Czech Republic

Czech report on extremism: Regional elections behind significant growth in extreme-right activity

25.10.2016 17:48 During the period from July to September this year, the Department of Security Policy of the Czech Interior Ministry noted a total of 79 events directly organized by politically-motivated extremist groups or attended by the members of such groups in large numbers. Of those, 46 were organized by extreme-right groups and just 22 by extreme-left groups and initiatives.  full story

Patrik Banga: We Roma must not lower ourselves to the racists' level! Racism and threats are what we criticize

25.10.2016 15:26 Journalist Patrik Banga has posted to the Facebook page of the ROMEA organization calling on his fellow Romani comunity members not to lower themselves to the level of racists and to stop writing their own racist posts and calling for revenge in connection with the death of a Romani man in the town of Žatec last week. "Romale ... I am reading your posts on all of the discussion forums and on Facebook and I am sad. Many of us are calling for revenge, but you must remember that violence just breeds more violence. All of us want the same thing, and that is for there to be a proper investigation of what happened in Žatec. However, if we insult people, if we make threats, if we say racist things, if we use vulgar language, then we are just doing what we criticize others for doing. Please, let's not lower ourselves to the level of the racists," his message says.  full story

Czech Education Ministry tracking Romani and socially disadvantaged pupils to prevent segregation

25.10.2016 13:58 As of November, the Czech Education Ministry will be researching how many Romani and socially disadvantaged children are studying in what kind of programs in both the mainstream primary and practical primary schools. The decision is in response to a judgment from the European Court of Human Rights in 2007 which found that the Czech Republic had discriminated against Romani children in education.  full story

Czech Republic: ROMEA awards scholarships to Romani secondary school students

25.10.2016 10:27 More than 50 Roma students at higher vocational schools and high schools in the Czech Republic received scholarships yesterday in Prague from the ROMEA organization. The stipends aid those whose studies are endangered by their families' bad financial situations.  full story

Czech Police in Ústecký Region seek eyewitnesses in the case of the Romani man who died in Žatec

24.10.2016 19:19 The Regional Directorate of the Police of the Czech Republic in the Ústecký Region published a call online today in connection with the recent case of the still-unsolved death of a young Romani man in the Czech town of Žatec. Police are asking that any eyewitnesses to the tragic incident provide them with testimony or any recordings from the scene.  full story

Former Czech Human Rights Minister Michael Kocáb calls on Gejza Horváth to attend the Roma Spirit ceremony

24.10.2016 18:47 Michael Kocáb, the former Czech Human Rights Minister and head of the Roma Spirit project in the Czech Republic responded yesterday to the open letter published by Gejza Horváth, who has renounced his nomination for the Roma Spirit Award in the category of Romani Culture. Horváth published the letter two days ago through his Facebook profile in response to the death of a 27-year-old Romani man in a pizzeria in the Czech town of Žatec.  full story

Jan Horvát: Romani people must unite over the death in Žatec. We can't ignore it!

24.10.2016 16:42 I, too, am following the situation around the death of our Romani brother - it is cruel and horrible. I haven't written anything for a long time, but like the rest of you, I cannot remain calm after this incident.  full story

Five assemblies scheduled internationally to mark the death of a young Romani man in Žatec

24.10.2016 7:41 In response to the death of a young Romani man at a pizzeria in Žatec there will be several commemorative assemblies throughout the Czech Republic and abroad. News server Romea.cz is publishing a list here and will update it as new events are announced.  full story

videoAnonymous eyewitness describes Romani man falling silent after punch to head

24.10.2016 7:17 According to an anonymous eyewitness who filmed the course of the incident in the pizzeria in Žatec on 18 October, one of the customers involved in assaulting the young Romani man who died there punched him in the head as he was prone, after which the victim stopped moaning. The eyewitness also claims that after the ambulance took the deceased away, the restaurant continued to do business and the customers present kept drinking.  full story

Denisa Havrľová: We must all protest together, nobody has the right to take somebody else's life!

