Dear Colleagues!
We are a human rights group based in India, exclusively working for the Nomadic people(Gypsy) of India. we are expanding to all the Asian countries where Nomadic /Gypsy people are more visible.
As you are aware about the living conditions of the Nomadic gypsies are not better than their European counterparts, we request to include Asian Gypsy/Nomadic people in the celebrations of the decade Roma inclusion 2005-2015, kindly lobby for us so that Asia is also included. we salute you for your achievements in making the European and world fraternity accepting for this Decade.
msrao
National coordinator
NCNTHR

About http://kosovoroma.wordpress.com

The aim of this new website is to inform about the situation of Roma in Kosovo and Kosovo Roma in Diaspora. Before the war, Kosovo was the home to 120,000 to 150,000 Roma. A first Romani presence in Kosovo has been traced back to the 14th century (1394) in the town of Prizren.

Roma in Kosovo enjoyed a comparatively high living standard. They had their own institutions, news papers and theatres. The Roma Mahala in Kosovska Mitrovica was one of the oldest and largest Romani settlements in the region with its own infrastructure.

Kosovo Roma became the biggest "collateral damage" of the nationalist conflict between Kosovo Serbs and Albanians. More than 100,000 Roma were chased from Kosovo in the aftermath of war. Romani settlements such as the Fabricka Mahala in Kosovska Mitrovica and the Roma Mahala in Pristina were burned down and looted in acts of reprisal and retaliation.

Today, the Roma community in Kosovo counts merely a few thousand people. Most of them live in a destitute condition at the margins of the Kosovo society. They have no voice in Kosovo society. Political participation including in the negotiations surrounding the Kosovo status does not exist.

The majority of Kosovo Roma live in diaspora, most of them in Serbia and Montenegro, many in refugee or IDP camps. There are also smaller Kosovo Roma communities in Macedonia and in Bosnia. Eight years after the end of the war, their status as well as the status of many of the ten thousands Roma who escaped to Western Europe is still not resolved.

By creating this website, we want to inform about a community which has fallen into oblivion. We also aim to provide a platform for exchange between Roma from Kosovo hoping that we can still bring about a policy-change necessary to put an end to years of suffering and to restore human dignity.

Devlesa!

The Kosovo Roma Website Team

E-mail: kosovoroma@gmail.com

Now Accepting Applications! Elizabeth Neuffer Fellowship, Deadline: May 27 - http://bit.ly/gtyZHj 

The International Women’s Media Foundation is now accepting applications for the 2011-12 Elizabeth Neuffer Fellowship, named for the 1998 IWMF Courage in Journalism Award winner and The Boston Globe correspondent who was killed in Iraq in May 2003.

The fellowship will run from September 2011 to March 2012. The application deadline is May 27, 2011. This program, created with Neuffer’s family and friends, aims to perpetuate her memory and advance her life mission of promoting international understanding of human rights and social justice while creating an opportunity for women journalists to build their skills.

One woman journalist will be selected to spend an academic year in a tailored program with access to Boston-area universities as well as The Boston Globe and The New York Times. The flexible structure of the program will provide the fellow with opportunities to pursue academic research and hone her reporting skills covering topics related to human rights. The Elizabeth Neuffer Fellowship is open to women journalists whose focus is human rights and social justice.

Applicants must be dedicated to a career in journalism in print, broadcast or online media and show a strong commitment to sharing knowledge and skills with colleagues upon the completion of the fellowship. Excellent written and spoken English skills are required. A stipend will be provided, and expenses, including airfare and housing, will be covered. Click here to learn more. http://bit.ly/gtyZHj

I would like to present the first annual NY Gypsy Film Festival, dedicated to embracing the Roma culture and heritage of gypsies from around the world.

The festival takes place the first week of October from October 1-7 and all screenings, Q&A's, and musical events will be held at the Bulgarian Bar Mehanata located @ 113 Ludlow St. in the Lower East Side.

The festival will be comprised of twelve films from Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Greece, and the US.

Through literally centuries of slavery, genocide, massacre, and relentless ostracization, the Romani (Gypsy) people who presently number around 15 million worldwide, continue to suffer unprecedented levels of violence, civilian attacks through fervent segregation, police brutality, and an appalling lack of legitimate representation in art and media. Abrasively, intimately, and artfully handled in 12 hand-picked films from Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Greece, and the US, the first annual New York Gypsy Film Festival brings some of these artists and their subjects to the forefront of the so called First World, with love, and without mercy.

The NY Gypsy Film Festival will host the world premiere of Sándor Cs. Nagy's Mundi Romani, a Hungarian documentary that depicts twelve artists presented at the 2007 Venice Biennale as part of the Roma Pavilion.

Human Heart Explodes is a film directed by Helder Mira, produced by Matt Orefice and Paul A. McDonald. The documentary visualizes Safet Tairov's struggles to help his disadvantaged and ostracized Roma (Gypsy) community in a small village in Eastern Europe. A discussion with the filmmaker will take place after the screening of this film.

A special event presentation screening will be held of the documentary The Pied Piper of Hutzovina , a journey of filmmaker Pavla Fleischer's travels with musician Eugene Hutz from Budapest to Ukraine. There will be a Q&A following the screening with Pavla Fleischer.

Luchia Dragosh's The Child Within, is another special event screening of a dramatic feature that investigates the lives of three young pregnant women from Bulgaria, Belarus, and China, who flee to America despairing their circumstance to search for lives of freedom. Instead they find themselves victims of human trafficking. Q&A with the filmmaker to follow the film's screening.

A special closing screening will be held on October 7, 2007, presenting The Gypsy Caravan with a Q&A to follow the film by Director/Producer/Writer Jasmine Dellal. The Gypsy Caravan is an ethnographic exploration of Roma musicians such as renowned Romanians Taraf de Haidouks and Fanfare Ciocarlia.


Screening Schedule:

Mon October 1 - Pretty Dyana 45 min 7:00 PM

Mon October 1 - Garlic And Watermelons 66 min Q&A 8:00 PM**

Tue October 2 - Everyday Life of Roma Children from Block 71 22 min 7:00 PM

Tue October 2 - Porraimos 56 min Q&A 7:30 PM**

Wed October 3 - The Soul Has no Ethnic Origin 13 min Q&A 7:00 PM**

Wed October 3 - The Child Within 93 min Q&A 7:30 PM**

Thur October 4 - The Pied Piper of Hutzovina 63 min Q&A 7:00 PM**

Fri October 5 - Virtuosi from Nowhere 78 min 7:00 PM

Sat October 6 - Mundi Romani-The Venice Biennale 25 min 7:00 PM

Sat October 6 - Human Heart Explodes 85 min Q&A 8:00 PM**

Sun October 7 - American Gypsy 80 min Q&A 7:00 PM**

Sun October 7 - Gypsy Caravan 109 min Q&A 8:30 PM**

**Q&A w/filmmaker

Musical performances and visual art depicting Roma themes will be presented at screenings TBA.

We look forward to having you join us in the celebration of The Decade of Roma Inclusion 2005-2015.

For more information regarding NY Gypsy Film Festival, please contact Aljerrari (917) 945-2234 / nygypsyfilmfestival@gmail.com


Thank You,
Nicoletta Bumbac

http://www.meltosag.net/uccu-informalis-roma-oktatasi-projekt/

Sosem volt még Magyarországon akkora igény a társadalmi gondolkodás megváltozására, annak fejlődésére, mint napjainkban.

Többek között ez az igény hívta elő az „Uccu” projektet.

A civil kezdeményezés célja, hogy lehetőséget teremtsen a találkozásra és a dialógusra roma és nem roma fiatalok között. Reméljük, hogy ez a lehetőség tágítja a fiatalok gondolkodását, és egyúttal csökkenti a diszkriminatív, előítéletes gondolkodást. A program lényege, hogy középiskoláknak kínálunk az informális oktatási módszereire épülő, 90 perces, a roma társadalommal kapcsolatos oktatási programokat.

Ezekkel a játékos és interaktív foglalkozásokkal arra törekszünk, hogy a fiatalok és diákok minél több információra, és személyes tapasztalatra tegyenek szert a romákkal kapcsolatban és minél nyitottabbá váljanak egymás iránt.

Az „Uccu” projekt egyik legfontosabb eleme a személyesség és az interakció, ezért alapvető fontosságú, hogy ezeket a foglalkozásokat roma fiatalok tartsák, önkéntes alapon. Az élesben történő oktatási programok megelőzően a projekthez csatlakozó roma fiatalok részt vesznek majd egy felkészítő tréningen, ahol elsajátíthatják az informális oktatás módszereit, valamint egyéb szükséges technikákat és tartalmakat tanulhatnak meg.

