Czech Republic

Czech Republic: Unique meeting of gay and lesbian Roma in Prague

Prague, 6.5.2014 23:30, (ROMEA) A unique meeting of gay and lesbian Roma took place this past weekend in Prague with the aim of awakening interest in this very specific group among Romani people themselves and among members of the majority society. The meeting took place under the auspices of David Tišer, a well-known Romani activist, with creative lectures by fashion designer Pavel Berky and photographer Lukáš Houdek.  full story

Czech Green Party EP candidate mocks xenophobic campaign by Úsvit

Prague, 6.5.2014 22:55, (ROMEA) Šádí Shanáh, a candidate for the Green Party (Strana zelených - SZ) in the Czech Republic running for the European Parliament, has decided to respond to the xenophobic campaign being run by the Úsvit ("Dawn of Direct Democracy") movement of Czech MP Tomio Okamura and has posted his own e-fliers, called "Shanáh's Statement on the launch of the campaign 'Humor against Hatred - Šádí Shanáh's Dawn of Human Decency'" on the Facebook profile of the Úsvit movement and of Okamura. News server Romea.cz brings you the full translation of that statement below.  full story

Czech EP candidate brought down by video of him singing Nazi anthem

Prague, 6.5.2014 19:39, (ROMEA) The political career of 23-year-old Milan Zavada has ended before it could even begin. The youth who has been running for the ANO movement of Czech Deputy Prime Minister Babiš in this year's EP elections has had his hopes dashed by an imprudent home video recording of him at a drunken party of adolescents.  full story

Czech Police unable to find founder of Facebook page calling for murder of "gypsies"

Czech Republic, 6.5.2014 18:21, (ROMEA) During the past few weeks, various pages promoting hatred have turned up on Facebook in the Czech language with names such as "We demand gypsies be shot dead with impunity" (Požadujeme beztrestné vystřílení cikánů), "Disabled children must be mercilessly killed" (Postižené děti je třeba bez milosti zabíjet), or "My stoned wife is available for sex" (Nabízím na sex svou zfetovanou manželku). All of these pages have listed their telephone contact as that of a Jaromír Merhaut, who has nothing whatsoever to do with them.  full story

Czech Agency for Social Inclusion director: Roma shouldn't have to remind us they are here

Prague, 5.5.2014 23:42, (ROMEA) The A2 biweekly magazine has published an extensive interview with the director of the Czech Government Agency for Social Inclusion. Martin Šimáček, about its work in excluded localities, opportunities for Romani emancipation, the participation of Romani people in integration, and efforts to influence social integration policy at the level of the Government. News server Romea.cz presents the interview in full translation below.  full story

Czech ministers to visit Šluknov district to address excluded localities

Prague, 5.5.2014 20:14, (ROMEA) Czech Human Rights Minister Jiří Dienstbier, Czech Interior Minister Milan Chovanec, and Czech Labor Minister Michaela Marksová Tominová (all Czech Social Democratic Party - ČSSD) will be visiting the Šluknov district next Monday. The ministers will be addressing the problems of socially excluded localities together with the mayors of local municipalities.  full story

Czech Republic: Towns in northern Bohemia fear more anti-Romani demos

Prague, 5.5.2014 19:30, (ROMEA) The Saturday edition of the Czech daily Lidové noviny reported that mayors of 18 municipalities in northern Bohemia are concerned that the upcoming municipal elections will mark the resumption of anti-Romani demonstrations in the region. In a letter to the Czech Government, they have complained that no one is addressing the situation of the Romani minority in the Šluknov district and that this failure could result in a new wave of the violent racist protests that inflamed the region three years ago.  full story

Czech PM to attend commemorative ceremony at Roma Holocaust site

Lety u Písku, 5.5.2014 18:16, (ROMEA) The traditional commemorative ceremony dedicated to the Romani victims of Nazism in the South Bohemian town of Lety near Písek will take place this year under the auspices of Czech Culture Minister Daniel Herman and will be attended by Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka. Čeněk Růžička of the Committee for the Redress of the Roma Holocaust, which holds the event, informed news server Romea.cz of the news on 3 May.  full story

Czech mayors, regional official ask EdMin not to close "practical primary" schools

Czech Republic, 4.5.2014 18:00, (ROMEA) The mayors of Chlumec nad Cidlinou and Nový Bydžov in Hradec Králové Region are asking the Czech Education Minister not to let schools providing special needs education die out. Their open letter has been signed by a regional councilor and by dozens of municipalities and schools from all over the Czech Republic.  full story

