are neglecting the instruction of subjects that are supposed to be priorities and are crucial to involving pupils in a democratic society. Such topics include an active approach to human rights, development of a general overview and civic competencies, prevention of extremism, respect for cultural differences, and support for democratic values.  full story

Czech Republic: Romani housing estate residents sign petition complaining about conditions

5.12.2016 18:25 Dozens of occupants of the Janov housing estate in the Czech town of Litvínov have drawn up a complaint and petition about their housing conditions. They are blaming the Krušnohor Apartment Building Cooperative for the disrepair of the properties it owns there.  full story

videoCzech documentary shows illegal Nazi salute being given at concert by xenophobic Ortel band

5.12.2016 8:36 Last night as part of its "168 Hours" program, Czech Television broadcast footage from a concert by the Ortel band in the Czech town of Frýdek-Místek during which some fans give the Nazi salute and shout the Nazi greeting "Sieg heil". The footage was captured by documentary filmmaker Vít Klusák.  full story

Czech actor Roman Zach supports Romani celebrity's stance against neo-Nazi band on live tv broadcast

5.12.2016 6:29 More performers in the Czech Republic have been publicly expressing their support for the Romani singer Radek Banga. During the popular music competition "Český slavík" (Czech Nightingale), Banga took a stand against the xenophobic band Ortel when it won second place for a second year in a row.  full story

Czech trial finally reveals what launched anti-Romani demonstrations in 2013

4.12.2016 14:22 Three years ago the Czech Republic experienced an unprecedented phenomenon - for several Saturdays in a row, thousands of citizens in a particular city engaged in street battles with police. The South Bohemian metropolis of České Budějovice had never experienced anything like it.  full story

Canada: Czechoslovak Roma express support for Romani celebrity and condemn Czech support for xenophobic band

3.12.2016 11:47 The Association of Czechoslovak Roma in Canada says it is not possbile for a xenophobic band to be part of Czech show business and receive public support from Czech celebrities. Romani emigrés living Canada have taken a stand in favor of the singer Radek Banga, who left in protest during the "Czech Nightingale" awards ceremony together with several other performers after the xenophobic music group Ortel won awards.  full story

Czech Republic: Protest march planned in Brno over eviction of 100+ mostly Romani families

3.12.2016 8:04 More than 110 families with children living on Cejl Street in Brno, Czech Republic are in danger of eviction over the New Year. The "We Want To Live Indoors!" initiative (Chceme bydlet!) is therefore convening a protest march on Tuesday, 6 December, to express support for the at-risk families and draw attention to the practices of those speculating in housing.  full story

Michal Mižigár: Inclusion is an opportunity for a better life

2.12.2016 20:38 Last month we marked the ninth anniversary of the victorious "D.H." judgment at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, in which 18 Romani people from Ostrava who had been unjustifiably reassigned to what were then called "special schools" saw justice done and defended their right to a quality education. I would like to share a story with you about why it is important for all children to have equal access to education.  full story

National Security Audit finds Czech Republic has no concept for preventing extremism and just relies on repression

2.12.2016 19:47 The Czech Republic does not have a clear, functioning concept for preventing extremism. The state relies only on repression and is not able to sufficiently justify
its use of such tactics to the public.  full story

videoCzech Republic: New Human Rights Minister Chvojka officially takes office

2.12.2016 18:47 The Czech Government has two new members: Czech President Miloš Zeman has appointed Jan Chvojka to the post of Human Rights Minister and Miloslav Ludvík to the post of Health Minister. They have replaced outgoing cabinet members Jiří Dienstbier and Svatopluk Němeček respectively.  full story

Czech Republic: 2016 Prize of the Museum of Romani Culture goes to Margita Lázoková

2.12.2016 17:27 The Prize of the Museum of Romani Culture, given annually to an eminent figure whose work has contributed to the development, preservation and promotion of Romani culture, was won this year by Margita Lázoková. The ninth annual awards ceremony took place last week as part of a musical evening commemorating Czechoslovakia's very first Romfest 1990.  full story

Romani women say they do not feel like equal citizens in the Czech Republic and do not feel safe there

2.12.2016 8:18 More than 60 Romani women from all over the Czech Republic met on Monday at a conference called "Transformation of the position of Romani women during the last half-
century", which was organized by the Romani women's group "Manushe" of Slovo 21, z.s. Many interesting topics were covered that inspired the women.  full story

Czech Gov't Council on Romani Affairs calls on public figures to speak out against hate and xenophobia

2.12.2016 7:29 The civil society members of the Czech Government Council on Romani Affairs have called on public figures to take a clear stand against the xenophobic music group Ortel, which is spreading hatred and has received an award as part of a popular music survey. "The prizewinning band has a clear connection to the extreme right and espouses ideas that are incompatible with the basic legal documents of the Czech Republic by supporting hatred against various groups of people. It is not possible to express support of any kind for such performers," reads their declaration, which news server Romea.cz publishes here in full translation:  full story

Deputy Mayor of Prague proposes Romani celebrity receive award from the Czech capital for his brave stance against hate music

2.12.2016 7:00 Deputy Mayor of Prague Petra Kolínská (Green Party) proposed on Tuesday that the Romani singer Radek Banga be given the Award of the Capital City of Prague for his many years of activity aiming to prevent risky behavior in youth and for his open stance against hate music. "The atmosphere in society has become tense recently, the language of hatred is beginning to become more and more the norm, even outside of online social networks," she posted to her Facebook profile.  full story

Czech NGO sector creates 0.7 % of GDP - 128 000 nonprofits strong

1.12.2016 14:33 There are 128 000 nonprofit organizations in the Czech Republic. They don't just run hobby circles and recreational activities, but they also provide services to those in need.  full story