A civil kezdeményeséshez hosszútávú partnerként csatlakoztak a Haver alapítvány, az OSI, a Kurt Lewin alapítvány, valamint magánszemélyek.

Hogyha kedvet érzel ahhoz, hogy önkéntesként csatlakozz az „Uccu” csapatához, és egy oktatótárssal interaktív foglalkozást tarts diákcsoportoknak arról, hogy mit jelent romának lenni, akkor keress fel minket, hogy megbeszélhessük a továbbiakat.

A jelentkezésed nem kötelez semmire, sem Téged, sem minket! Mindennek a személyes beszélgetésen kell eldőlnie.

Információ és jelentkezés:

László Flóra, program koordinátor

Email: flora.laszlo@gmail.com

The Romani Morpho-Syntax (RMS) Database is now accessible online on

http://romani.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/rms

Featuring:

- Comprehensive documentation of over 150 varieties of the language
- Phrase exemplification of all data in sound, transcription, and translation
- Browse, search, and query facilities
- Dynamic map-generating function that plots the distribution of features
- Extensive Help menu
- Link to Romani Linguistics Page with background information on the Romani language
- bibliographical database of Romani linguistics
- downloadable DVD presentation in 17 languages on the historical development of Romani

and more.

Username and Login are NOT required in order to access the database

Note that data entry for some categories and samples is still in progress.

Comments are welcome and can be sent to romani@manchester.ac.uk

Yaron Matras
Professor in Linguistics
School of Languages, Linguistics & Cultures
University of Manchester
Manchester M13 9PL, UK

If you wish the information about your organization to be included in the emerging Roma organizations database, please, send a message, which including the following information on your organization:

1. Title.

2. Address.

3. Telephone.

4. Fax.

5. E-mail.

6. Website.

7. Skype or ICQ or Yahoo Messenger.

8. Profile on Facebook or Twitter or LinkedIn.

9. Areas of activity of your organization.

Send the message to romale@zahav.net.il with the word “Database” in a “Subject” line. All received relevant information will be posted shortly on http://www.idebate.org/roma/.

Looking forward to hear from you!

Mr. Valery Novoselsky, Editor, Roma Virtual Network.

http://www.valery-novoselsky.org/romavirtualnetwork.html 

I am writing to you to advocate for the new campaign of La Drom Kotar, which aims to have October 8th officially declared the “International Roma Women’s Day”, in recognition of the work of all Romani Women. The idea behind the campaign was conceived at the above mentioned congress. Please feel free to check out the website of the campaign (http://dromkotar.org/en/) or to go directly to the campaign page to sign the petition (http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/8octubre/). La Drom Kotar believes that education is a tool for social change and I stand right along side this idea. Please help and sign the petition. By signing, it allows for 1. International Recognition that allows for organizations to apply for grants to continue their efforts 2. Allows the international community to see that the Roma people are organized and trying to change their future. If we receive 250,000 signatures the Spanish and Catalan Government will listen and declare the 8th of October International Roma Women’s Day. I ask you because I think you would not only be interested in this information and campaign, but perhaps could help us spread and share the news.

PLEASE take a moment to look at the website of La Drom Kotar Mestipen (http://dromkotar.org/en/ )and decide for yourself if you would like to support their efforts. If you feel like signing the petition, please visit (http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/8octubre/). Also, I would like to highlight that the petition has been translated to various language: Spanish, Catalan, Romany, Romanian, Turkish and Italian. Thanks again and please know that I am here for ANY questions you might have.

Rosamaria Cisneros-Kotic

FACEBOOK – NO PLACE FOR GYPSY/ROMA/TRAVELLER HATE PAGES

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights - which arose directly from the experience of the Second World War and represents the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are entitled – states that: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights and that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in the Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.”

Adopted under the auspices of the Council of Europe, the European Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities sets forth a number of principles according to which States are to develop specific policies to protect the rights of minorities. These include: Promote the conditions necessary for minorities to maintain and develop their culture and identity, (Article 5) and Protect the rights to freedom of assembly, association, expression, thought, conscience, and religion. (Articles 7, 8, and 9)

Sadly, these remain empty words for many in the Gypsy/Roma/Traveller community as discrimination and prejudice (which Sir Trevor Philips, chair of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, describes as “the last ‘acceptable’ form of racism in the UK”.) is experienced here in the UK and elsewhere in Europe, on a daily basis. A worrying trend is the use of social networking sites such as Facebook to promote hatred towards the Gypsy/Roma/Traveller communities and to encourage others to take ‘vigilante’ style action to cleanse Gypsy/Roma/Travellers from an area.

These pages use offensive terminology such as: ‘pikey’ or ‘gypo scum’; a recently uploaded (now deleted) page contained comments calling for encampments to be petrol bombed. Whilst we accept that one of the key under pinning principles of social networking sites, and indeed the internet itself, it to enable a free flow of information, we do not accept that information that openly incites racial hatred and/or violence falls within these core principles.

Indeed, Facebook’s Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, sub section Safety, would appear to agree with us: You will not post content that: is hateful, threatening, or pornographic; incites violence; or contains nudity or graphic or gratuitous violence, You will not use Facebook to do anything unlawful, misleading, malicious, or discriminatory. Given the above statement, it is difficult to understand why Facebook is not exercising its responsibility to protect those users who are abused and offended by such pages or why, despite repeated reports by users, there is such a delay in these pages being removed. As a company recently valued at $50 billion,

Facebook could easily absorb the cost of installing software that would enable ‘instant’ deletion of pages which are clearly designed to incite racial hatred or at the very least a system which enables people to disable offensive and criminal content immediately which could then be reviewed by Facebook moderators at a later date. This petition is designed to remind Facebook that they have a duty to uphold every individual’s right to be protected from discrimination and physical harm and to urge Facebook to take all steps necessary to demonstrate that their company is not a ‘third party promoter’ of bigotry and prejudice.

Please sign this petition – say no to hate pages on Facebook http://www.petitions24.com/facebook__no_place_for_gypsyromatraveller_hate_pages

The UK Association of Gypsy Women would like to renew our appeal to all Gypsy Roma Traveller NGOs and individuals to help us to keep up the pressure on those European Governments who are forcibly returning the Roma community back to Kosovo. Thomas Hammarberg has condemned Governments of those countries that are indulging in this inhumane practice and so should we.

Please, support the Commissioner when he speaks out against such disgraceful practices by European Governments by writing to them. The returnees have no safe place to go some live in disbanded derelict properties without food, money or prospects of work, some have no choice but to return to live on the poisoned Toxic Waste Camps where death is probably the only possibility of their future that is guaranteed. Kosovo cannot be called a ‘Sanctuary’ but rather a return to a life of living hell. Please see a report below sent to UKAGW by a colleague from the Kosovo Medical Emergency Group

A personal report of the founder of the NGO Hope and Aid

I want to just refer to one other incident that had an effect on me, and about which surely someone in the Political arena should care? I and the 'Robin Hood' team were distributing aid to a Roma community in Fushe Kosova, on the outskirts of Pristina. A reasonably well dressed man stepped forward and tried to speak to me with a few words of broken English, and pulled out of his pocket a single sheet of paper. It had an official stamp, and I quickly recognised it as a repatriation paper. The man was born in Kosovo, and he is now 35. He hadn't lived in Kosovo since he was taken to Germany by his parents at the age of 17.

He has now been made to return (forced repatriation) from Norway (he also mentioned Germany) and was very keen to show me where he was living. I agreed to go with him after we finished, and he waited very patiently. When we arrived, we found a house of brick that had been built by his late father in the early 90's, but was never finished. His father died in the 90's. The house had no kitchen or bathroom, indeed nothing other than brick walls, concrete and rubble floors, and a tiled roof; no electricity, windows, or doors, and it has clearly been used by animals in the intervening period. The man has been sleeping on a piece of foam covered by a single blanket, and his smart travel suitcase stood beside it with all his worldly possessions contained therein, (which were actually just a few other clothes).

He has lived in Germany and I think Norway for 18 years. Having become used to western European living standards, it was clear that he had simply no idea how to now live on nothing!

I was shocked, he showed me a photograph of himself taken previously, looking smart and well dressed, and despite his relatively smart clothes, the difference was 'worlds' apart. He was desperate for me to help him get back to Germany where he had been forced to leave his girlfriend and his children, but the best I could offer was to get his message to MTS to properly investigate his circumstances, and to try to raise his plight, and that of so many others who are being forcibly repatriated from Europe.