Czech Republic: Yet another fiasco for the DSSS - 10 people, not 400, in Brno

Brno, 3.5.2014 23:54, (ROMEA) About 10 people attended an election rally for the right-wing extremist Workers' Social Justice Party (Dělnická strana sociální spravedlnosti - DSSS) on the centrally-located náměstí Svobody in Brno today. Conveners of the rally had anticipated as many as 400 of its supporters to attend.  full story

PHOTO GALLERY: Neo-Nazi 1 May in Ústí nad Labem

Ústí nad Labem, 2.5.2014 23:52, (ROMEA) As news server Romea.cz reported in detail during our online coverage and follow-up articles, neo-Nazis decided to "celebrate" 1 May this year by marching through Ústí nad Labem. Of the anticipated 500 participants, only 200 of the most faithful came to town, not just from the Czech Republic, but from Germany, Italy and Slovakia.  full story

videoVIDEO: Roma demonstration against neo-Nazi march in Ústí nad Labem

Ústí nad Labem, 2.5.2014 23:41, (ROMEA) About 100 Romani people marched on 1 May 2014 from the Předlice quarter of Ústí nad Labem to the Mánesový sady park. A convoy of vehicles carrying other Romani people drove behind them. Other opponents of neo-Nazism who were gathered at Mánesový sady joined them. After the neo-Nazi march passed by, the Romani counter-protesters returned to Předlice.  full story

videoMiroslav Kováč: How do we stand up to neo-Nazism - with arms, or with diplomacy?

Prague, 2.5.2014 22:04, (ROMEA) Photos of yesterday's DSSS rally in Ústí nad Labem are being shared on Facebook. Among Romani people, the image that is resounding the most is one in which, after a conversation, the chair of the Equal Opportunities Party (SRP), Štefan Tišer, shakes hands with DSSS chair Tomáš Vandas.  full story

videoCzech Republic: Europe Roma Network condemns SRP chair for shaking hands with DSSS chair

Prague/Ústí nad Labem, 2.5.2014 21:12, (ROMEA) The Europe Roma Network, a Europe-wide Romani association, is condemning the chair of the Equal Opportunities Party, Štefan Tišer, for shaking hands with DSSS chair Tomáš Vandas at a rally yesterday in Ústí nad Labem. Ladislav Baláž, chair of the ERN, communicated the information to news server Romea.cz.  full story

Czech Republic: Defense and prosecution appeal Strýčkovice verdict

Domažlice, 2.5.2014 20:10, (ROMEA) Ladislav Matuš and his nephew David Matuš of Strýčkovice (Domažlice district) were given prison sentences on 25 April for assaulting their neighbor, Jiří Sýkora. David Matuš was sentenced to 10 months behind bars and Ladislav Matuš to two years.  full story

Czech trial of violent death of Romani man during police intervention continues

Sokolov, 1.5.2014 23:11, (ROMEA) At the end of April, the trial continued in the case of the violent death of a Romani worker after a police intervention in the West Bohemian town of Kynšperk nad Ohří. While two local police officers have been charged with negligent homicide in the case, they remain on active duty.  full story

Czech lower house asks courts to close the Equal Opportunities Party, Roma Democratic Party and others

Prague, 1.5.2014 21:11, (ROMEA) The Audit Committee of the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech Republic has reported that while 106 political parties submitted complete annual financial reports for last year, another 56 submitted incomplete reports or none at all. The committee has asked the Government to file a motion with the Supreme Administrative Court to close the parties not in compliance.  full story

Czech Republic: More than 200 people protest against neo-Nazi march in Ústí nad Labem

Ústí nad Labem, 1.5.2014 19:05, (ROMEA) A march by the right-wing extremist Workers' Social Justice Party (Dělnická strana sociální spravedlnosti - DSSS) and its supporters through the center of the Czech town of Ústí nad Labem took place today without any serious problems. Police addressed several small scuffles involving anti-fascists.  full story

videoCzech Republic: 200 neo-Nazis, same number of counter-protesters march in Ústí nad Labem

Ústí nad Labem, 1.5.2014 17:51, (ROMEA) About 200 neo-Nazis gathered today in Ústí nad Labem for an assembly and march through the center of town. The event was convened at 14:00 as an electoral rally of the right-wing extremist Workers' Social Justice Party (Dělnická strana sociální spravedlnosti - DSSS).  full story

Czech Republic: Indonesian Embassy complains about police raid on mosque

Prague, 1.5.2014 17:29, (ROMEA) The Indonesian Embassy has delivered a diplomatic note to the Czech Foreign Ministry regarding last Friday's police intervention at a mosque in the center of Prague. In the note, the embassy references provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.  full story