Czech Republic

Residential hotel tenants petition Czech PM over discrimination against the impoverished

8.12.2015 18:26 "The poverty caused by the ill-considered amendments to the social laws is unlike any that has ever existed in the modern history of our country," reads a press release sent out by an informal initiative of residential hotel tenants asserting that the situation of the families with children, senior citizens and unemployed occupants of such facilities is so critical it could become a cause of social unrest. The tenants have written a petition to the Czech Prime Minister protesting against a planned amendment to the law on aid to those in material distress.  full story

Czech teachers can invite performances from "You, Me and Them - theater as a forum against prejudice" to their schools

4.12.2015 23:25 "You, Me and Them - theater as a forum against prejudice" is a joint project of the Antikomplex organization and the Slovo 21 NGO in the Czech Republic. Three teams of actors from three different cities (Ostrava, Písek and Prague) give three different performances, the common aim of which is to "develop a culture of dialogue between the majority and minority groups in the Czech Republic and, through theater, to open up a common space leading to the awareness of each individual's own life situation, power to achieve change, and rights," according to a press release about the project.  full story

Advent Challenge calls on Czech society to defend itself against hatred and populists

3.12.2015 18:42 The Post Bellum organization has issued an Advent Challenge warning against the abuse of concerns over the refugee crisis, the situation in Russia, and the division of society. The text was written in response to the events that have been occurring all over Europe in recent months.  full story

Karel Holomek: Do Roma fall into poverty from the same causes and in the same way as everyone else?

2.12.2015 19:43 In the Czech Government's regular annual report on the state of the Romani minority, the most essential message is that as many as 115 000 people today are living in impoverished ghettos and that this number, compared to 2006, has almost doubled from the 60 000 people so afflicted then, and that currently there are as many as 600 such ghettos (excluded localities) compared to an estimated 300 then. It is also casually mentioned, along with this number, that most of these people are Romani, because, after all, this is a report on the status of the Romani minority, not just a report on the state of poverty in general.  full story

Czech state prosecutor says gallows at demonstration was illegal

1.12.2015 17:11 Vladimír Heřman's decision to bring a homemade gallows inscribed with "for treason" to a July demonstration against Islam in Prague will apparently result in a trial. The state prosecutor has assessed his actions as illegal and he will most probably be prosecuted.  full story

Czech Republic: Museum of Romani Culture director says economic situation of Roma deteriorating

30.11.2015 16:57 The Museum of Romani Culture in Brno, Czech Republic, which will celebrate 25 years of existence next year, is attempting to influence both the majority society and Romani people equally. The Museum aids Romani people in finding their roots and maintaining their traditions while attempting to disseminate information and refute some of the prejudices and stereotypes held about them by others.  full story

Drahomír Radek Horváth: Criticizing the Pope's reception of Romani people is disgraceful

30.11.2015 4:27 On 26 October 2015 Pope Francis met with several thousand Roma and Sinti. "The aim of this event is to remind Romani people and the entire community that the Church is open to those who live on the outskirts of society," the Vatican communicated ahead of the meeting.  full story

Czech Theater of the Oppressed festival - Divufest 2015 - ends today

28.11.2015 3:59 Performances by actors' groups throughout the Czech Republic and a German partner organization, a three-day training of jokers led by experienced instructor Terry O'Leary and workshops of the Theater of the Oppressed for advanced and beginning performers from Germany (Hamze Bytyci and Christoph Leucht) are part of the second annual festival of the Theater of the Oppressed, Divufest 2015. The workshops are free of charge and interpreted into Czech.  full story

Czech President: The migration crisis is an organized invasion, PM's position risks the country's security

27.11.2015 23:58 Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (Czech Social Democratic Party - ČSSD), according to Czech President Miloš Zeman, is risking the security of the Czech Republic through his position on the refugee crisis. The President told the Czech daily Mladá fronta DNES that the current migration wave is an organized invasion.  full story

Czech authorities indict leader of anti-Islam movement for inciting hatred on Facebook

25.11.2015 21:24 The chair of the Bloc against Islam, Martin Konvička, was charged with inciting hatred against Muslims on 18 November over remarks he posted to Facebook. His legal representative, Klára Samková, announced the news to journalists yesterday.  full story