I have no wish to accuse, or to pass judgment, but I'm told that many thousands of similar repatriations are being made to Kosovo, daily, and weekly, from across the EU, sometimes with promises of being met and looked after at the airport on arrival. Just yesterday Wednesday 14th April, Germany and Kosovo agreed on the return of some 14,000 former refugees, yet the Municipalities and our friends in MTS are overwhelmed and totally unable to cope properly with assistance for all of these 'human beings' who are largely being consigned to an existence on 'nothing'!

Programme Director

ERRC wishes to announce the vacancy of the post of ERRC Programme Director. Below you will find all the relevant information for applying for the post.

Documents include the:

* Job description
* Person specification
* Guidance notes for applicants
* Application form
* Equal opportunities form
* Recruitment feedback form

Please follow the link to access the ERRC application documents: http://www.errc.org/cikk.php?cikk=2848.

You can search our website for information about the work of ERRC at www.errc.org.

The criteria we use for short-listing is set out in the person specification and follow on from the job description tasks. Please take time to read the guidance notes on how to fill out your application. It is important that your application shows how you meet ALL points mentioned in the person specification. If you do not meet all of the criteria or do not have experience on some of the points listed, please state how you would aim to accomplish the work.

Closing date for applications: 3 September (8.00 am Budapest time)

Interview date: Provisionally planned for 21 September 2007
in Budapest

You are kindly asked to send your application (letter of interest, application form, paper and the equal opportunities form; the latter is not obligatory) preferably by e-mail to dora.eke@errc.org. Applications in other formats than outlined in the guidance notes will not be considered. Please ensure your e-mail has been received by requesting confirmation.

ERRC offers a competitive salary and benefits package based on experience which is subject to negotiations.

We kindly ask you not to call for information before you are invited for an interview.

We wish you every success with your application and thank you for your interest in ERRC.

European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC)

“The Gypsies are cumming like wolves, they’re multiplying like sheep.

The first to leave will be international companies. There won’t be anyone to sell their new shit to, and they’ll move away to somewhere with less Gypsies and more money. Who’s going to buy soap for soft and tender white skin? Dirty Gyppos?”

“The difference between Gypsies and cattle is that cattle are subject to veterinary control. Livestock can't behave like Gypsies, but the reverse is allowed. Bovine rights and freedoms have been under serious pressure to years, and during that time the Gypsy woman has given birth to twins again and she's as bloody-minded as a cow yet again.”

The above are to be found in articles by Kalin Rumenov, the recipient of the 2008 Bulgarian Chernorizetz Hrabur "Young Journalist" prize. These articles are regularly published in the "Novinar" national newspaper, which makes no effort to distance itself from his views or to publish any balancing material to counter Rumenov’s. The Bulgarian Press Ethics Commission does not consider this to be a problem worthy of their attention.

This award was received by Kalin Rumenov at an official ceremony in Sofia, Bulgaria on the 25th of May 2008 in the presence of leading politicians, members of Parliament and journalists. The awards for press journalists were instituted by the Union of Publishers in Bulgaria in 2002, covering 11 categories.

Rumenov consistently portrays Roma in violently offensive terms as backward and second-rate, as a community whose members are unable to take decisions for themselves and their own development. He calls on the state to deal with them by all possible means, presenting Roma as a pest which threatens the security of the “better” Bulgarian ethnic group.

Following the award to Kalin Rumenov, a coalition in Bulgaria of various professional groups set up a petition for the prize to be publicly withdrawn. Those who signed the petition to withdraw his prize are calling on the President and the Prime Minister of Bulgaria, who were present at the ceremony to make a public declaration that they do not share the values represented by the racist author.

Please join this protest and participate in the campaign demanding a recall of the prize and a condemnation of anti-Gypsyism in the Bulgarian media.

Please send an e-mail to ieifoundation@yahoo.com or v.nicolae@diplomacy.edu including your name, position and country and we will add your name to the existing list.

To see the full letter of protest and list of signatures please go to http://www.ergonetwork.org/bulgariakrl.doc . For a translation of the worst of Kalin Rumenov;s article please go to http://www.ergonetwork.org/krarticle.doc
The coalition which backed the petition is monitoring the development of the case and will provide information on any decisions taken and on its future intentions. At the same time, the coalition is launching an appeal to the relevant international and European organisations and institutions and to individuals to support the demand set out in the petition as appropriate.

Signed on behalf of the Campaign secretariat:

Adela Peeva, Bulgaria
Ivailo Dichev, Bulgaria
Kalina Bozeva, Bulgaria
Krustio Krustev, Buglaria
Liliana Makaveeva, Bulgaria
Mark Bossanyi, UK/Bulgaria
Valeriu Nicolae, Romania

Professor Géza Jeszenszky of Corvinus University, “one of the most prestigious Hungarian universities,” requires his students to use his book Post-Communist Europe and its National/Ethnic Problems: A Coursepack in his classes.

On page 273 it includes the words “The reason why many Roma are mentally ill is because in Roma culture it is permitted for sisters and brothers or cousins to marry each other or just to have sexual intercourse with each other.”

You can send complaints to Prof. Zsolt Rostoványi, Rector of Corvinus University of Budapest, at csminfo@uni-corvinus.hu  

Dr. Ian Hancock (xulaj@mail.utexas.edu)

Radio Chachimo from eight countries: Germany, Balkan, United Kingdom,
Rumania, Spain, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Sweden.

Radio Chachimo, SR International's most recent production in Romany,
has now been on the air for five moths. In June, contributing partners
from all around Europe will be gathering for a conference in Stockholm
to evaluate their work and for discus the program Radio Chachimo.

You have possibility to listening to our program at this address
www.sr.se/romani

We welcome your comments on and suggestions for the program!

Best regards
Swedish Radio/SR-international
Radio Romano
Agnes Lakatos
radioromano@sr.se

The Roma Education Fund, a foundation dedicated to closing the education outcome gap between Roma and non Roma, announces an open call for one position of a member of the Western Balkan Selection Board as a part of the REF/ Scholarship Programs for Kosovo.

The position is short term Consultancy based activity and subject to renewal.

Required skills, knowledge and experience:

- Candidates must hold MA, PhD or equivalent degree;

- Be citizens of Kosovo;

- Have at least two years of experience in Academia and/or have good knowledge of the Educational system in the country and the Western Balkan region overall.
Excellent writing and oral skills in English.

- Willingness to contribute a considerable amount of time to familiarize themselves with the Applications/Reports, Selection Guidelines, Program policies, Project plans and other Program related materials.

- Willingness to travel to one of the Western Balkan region for Selection Meeting, as well as attend annual coordination meeting in Budapest.

- Ability and Interest to work in multiethnic environment.

- Good knowledge of issues related to access to higher education for minority in the region

- Knowledge of Roma Education issues represents an advantage.

Individuals identifying themselves as Roma are strongly encouraged to apply.

CV and Letter of Intention in English to be sent on the following email addresses:

Rodica Moroi rmoroi@romaeducationfund.org

and Merziha Idrizi midrizi@romaeducationfund.org

Deadline for submission of applications is August 15, 2009.

26 February 2008 – In a document published today, Romano Them warns about plans to forcibly repatriate Roma and other so-called vulnerable groups to Kosovo after independence. Romano Them refers to the adoption by the Kosovo government in October 2007 of two policy documents, the Readmission Policy and the Strategy for the Reintegration of Repatriated Persons, which lay down the groundwork for the readmission of a large group of forced returnees after UNMIK's departure.

Both documents and in particular the Reintegration Strategy put the accent on the reintegration of so-called vulnerable groups which have so far benefited from a relative protection against forced repatriations on the basis of the UNHCR's position on the continued need for international protection of individuals from Kosovo.

Several references indicate that Roma, together with Ashkalija and Kosovo Egyptians will be among the first targets of forced repatriations, Romano Them says. Both documents seem to indicate that the UNHCR's position will be increasingly hollowed out by administrative practice. Romano Them refers to a note issued by the German Federal Ministry of Interior in December last year explaining that in future the geographic origin of a person from Kosovo will determine whether a person can be forcibly repatriated or not.

Romano Them stresses out that the main deterrent to the return of Roma to Kosovo has been the unstable security situation and their lack of trust in the Kosovo institutions to protect their rights. Referring to official reports, Romano Them points out at the persistent discrimination of Roma in Kosovo which includes their neglect in the reconstruction process.