23.10.2016 22:07 Life is the most valuable thing our parents ever give us, and every parent loves his or her children selflessly and unconditionally. Not being a mother myself, I don't know to what degree I can really understand the feelings and sorrow of the parents of Miroslov Demeter, who has died so young.  full story

Czech Republic: Memorial assembly this Thursday in Ostrava over Romani man's death in Žatec

23.10.2016 21:26 Romani residents of Ostrava have decided to hold a memorial assembly on Thursday, 27 October 2016 in solidarity with another such event in Žatec. The gatherings are being held because of the death of a young Romani man at a pizzeria in Žatec last Tuesday.  full story

Czech Republic: Memorial assembly and march this Thursday in Žatec over Romani man's death

23.10.2016 19:49 In the Czech town of Žatec a memorial assembly and march will be held on Thursday, 27 October in connection with the death of a Romani man at a local pizzeria. Jan Čonka and Mikuláš Vymětal announced the gathering, called "Justice for the Romani Victims of Violence" (Spravedlnost pro romské oběti násilí), and have also informed news server Romea.cz of the bank account number to which people can send financial support for the family of the deceased young man.
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Miroslav Kováč on the death of a Romani man in Žatec: Latent institutional racism, lack of respect for human life

23.10.2016 18:29 In recent days I have been swamped by the various reactions that have contributed different perspectives on the death of the 27-year-old Romani father of two that occurred as a result of the incident at the pizzeria in Žatec under circumstances that have yet to be explained. On that fateful Tuesday evening, Miroslav entered the local pizzeria and caused a stir.  full story

Civil society members of Czech Govt Roma Council demand thorough investigation of Romani man's death as soon as possible

23.10.2016 17:03 Several members of the Czech Government Council on Romani Minority Affairs are demanding that the criminal justice authorities thoroughly investigate the death of a young Romani in Žatec as soon as possible. News server Romea.cz publishes their declaration here in full translation.  full story

Radim Kupec on the death of Romani man in Žatec: The essence of equality is justice

23.10.2016 15:30 With respect to the events of Tuesday, when a young Romani man, Miroslav Demeter, died, many articles have already written and many questions asked that have not yet found their answers. Here I will try not to repeat what has been said by the others who have not been afraid to openly write their opinions about this issue.  full story

videoCzech Republic: Video of Romani assembly in Žatec on 20 October

22.10.2016 15:37 The video above is an edited recording of the gathering that took place on Thursday, 20 October in the Czech town of Žatec in front of the pizzeria where a Romani man (age 26) died on Tuesday at around 19:00. Approximately 100 Romani people gathered on that occasion.  full story

Gejza Horváth cancels appearance at Roma Spirit award over death of a Romani man in Žatec

22.10.2016 14:27 Today Gejza Horváth wrote the following open letter and published it to his personal Facebook profile.  full story

Renáta Kováčová on the death of the Romani man in Žatec: Exonerating autopsy results impossible to believe

22.10.2016 11:37 My head is still spinning from the idea that somebody can walk into a pizzeria alive, never to leave again. I am not afraid to say that I was also quite frightened and puzzled by the initial autopsy results according to which that young man died without any third-party involvement.  full story

Tomáš Ščuka on the death of a Romani man in Žatec: We do not support antigypsyism and we insist on objectivity!

22.10.2016 10:59 In recent days, most of us been paying increasing attention to the sad incident in Žatec in which a 27-year-old man died after a scuffle in a local restaurant. To be honest, any such incident involving the unfortunate loss of human life makes me emotional and sad, especially when somebody young loses their life.  full story

Lucie Oračková on the death of a Romani man in Žatec: Czech Police are not protecting us

22.10.2016 9:40 Many people are outraged by the recent death of a young Romani man at a pizzeria in Žatec. Basically this is not about whether the person who died was Romani, Vietnamese or from the North Pole.  full story