Czech Constitutional Court rejects complaint from perpetrator of machete attack serving 17.5 years in prison

23.11.2015 23:47 The Czech Constitutional Court (Ústavní soud - ÚS) has rejected a complaint from Vojtěch Husák, one of the perpetrators of a machete attack on the personnel of a bar in the town of Nový Bor several years ago who received the longest sentence. He is currently serving 17.5 years in prison.  full story

Czech Republic: Interview with homeless Romani mother who grew up in children's homes

23.11.2015 22:45 Nikol is a young Romani woman who lives on the street and is expecting her second child (the state took away her first one). Her boyfriend is a drug user, but seems to be reducing his intake.  full story

Czech Republic: New campaign combats hate online

23.11.2015 20:30 The Czech Government's Hate Free Culture campaign has issued the following press release:  full story

Commentary: Martin Konvička, the crime of preparing apartheid and the segregation of Romani children

22.11.2015 13:23 It occurred to one journalist to ask a police spokesperson whether the Police of the Czech Republic are undertaking an investigation or proceedings concerning incitement to hatred of religion in connection with the group called "We Don't Want Islam in the Czech Republic". Its representative, Martin Konvička, was seconded on Tuesday, 17 November, by the President of the Republic, Miloš Zeman - alongside representatives of the ultra-right "Dawn" (Úsvit) and the Citizens' Rights Party (SPO) - at a demonstration at Albertov in Prague.  full story

Czech Republic: Analysis shows number of persons in need of affordable housing is rising in Frýdlant district

21.11.2015 17:56 A new situational analysis of the Frýdlant district has pointed out there is a growing number of persons in need of housing, not enough municipally-owned social apartments, and "trafficking in poverty" is blossoming. One area focused on by the authors of the analysis was housing in socially excluded localities.  full story

Czech Constitutional Court rejects complaint from convener of banned anti-Romani assembly

21.11.2015 17:06 Local authorities did not make an error when they banned an assembly and march in the town of České Budějovice in 2013 out of concerns over extremism. The Czech News Agency has ascertained from the database of the findings and rulings of the Constitutional Court (Ústavní soud - ÚS) that it has rejected a complaint filed against that decision by the convener of the assembly, Pavel Matějný.  full story

Czech Radio creates online broadcasts about children's homes

21.11.2015 16:14 Lukáš Kotlár, the Editor-in-Chief of the children's magazine Zámeček ("Mansion"), and his colleague Albín Augustin Balát have created an online radio station called DD Rádio - Rádio dětských domovů (DD Radio - Children's Homes Radio). "Annually around 1 000 young people leave children's homes and a similar number enter them. We will broadcast for the children and employees of these homes, but we also want to bring news from their world to the public," Kotlár said; news server Romea.cz conducted the following interview with him.  full story

Commentary: You have the floor, so babble and manipulate people

21.11.2015 14:02 News server Romea.cz is republishing in full translation the following commentary by Bob Kartous from the EDUin NGO, written after he participated in the episode broadcast on 9 November of the Czech Television talk show "You Have the Floor" (Máte slovo) as a guest. The topic of the program was inclusion in the schools.  full story

Czech PM: The President should not attend events organized by xenophobes

20.11.2015 17:23 Speaking in an interview for the Czech daily Hospodářské noviny (HN), Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (Czech Social Democratic Party - ČSSD) said the Czech President should not make appearances at events organized by xenophobic sects disseminating hatred. The PM said he believes that by giving a speech on the state holiday of 17 November at Albertov in Prague side-by-side with representatives of the extremist Bloc against Islam group, President Zeman has now joined the populists who are feeding like parasites on people's fears of the so-called Islamic State and the migration crisis.  full story

EU diplomacy head cancels visit to Prague, probably because of President's remarks

20.11.2015 16:48 The head of EU diplomacy, Federica Mogherini, cancelled a visit to Prague yesterday, probably because some Czech politicians are automatically connecting Islam and refugees with terrorism without differentiation. Czech Radio reported the decision with reference to a highly-placed EU source.  full story