Forced returns of Roma to Kosovo, under the given circumstances, raise a number of human rights issues, not only in relation with refugee protection, but also in terms of guaranteed political, economic, and social rights, Romano Them says. For Romano Them, they constitute an implicit acknowledgment by the international community of its failure to create the conditions for safe returns of Roma and other minorities to Kosovo as part of its mandate under UNSCR 1244 (1999).

Romano Them is an internet platform informing about the situation of Roma in Kosovo and Kosovo Roma in diaspora.

The document is available on the website of Romano Them.

See: http://kosovoroma.wordpress.com/2008/02/26/by-force-if-necessary-minority-returns-to-kosovo-after-independence/

Romano Them

__________


Zorea dendo irinipa ani Kosova: Romano Them chivela puchipe palo respekti e Manushikane Hakajenge

26 Februari 2008 - Ano dokumenti publicirimo-ikaldo avdive, Romano Them delamen angleder ki godi palo bilachipa e planekso kotar e zorea dendo irinipa e Romengo thay yavere akharde ko anav nasigurime grupe e manushengo palo Kosovako biumlavipe. Romano Them ko akava pandelape ko 2 dokumentya kola isine ande kotar e Kosovaki gavermenta ko Oktombri 2007 bersheste Readmisijako Dokumenti thaj Strategiya pali Reintegracija e Manushenge kola irinenape, dokumentya kola anena baza pali readmisiya-irinipa pobare grupake manushengo kola zorea irinenape palo UNMIK-sko muklipa e Kosovako.

Soduj dokumetya a majbut e Reintegracijaki Strategiya chivela punkto ki reintegraciya e nasigurime grupe e manushengo, kola ji akana isinelen beneficiya kotar e relativno siguripa ando zorea dendi repatriyaciya-irinipa, bazirimo ki UNHCR poziciya palo phiravni Internacionalno suguripa e manushengo kotar Kosova.

Pobuter reference dena ano jandipa kay Roma, Ashkaliye thay Kosovake Egipchanya ka oven jekto manusha kolen ka astarel zorea irinipa, Romano Them penela. Soduj dokumentya chivena ki godi kay UNHCR-ski poziciya, na ka lelpe ani administrativno praktika. Panglo akaleya Romano Them akharelape ko vakeripa ano Decembro 2007 bersheste kova isine dendo kotar o Germansko Federalno Ministri palo Andrune Bukya kote ov motavela kay ano avutnipe geografsko pandlipe e personako kotar Kosova na ka lelpe ano dikhipe kana mangelape e persona te irinelpe zorea.

Romano Them mothavela kay majmahatno daravipe Romengoro te irinenpe ki Kosova isi bizosiguripe e situciyako, thaj lengoro bipakyavipe ano kosovake instituciye. Panglo oficijalno reporteya, Romano Them chivela ko jandipa biachavdi diskriminaciya e Romengi ani Kosova, kote ando peste chivela rekonstruciyako procesi.

Zorea irinipa e Romegoro ani situaciya sar soy, vazdela jek pobaro numero e Manushikane Hakajengoro, kola pande na samo e e nasle manushengi siguripa-protekciya, so majdur panglo e garantirime poliitikune, ekonomiyakr thay sociulikune hakaya, phenela o Romano Them. Romano Themeske akala ande ji ki indirektno jandipa kotar e Mashkarthemutne Puvya palo lengiri na shukar buti vash pali kreaciya e kondicijengo e sigurimo irinipa e Romengoro thay yavere minoritatengo kova chivdo sar mandati ani rezoluciya 1244 (1999).

Romengi ani Kosova thay e Kosovake Romengo kola arakhenape ani diaspora.

Dokumenti shay re arakelpe akate:

http://kosovoroma.wordpress.com/2008/02/26/by-force-if-necessary-minority-returns-to-kosovo-after-independence/

Romano Them

To any concerned parties:

I would like to be in contact with any Romani folk who would be willing to shed some light on a tradition that was attributed to the Romani in Germany/Hungary. If anyone had family members who ever travelled to Goslar, Germany in their lifetimes, please contact me. My email: Ulfur_Engil@bk.ru

Thank you.

"I held my son Robi's head in my lap. He kept trying to say that they, they, they, that they had shot him, but he was not able to say it. My little grandson wasn't really conscious, he gasped for air, lying there with closed eyes, and the tears just ran from his eyes" - On February 23, Csaba Csorba and his wife Erzsebet lost their firstborn son, 27-year-old Robi, and their four-year-old grandson Robika. They were escaping from their home, which had been set on fire, when they were shot down from behind. Little Robi would have been five years old on June 8: he wanted a bicycle for his birthday.

Roma and non-Roma mourn together with the Csorba family. We will stand behind them at the funeral. Together we will see father and son off on their final journey. It is the responsibility of all of us that events have reached this point.

We will not allow further innocent victims to die in Hungary. We will be there in Tatárszentgyörgy on Tuesday, March 3 at 1:00 p.m.

The organizers are private individuals. Questions may be addressed to Bence Békés at 06-20-329-7711.

The Roma Education Fund seeks an administrative assistant for its office in Budapest, Hungary.

The ideal candidate should:
- Speak fluent Hungarian, and a good command of the English language (written and spoken) is essential and Romani preferable
- Have excellent organization and communication skills
- Have at least 2 year’s experience in a similar position
- Have high level secretary qualification would be an advantage
- Be ready to take on multiple tasks such as: general office administration, writing meeting minutes, organize seminars and conference
- Be reliable, accurate, should like to work in team but also be ready to work on own initiative

The position offers:
- challenging and diverse tasks
- work with a dynamic international team
- competitive salary
- enjoyable environment

CV and motivation letter in Hungarian and English (proposal for wage level welcome), should be forwarded to: jzsiga@romaeducationfund.org

The deadline for applications is November 9, 2007.

For more information about the Roma Education Fund, please visit www.romaeducationfund.org.

Consultant – Communications Analyst

Terms of References

Background:

In January 2005, the Roma Education Fund (REF) came into existence as a Swiss Foundation with the goal of closing the education outcome gap between Roma and non-Roma children in Central and Eastern Europe.

At the donor conference in Paris in December 2004, co-chaired by the World Bank, OSI, and the Council of Europe Development Bank, 13 donors committed EUR 34 million of funding to the REF. This EUR 34 million constituted REF’s “seed funds” to start up operations and help mobilize further funding. In 2005, the REF Office in Budapest was set up and necessary staff recruited.

After two years of successful operations a new communication and fundraising strategy was developed and approved by the Board during its meeting of June 14, 2007. The implementation of the Fundraising Strategy is the next priority for REF for 2007-2009. As a first step, the REF management has decided to recruit a consultant for its new fundraising team, whose terms of references are described below.

Duties and Responsibilities:

The Consultant will contribute to advancing the implementation of REF’s Fundraising Strategy. More specifically, the Consultant will form part of REF’s new fundraising team and will carry out different communications activities. These will include, among others, the following tasks:

* Monitoring and drafting grant applications in English. This will be the principal task of the Consultant, in cooperation with other REF staff.

* Contributing to renewing donor relations with existing donors and establishing cooperation with new ones, including everyday correspondence and communications.

* Engaging in REF’s external and strategic communications activities, including drafting articles, reports, and other information materials presenting REF for external audiences.

Qualifications:

* University diploma in journalism, communications or similar fields.

* Excellent English language knowledge, both written and oral.

* Experience in writing grant applications in English.

* Excellent ability to synthesize information in written form.

* Around 5 years of work experiences, preferably in a multi-cultural environment.

* Experience in working with Roma affairs, social inclusion and/or education is a plus.

* Ability to work under pressure and long hours, if necessary.

* Location in Budapest. (The candidate should be based already in Budapest).

* Roma origin is a plus.

Reporting:

The Consultant will report directly to the Director of the Fund.

Contact:

Please send letter of interest in English and CV with three references to Vbodoczky@romaeducationfund.org before 12 August, 2007.

Detailed information on REF can be found at www.romaeducationfund.hu

The purpose of the Roma Education Fund is to contribute to closing the gap in educational outcomes between Roma and non-Roma by initiating policies and programs to support quality education for Roma--including desegregation of educational systems in countries that have formally joined the Decade of Roma Inclusion.

Mr. Alexandre Marc, Executive Director of the Roma Education Fund (REF), has announced his decision to go back to the World Bank to take a new assignment. The REF Governing Board is eager to ensure continuity of the REF's ongoing actions and to provide for a smooth transition. It is inviting applications for the post of Executive Director, for candidates to succeed Mr. Alexander Marc.

The role of the Executive Director is to support and advise the REF Board in devising its policies, to manage REF programs, to manage the staff, and to raise funds. The Executive Director is accountable to the Governing Board.

Duties:

* Manage--and be accountable to the Governing Board for--the REF's operations, staff, and finances.

* Build and sustain a network of technical expertise on Roma education, so that this network is available to the REF and others.

* Develop strong collaborative links with all stakeholders, including those involved in the Decade of Roma Inclusion.

* Represent the REF externally.

* Advocate improved educational outcomes for Roma.

* Liaise with REF contributors and raise resources for the organization.

* Sustain the independence, objectivity, and integrity of the REF.
Profile

The successful applicant must have:

* The vision and drive to further develop the REF's activities.

* A successful track record of at least five years of managing staff, resources, and fiduciary responsibilities, preferably in a European multicultural environment.

* Experience with minority inclusion issues, programs, and projects, preferably involving Roma.

* Knowledge of education issues as they pertain to minorities.

* Ability to work effectively and sensitively with a very wide range of stakeholders, including: Roma people, Roma organizations, governments at all levels, international agencies, aid agencies, foundations, non-government and civil society organizations, and educational leaders.

* Familiarity with international organizations in Europe, especially the European Commission and the Council of Europe.

* Strong administrative and budgetary skills.

* Knowledge of the principles and techniques of grant administration.

* Excellent spoken and written English. Knowledge of other relevant European languages is desirable.

* Excellent public speaking and advocacy skills.

* The highest personal integrity.

Salary and Benefits: Commensurate with experience

Applicants should send a letter of interest, a statement (of up to 500 words) indicating the contribution they could make to the Roma Education Fund, a full CV, and the names of two references who may be contacted before interviews are held to:

Roma Education Fund
VÁCI UTCA 63
1056 BUDAPEST
HUNGARY
WWW.ROMAEDUCATIONFUND.ORG
PHONE: 36-1-235-8030
FAX: 36-1-235-8031
office@romaeducationfund.org

Deadline for applications: May 15, 2007

European Roma and Travellers Forum
Press Release

Strasbourg, 16 January 2009: Today, in a letter addressed to United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon the European Roma and Travellers Forum expressed its indignation at the decision to exclude the Roma Holocaust from the commemoration ceremony.

Mr. Kawczynski, president of the European Roma and Travellers Forum said this decision did not honor the United Nations, which should be at the forefront in respecting the memory of persecuted populations.

“The Holocaust was the implementation of the Final Solution, Hitler’s genocide programme intended to eradicate the genetic contaminants in his plan to create a master race. Only Jews and Roma were subject to the Final Solution, and both peoples lost the same percentage of their total number. However, since the end of the war in 1945, nothing has been done to acknowledge the Romani survivors” said the ERTF president.

Mr Kawczynski reminded United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon of his statement at a Press Conference on 14 December, 2006 where he strongly maintained that “Denying historical facts, especially on such an important subject as the Holocaust, is just not acceptable. Nor is it acceptable to call for the elimination of any State or people. I would like to see this fundamental principle respected both in rhetoric and in practice by all the members of the international community”

He added that the United Nations’ decision to exclude Roma from Holocaust remembrance therefore clearly contradicted his views and only perpetuated the marginalisation of the Roma people in the historical record. The Roma continue to face exclusion and discrimination at all levels.

Mr. Kawczynski asked the United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon for a meeting to discuss the increasing discrimination and marginalisation of Roma in member states.

* * *

The European Roma and Travellers Forum (ERTF), which has a partnership agreement with the Council of Europe and a special status with this institution, is Europe’s largest and most inclusive Roma organisation. It brings together Europe’s main international Roma-NGOs and more than 1,500 national Roma organisations from most of the Council of Europe’s member states.

For further information please contact:

European Roma and Travellers Forum
c/o Council of Europe
F – 67 075 Strasbourg
Tel.: 00 33 3 90 21 53 50
Email: ertf@ertf.org or ertf@coe.int

From the 25th to the 28th September, with the sponsorship of the Working Group on Minorities of the United Nations, AICRA (member of SKOKRA) will celebrate an internacional encounter of the Romani People, in Buenos Aires, at the Apart Hotel & Spa Congreso, with the participation of Romani attendants and representatives from Europe and Latin America, in a few days the agenda of the event will be available. The subject of the meeting will be: "Human Rights, Discrimination and Romani Associationism." Two representatives of the Working Group on Minorities and of the local Government of Buenos Aires will attend the event.

Information:

Jorge Bernal & Juan Carlos Atanasio
AICRA-SKOKRA
jorge@bernal.net.ar

4 July 2012 – The visa liberalization with the EU has resulted in arbitrary border controls and travel bans in the countries of the so-called Western Balkans. This is the result of a comparative survey on the measures which have been taken by countries of the region in reaction to EU pressures over an increase in the number of asylum seekers from these countries. Roma, who have been brandmarked as the archetype of bogus asylum seekers, have been the main victims of these measures. The author of this survey, Chachipe, a Roma rights NGO based in Luxembourg, has analysed the measures which have been put in place by Serbia, Macedonia and other countries of the region, which have been granted a liberalisation of their visa regime with the EU, in order to evade pressures over an eventual reintroduction of visa requirements. They consist in a strengthening of border controls, the revocation or annihilation of travel documents and other forms of punishment. The NGO found that these measures are most advanced in Macedonia which has recently adopted a law enabling the temporary seizure of the passports of failed asylum seekers. However, similar measures have also been envisaged in Serbia and other countries. Several thousand citizens of these countries, primarily Roma and members, have been arbitrarily deprived of their right to travel on the basis of the mere suspicion that they could be “false asylum seekers”. In its report, Chachipe highlights the interplay between EU pressures and domestic reactions. The NGO shows how the process of visa liberalisation has already involved considerable changes of legislation including the practice of exit controls, which are today used in order to prevent these countries’ citizens from departing. Pointing out the similarity between the measures taken, the NGO questions the role of the EU, which goes well beyond that of a mere advisor and warner. Chachipe documents that the multiple vague announcements concerning “negative consequences” and the requests made by several countries including Serbia and Macedonia to EU member states to communicate the names and identity of the asylum seekers has contributed to nurture fears amongst the asylum seekers and the Roma population in general. Moreover, the public information campaigns have also contributed to foment the vision that Roma are responsible for the threats over the visa liberalization. The report is the outcome of an extensive campaign during which Chachipe together with other NGOs has raised concerns over human rights violations which result from the measures taken in the context of the visa liberalization. In its report, the NGO points out that measures such as arbitrary travel bans and the revocation of passports have already been probed beforehand, in the context of the visa liberalization with Romania. Taking stock of the so-called Prague airport case, during which Czech Roma were selectively prevented from boarding airplanes to the UK, Chachipe argues that border checks based on ethnic profiling are a blatant infringement of fundamental human rights principles. The NGO calls on the EU not to ask the countries to go against these principles for the sole purpose that the EU does not want to confront the poverty and despair of their Roma population. Chachipe a.s.b.l. The report is available here: http://romarights.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/chachipe_visa_liberalisation_report_270612.pdf

Dear All!

As an editor of IDEA's Roma web page at http://idw.idebate.org/roma/ I'd be grateful if you would assist me with reliable information on any Roma individual who is well-integrated in civil society and, at the same time, did not lose his/her ethnic identity. Such profiles are very much needed in order to break the negative stereotypes against Roma people widespread in the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe.

The profile of a Romani individual can be composed in a such format:

Name
Year of birth
Country of residence
Profession
Biography in brief
Photo (if available)

You can send me this info at romale@zahav.net.il

Baxt, sastipe!

Kind regards,
Valery Novoselsky.
Editor of Roma Virtual Network

3 August 2012 – A coalition of Roma rights NGOs has called on the Montenegrin government to provide adequate housing solutions for some 850 Kosovo Roma refugees, who have become homeless following of a fire, which destroyed large parts of a refugee camp at the outskirts of the Montenegrin capital Podgorica. The camp had been set up in 1999 in order to accommodate several thousands of Kosovo Roma, who were expelled from Kosovo, in the aftermath of Kosovo conflict. In their letter, the NGOs recognised that Montenegro had been very generous, when accepting to take in these refugees, who had no other place to go. However, they argued that the continued existence of the camp, thirteen years after its creation, had become tantamount for the Montenegrin authorities’ unwillingness to provide a durable solution for the Kosovo Roma and integrate them into society. The NGOs criticized the grossly inadequate living conditions in the camp, characterised by the absence of running water, electricity, and sanitation, and the situation of permanent overcrowding. They reminded that fires have been a frequent occurrence in the camp and expressed surprise that no preventive measures had been taken to avoid these fires to spread over the entire camp, which hosts more than 1,300 people. The NGOs reminded that the conditions in the camps had been criticized by international organisations, which asked for their rapid closure. They mentioned, in particular, a recent report by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), which criticized the situation of de facto segregation of the refugees and asked for their relocation in standard housing, in other parts of the town or country. Taking stock of this criticism, the NGO criticised a project, which has recently been granted the support of the European Commission, who will contribute 2,5 million Euros to its realization. It consists in the creation of 90 housing units and a community centre in the area of the camp, which has been destroyed by the fire. The NGOs argued that this project will only perpetrate the ghettoisation of the refugees and their isolation from the remaining society. Regarding the current situation, created by the fire, the NGOs said that the refugees should be provided alternative housing at the earliest possible date. They argued that this should happen before the end of Summer, in particular for those families with school-going children, in order to allow the children to be enrolled in a new school. They said that while the accommodation of the refugees under tents was acceptable as an emergency solution it was not made to withstand for several weeks and eventually months, as currently envisaged. They also criticized the planned relocation of the refugees in containers and asked for the refugees to be provided individual or family housing. The NGOs said that the handling of the emergency situation, which was created by the fire, had only served to reinforce their fears regarding the lack of willingness of the Montenegrin authorities to integrate the Roma refugees in society. They said that the refugees might ultimately be faced with the choice, either to continue living in barracks and cardboard shacks or to return to Kosovo. The NGOs asked the Montenegrin government to revise their housing projects and involve the refugees in its. They also asked the refugees to be compensated for their personal losses as result of the fire and suggested that parts of the money collected via the emergency fund could be used for this purpose. Chachipe a.s.b.l. Link: http://romarights.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/letter-montenegrin-government-konik-030812.pdf

http://romove.radio.cz/en/article/21737

Czech Radio has announced on December 10 that it will be sponsoring the Romipen Photography Contest, to which the participants can send the photographs documenting the Romany life, their traditions and customs. Contest is opened to all persons and that includes professional as well as amateur photographers, Roma, as well as Non-Roma from various countries. Deadline for the participation in the contest has been set for May 31, 2008. Exact rules of this contest can be found on http://romove.radio.cz/en/clanek/21738.

The contestants’ assignment is to take a photograph of any “scene” from the Romany life - such as the themes from the life of Romany family, my Roma friend, Romany at work, relaxation or at fun, Roma artists or tradesmen, Christmas, Easter or other holiday celebrations, important lifetime events (baptism, weddings, funerals) and other situations that the life can bring us.

Photographs will be continuously published on this web site. When the contest ends the professional jury will select the winning work which will be awarded by interesting prizes (video camera, digital camera, MP3 players, etc.). The winning work will be selected by June 30, 2008 and the results of evaluation will be published the following day.

The Czech Radio is sponsoring the Romipen Contest on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the existence of the Roma www.romove.cz Internet website, 15th anniversary of the functioning editorial board of the Czech Radio and on the occasion of ending the year 2007 which the European Commission has declared as the year of equal opportunities for all.

Contest will be organized under the patronage of Dzamila Stehlíkova, Minister for Human Rights and National Minorities in the Government of the Czech Republic.

please find updates on the Situation in Italy on www.RomNews.com.

- Dozens of articles

- Videos

- Maps on the Roma Ghettos in Rome/Italy

- Contact to Roma in the field in Italy

- Call for Support of the Roma National Congress

__________

po RNN araken e maj neve infomacije pala situacija ande Italia po www.RomNews.com .

- But artiklura

- Videos

- Mapi kaj thaj sar trajin e Roma ande Ghettura ande Roma/Italia

- Kontaktura ke Rom ande Italia

- Akaraimo po djutipe katar o Roma National Congress

__________

auf www.RomNews.com erhalten Sie die aktuellsten updates zur Situation in Italien.

- Duzende Artikel

- Videos, u.A. einen Bericht des heute journals vom 15.05.08

- Kartenmaterial zu Roma Ghettos in Rom/Italien

- Kontaktinformationen zu Roma vor Ort

- Hilfeaufruf des Roma National Congresses.

RomNews Network
Roma Press Agency since 1993
Hamburg / Germany
Emergency Hotline: +49 179 7507848

please include rss feature on the page(s) thanks

Dear Sir/ Madam,
I am a Romanian citizen, a Roma ethnic, and sophomore student in the drama class at the National Academy for Performing Arts in Bucharest, UNATC.
I already have been accepted and got an invitation letter to study at the Acting Corps, Los Angeles, USA, in the academic year 2007/2008.
This is why I ask you whether individual Roma students, seeking to better their professional development, receive any financial help from your organization.
According to your web-site, they do not.
But I just wanted you to clarify this for me, and maybe tell me who could indeed provide me the scholarship money I need.
Best regards,
Alina Serban
Bucharest, Romania
+40-748-926-641

On September 15th, the U.S. Department of State, with its partners from youth and democracy organizations, academia, and the film/entertainment industry, launched the Second Annual Democracy Video Challenge—a worldwide competition aimed at enhancing the global dialogue on democracy. The Democracy Video Challenge asks filmmakers, democracy advocates, and the general public to create short videos that complete the phrase, “Democracy is…” Deadline: January 31, 2010.

The winners are selected by the online voting public. Six regional winners receive an all expense paid trip to the United States.

About the challenge

Create a video short that completes the phrase "Democracy is…"

The Prize

- An all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., New York and Hollywood.

- Gala screenings of the winning videos in Hollywood, New York and Washington

- Exposure to filmmakers and the U.S. film and television industry.

- Meetings with democracy advocates from government, media and civil society.

The Timeline

- SUBMISSION DEADLINE - MIDNIGHT GMT JANUARY 31, 2010.

- Challenge semifinalists will be selected on or about March 31, 2010.

- An independent jury will narrow down the semifinalists to 21 finalists on or about May 15, 2010.

- The general public will vote online for the winning videos May 15 – June 15, 2010.

- Seven winners – one each from the Western Hemisphere, Europe, Middle East/North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, South & Central Asia, East Asia/Pacific and one anonymous winner – will be announced in mid-June 2010. The six publicly identified winners, one from each of the six geographic regions, will travel to the United States to claim their prize in the fall of 2010.

The Details

- You must be 18 or older to enter.

- Videos can be any style: fiction or documentary, animated or live action.

- Videos must be no longer than three minutes.

- Videos must be in English or have English subtitles.

- Contestants may enter anonymously, but anonymous winners cannot collect the grand prize.

- See contest site for a complete list of rules: http://www.videochallenge.america.gov/.

I am seeking contact with NGOs and Roma working on issues related to informal settlements in urban and peri-urban areas of Macedonia, BiH, Serbia, Montenegro, and/or Croatia. I am specifically interested in progress of stated objectives within their Decade action plans. You can reach me at mhughes2@uno.edu. I look forward to hearing from you!

Activate yourself! Present making and postcard writing night for Ketrin.

January 12, Tuesday 5 p.m.- 7 p.m.

AIHU Office 1064 Budapest, Rózsa utca 44. 2 em. 15

We provide: stationery, color paper, glue, ideas (origami, drawings etc.), tea, music, etc.

You provide: yourself.

We are looking forward to seeing you! Are you coming?

Participate in the currently ongoing international solidarity action organized by AI with the victims of violent attacks against the Roma in Hungary. The aim of this is to express our solidarity with the survivor of the latest attack, Ketrin Balogh, whose mother was shot dead (http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/romani-woman-shot-dead-hungary-20090804). The incident is being treated as a racist attack.

Since the launch of the solidarity action at the end of November Ketrin received 30-40 letters or postcards. She was really happy to receive these. The arrived mostly from Germany, Austria, The Netherlands, UK and the US. She has for far received only 2 messages from Hungary. Write to her! Please send messages of support and solidarity to Ketrin, through cards, letters, children’s drawings at the address of the family’s lawyer who will regularly deliver your messages to Ketrin. Please do not send fresh flowers as they may not be delivered in time for Ketrin to enjoy them. You may include a religious message.

   Ketrin Balogh, C/O Dr. Árpád Csonka

   3100 Salgótarján

   Március 15. út 4., 3/52

   Hungary

Ketrin prefers Hungarian, so if you want you can also write a message in Hungarian: "Gondolatban Veled vagyunk!"("We are thinking of you")

This action will be a first step in a wider country strategy for Hungary, and will be framed in the scope of the work on Roma within the Non-Discrimination Campaign in Europe: 

* Attacks by non-state actors against racial and religious minorities will be included in a report in late 2010, providing a regional perspective on this question. 

* The Hungary team at the IS will visit Hungary in the New Year to research this issue, meet with civil society and families of victims of attacks as well as the authorities in order to make recommendations for effective action against the attacks in spring 2010. Please watch out for the campaign in February!

__________

Aktiváld magad! Ajándékkészítő és levélíró este Ketrinnek.

Január 12, Kedd 17:00- 19:00

AIM Iroda gyere és írj te is Ketrinek!

1064 Budapest, Rózsa utca 44. 2 em. 15.

Amit mi adunk: kellékek (színes papír, olló, ragasztó, matrica etc.), ötletek (origami, rajzok etc.), tea, zene stb.

Amit te hozz: magadat!

Várunk. Jössz?

Az Amnesty International Nemzetközi Titkársága szolidaritási akciót szervezett a Romákat ért erőszakos támadások áldozataiért Magyarországon. Az akció célja, hogy együttérzésünket fejezzük ki a legutolsó, 2009. augusztusi támadás túlélőjével, Balogh Ketrinnel akinek édesanyja a történtek következtében meghalt (http://web.amnesty.hu/h%C3%ADrek/agyonlttek-egy-roma-nt-magyarorszagon ). Az incidens rasszista indíttatásból elkövetett tettnek minősül.

Ketrin eddig 30-40 szolidaritási üzenetet kapott, aminek nagyon örült. Ezek főleg Németországból, Ausztirából, Hollandiából, Nagy Britanniából és az Egyesült Államokból érkeztek. Magyarországról eddig 2 üzenetet kapott. Kérjük, hogy Te is küldj Ketrinnek szolidaritási üzenetet még ma! Írhatsz neki hosszabban, de egy pár sornak is nagyon örül.

Cím:

   Balogh Ketrin (Dr. Csonka Árpád )

   Március 15. út 4., 3/52

   Salgótarján 3100

Ez az akció egy átfogóbb magyarországi stratégia első lépése lesz az európai Diszkrimináció Mentességi Kampány romákra kiterjedő munkájának keretein belül. Az Amnesty International Nemzetközi Titkárságának Magyarországért felelős csapata várhatóan január 29. és február 8. között hazánkba látogat majd a kérdést vizsgálandó. Kérjük, figyeld a februári kampányt!

A SOTE-n orvos egyetemi felvételi előkésztőt vezetek szeptembertől, ehhez keresek 15-20 érettsgizett roma fiatalt az egész ország területről, akik orvosok szeretnének lenni, s VISSZA AKARNAK MENNI ORVOSNAK A SAJÁT LAKHELYŰKRE!

A következő emailen várjuk a jelentkezst: buraikatalin@gmail.com 

Csatlakozzon társadalmi célú kampányunkhoz! 

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stastny-novy-rok-Slovensko-Boldog-Uj-Evet-Magyarorszag/181696465145

A látszólag egyre súlyosabbá  váló szlovák-magyar ellentét, és az ebből adódó feszültség oldására társadalmi célú kommunikációt tervezünk megvalósítani többek között valamely, nézettségét tekintve kiemelkedő szlovák, illetve magyar televíziós csatornán és egyéb kommunikációs csatornákon. Minél nagyobb média lefedettség elérése a cél marketing és pr eszközökkel. 

Meggyőződésünk, hogy a feszültséget elsősorban az aktuál-politika generálja, ezért úgy véljük, hogy a két ország civil társadalmának nagy részét pozitívan befolyásolhatja az általunk tervezett gesztus értékű kampány. A két országban egyidejűleg zajló média kampány 2010 januárjának első felében egy egyszerű, mindkét fél számára eljuttatott üzenettel kívánja a megbékélést előmozdítani:

Štastný nový rok, Slovensko! / Boldog Új Évet Magyarország!

http://boldogujevetmagyarorszag.sk / http://stastnynovyrokslovensko.hu

A Magyarországon terjesztett társadalmi hirdetést szlovák civil szervezetek, a szlovákiában sugárzott “Štastný nový rok, Slovensko”-ot pedig magyar civil szervezetek dedikálják.

Vagyis kezdjük az új évet új lappal, új párbeszéddel, a párbeszédet pedig jókívánsággal!

A projekt alapfontosságú részét képezi továbbá egy weboldal, ahol többet is meg tudhatnak az érdeklődők a kampányról, valamint egy blognak is helyet adna a site, ahol a kampány eredményessége is lemérhető. 

A megvalósítás tervezett ideje: 2010. január 

A kampány politikai ideológiáktól és pártoktól független, a kezdeményező öt magánszemély.

Kérjük, amennyiben szervezete csatlakozna a kezdeményezéshez, küldje el a boldogujevet@gmail.com

* e-mail címre szervezete pontos nevét

* kapcsolattartó nevét

* telefonos

* és e-mail elérhetőségét.

Kérjük, továbbítsa a felhívást partnereinek! Kérjük, amennyiben kapcsolatban áll szlovákiai civil szervezettel, értesítse a kezdeményezésről!

A kampányhoz kizárólag civil szervezetek jelentkezését várjuk, a honlapon azonban lehetőség lesz magánszemélyek és egyéb szervezetek csatlakozására is.

A honlapok indulásának várható időpontja 2009. december 15.

További információért keresse a szervezőket a boldogujevet@gmail.com vagy a novyrok10@gmail.com e-mail címen.

Várjuk csatlakozási szándékukat, üdvözlettel,

a szervezők:

Bakos Gábor | Bindics Gábor | Juhász Péter | Lippai Hunor | Nagy Patrik

Summer Course in Romany Studies at Central European University in Budapest

We would like to solicit your help to promote the summer course, funded by the European Commission within the framework of Marie Curie Conferences and Training Courses, on “MULTI-DISCIPLINARY AND CROSS-NATIONAL APPROACHES TO ROMANY STUDIES - A MODEL FOR EUROPE” among your colleagues, your graduate students, or any interested researchers.

Course Dates: July 6-24, 2009
Location: Central European University (CEU), Budapest, Hungary,
Detailed course description: http://www.sun.ceu.hu/romany

Faculty:

Michael Stewart, Department of Anthropology, University College London/CEU, Nationalism Studies; Julia Szalai, Institute of Sociology, Hungarian Academy of Sciences/Nationalism Studies, CEU; Judith Okely, Oxford University, IGS Queen Elizabeth House, UK; Yaron Matras, University of Manchester, UK; Paloma Gay y Blasco, University of St. Andrews; Elisabeth Tauber, Institute of Ethnology and African Studies, University of Munich, Germany; Henriette Asseo, Ecoles des Hatues Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris; Judit Durst, University College London; Livia Jaroka, European Parliament, Brussels; Ilsen About, European University Institute, Florence; four junior faculty from our previous training program

Target group:

a) Minimum requirement is a first degree allowing the student to pursue doctoral studies.

b) The main target group is junior and postdoctoral researchers interested in developing Romany Studies primarily involved in academic MA or Ph.D. education.

Other persons who are engaged in research in a non-academic environment (think tanks, government departments, NGOs and the like) are also eligible. Given the political and policy importance of the topics we deal with we expect a significant minority of our trainees to be researchers in NGOs, government or other non-university public institutions. We expect the majority, however, to be academically engaged researchers.

c) Eligibility categories:

* Early-stage researchers with up to four years’experience of their research career (engagement in a relevant academic program or professional activity) Applicants in this category will in general have precedence.

* Experienced researchers with up to ten years’experience of their research career (engagement in a relevant academic program or professional activity)

* Experienced researchers with more than ten years’experience of their research career (engagement in a relevant academic program or professional activity), who have a ‘European Union’ citizenship, but do not live in Europe at the time of the events

Language of instruction: English

Application deadline: February 16, 2009
Online application (from mid November): http://www.sun.ceu.hu/apply

We’d be grateful if you could forward this information to those potentially interested in our summer school (individuals, listservs, blogs, electronic journals, etc.) and/or have a short announcement placed on a relevant web site.

Thank you for your kind assistance.

Sincerely yours,

Kornelia Vargha
CEU Summer University
Program Officer
Budapest, 1051
Nador u. 9.
Hungary
Tel.: (36-1) 328-3699
Fx.: (36-1) 327-3124
email: varghak@ceu.hu

Petíció Erzsébetváros Önkormányzatának Képviselő-testületéhez

A Roma Sajtóközpont eddigi működése és felbecsülhetetlen gyűjteménye Budapest és az ország egyik büszkesége, munkatársaik áldozatos tevékenységének köszönhetően az emlékezés és a demokratikus jogállamiság, a civil szemlélet meghatározó példája. Függetlenségével és szabadságával a magyar kultúrában, civil mozgalomban, médiában megkerülhetetlen értéket teremtett. Alulírottak támogatásunkról biztosítjuk a Roma Sajtóközpontot és munkatársait, társadalmi szempontból különösen fontosnak tartjuk további működésének biztosítását. Felhívjuk a VII. kerület illetékeseit, hogy döntésüket vizsgálják felül, a hatályos jogszabályok és rendelkezések figyelembevételével, illetve a Roma Sajtóközpont társadalmi súlyára és értékére tekintettel biztosítsák és támogassák eddigi tevékenységét.

A petíciót itt írhatod alá: http://www.petitiononline.com/2010rsk/petition.html

The dearth of acivity surrounding education and human rights as they involve the Roma has seemed to greatly suffered due to the current economic climate here in Romania. Any thoughts as how a Ph.D reseracher may address this problem?

ANNOUNCEMENT

The Roma Pavilion International Award for Young Curators and Art Critics

Theme: Paradise Lost - The First Roma Pavilion

Organized by:
The Roma Cultural Participation Project of the Arts and Culture Network Program, Open Society Institute, Budapest.

The Award:
The Roma Pavilion International Award for Young Curators and Art Critics will award a prize of € 1,500 for the best - most thorough, analytical and constructively critical - review written about Paradise Lost–The First Roma Pavilion by a young curator and/or art critic of contemporary art. The authors should consider the wider theoretical context behind the idea of this transnational representation of a strong cultural identity. What is expected is not only a review about the Pavilion, but a critical survey on the connected topics of 'transnational community', 'historical globalized nation', and the issues around the representation of the mnority 'community' and 'plural identity' in the modern nation-state.

The submitted review could be an already published critical essay about the Roma Pavilion or one written specifically for this purpose. Should the prize be won by a group of authors the prize will be divided among them equally.

Eligibility requirements:
Each candidate may submit only one essay only for the competition. The call is open to curators of all nationalities born on or after January 1, 1972 - the age limit is 35 years. Should the submitted review be the work of more than one author, all the authors must meet the age requirement. Submissions will be accepted upon the timely receipt of the application documents. For collective entries each candidate must complete the application package. Entries must arrive by 12 PM (noon) on Friday, November 30, 2007 at the following e-mail address: acnp@osi.hu.

The application package should include the following documents:

Biography of the applicant - no more than 500 words;

Completed application form (NOTE: The application form can be requested from acnp@osi.hu.);

Analytical/critical essay - maximum 3,000 words.

Should any of these be missing or not meet the specified requirements, the entry will be excluded from the competition.

Language:
Applications and reviews should be submitted in English. Applicants are encouraged to also submit the text in the form and in the language it was originally written or published in, in order for the jury to verify the terms and expressions used by the author in the original wording.

Participation cost:
Participation is free of charge.

Evaluation:
The winners will be selected by a professional Jury of 5 members. The author best author will be awarded a prize and his/her review will be published on the website of the Roma Pavilion starting December 15, 2007.

The Jury
The international Jury is composed of five members. Each jury member will cast one vote in accordance with the criteria of the Award.

Members of the Jury:

Barnabás Bencsik

Barnabás Bencsik, born 1964, curator, lives and works in Budapest. He earned his degree in literature and history, and later in the history of art from ELTE University, Budapest. He became involved in the changing period of the Hungarian post-communist art scene, from 1990 to 1999 he run the Studio Gallery, Budapest the exhibition venue of the Studio of Young Artists Association. Parallel, he was visual arts program-coordinator at Soros Center for Contemporary Arts–Budapest between 1993–1995, when the CEE network of the offices were established, He worked as curator at the Trafo Gallery, Budapest (1999-2001) and as chief curator at the Műcsarnok|Kunsthalle, where he contributed to the realization of the show at the Hungarian Pavilion of the49th Venice Biennale. In 2001 he was the artistic director of MEO–Contemporary Art Collection, Budapest, and from 2002 he worked as an independent curator. He initiated and from 2006 he is the director of the ACAX /Agency for Contemporary Art Exchange (acax.hu), which is an office to support and develop various type of cooperation between the local and the international art scene. He is author of several publication on contemporary art and art criticism in Hungarian and international magazines, as well as exhibition catalogues.

Silvina Der-Meguerditchian

Silvina Der-Meguerditchian is the granddaughter of Armenian immigrants to Argentina and was born in Buenos Aires in 1967. She grew up in Argentina and since 1988 lives in Berlin. She is visual artists and runs since 2005 a virtual dialogue platform for Armenian contemporary artists. This platform presents a forum for frank dialogue on questions relating to identity, the potential for an Armenian identity beyond defined borders and notions passed on for generations, such as nationality, tradition and language.
A recurrent theme of her artistic work is the remembrance of the ethnic dislocation of the Armenian people and the genocide they suffered. Silvina Der-Meguerditchian ties a net. She connects the disparate, builds bridges between separate worlds and seeks a dialogue with the unknown. Her main focus is always on the actual process of joining and dissolving, constructing and deconstructing identity. Silvina Der-Meguerditchian’s work represents a type of mnemonics, namely the individual and collective art of commemoration. She is the curator of "Under Construction" - Talking about identities in the Armenian Transnation, the first Armenian Diaspora representation at the current Venice Biennial. http://www.underconstructionhome.net/underconstr_venice/bienal_intro.html

Annie Fletcher

Annie Fletcher is an independent critic and curator who lives and works in Amsterdam. She is interested in investigating the potential of curatorial practice (what it means to show and mediate art) and believes in the potential of dialogues and knowledge production and examining how any space marked for art (a museum, art school, a kunsthalle or residency program) sets up such a dynamic. Her current and recent projects include co-curating with Charles Esche the project "Be(com)ing Dutch in the Age of Global Democracy" at Van Abbemusuem (2006-2008), co-curating with Frederique Bergholtz "If I Can't Dance - I Don't Want To Be Part Of Your Revolution" at various locations from 2005 to 2008 (www.ificantdance,org), “Cork Caucus” with Charles Esche, Tara Byrne & Sean Kelly (NSF) and Art/Not Art in Cork, Ireland 2005 (www.corkcaucus.org). Be[com]ing Dutch is a two-year project, developed both inside and outside the Van Abbemuseum, which consists of debates, reading groups, artists' projects, exhibitions, residencies, and forms of collective participation and production. Be[com]ing Dutch asks whether art might offer alternative examples of thinking about how we might live together today. It seeks to put our ideas of cultural identity under pressure and examine the processes of inclusion and exclusion in the world today. Be[com]ing Dutch is developed by Charles Esche and Annie Fletcher and others in- and outside the Van Abbemuseum. Institutional partnerships: BAK [Utrecht], New Museum of Contemporary Art [New York], Goldsmiths College [London], Kosmose [Eindhoven] and Stichting Interart [Arnhem]. The project Be[com]ing Dutch by the Van Abbemuseum has been awarded the Development Award for Cultural Diversity 2006 by the Mondriaan Foundation. www.becomingdutch.com/

Beral Madra

Beral Madra, a critic and curator directing BM Contemporary Art Center (since 1984) www.btmadra.com Coordinated the 1st (1987) and the 2nd (1989) Istanbul Biennale, curated exhibitions of Turkish artists at the 43rd, 45th, 49th, 50th and 51st Venice Biennale. Since 1984 she has organized solo and group exhibitions of local and international artists in her art center and in other official art spaces in Istanbul. Beral Madra is representing Istanbul scholarship of Berlin Senate since 1995. She is founding member and art advisor of Diyarbakır Art Centre (established September 2002 www.diyarbakirsanatmerkezi.org), founding member and president of AICA, Turkey (established 2003). Recent Exhibitions: March 2007 ‘”Neighbours in Dialogue” A group show for the collection of Ars Aevi Contemporary art Museum, Sarajevo with artists from South Caucasus, Middle East and the Balkans, Feshane, Istanbul / September November 2007 “Unfinished” Opening exhibition of BM Suma, the new space of BM Contemporary Art Center, www.bmsuma07.blogspot.com. Recent Books: Neighbours in Dialogue Editors: Beral Madra/Ayºe Orhun Gültekin, Norgunk Publishers, Istanbul, 2005 / Maidan, Eassays on Contemporary Art in South Caucasus and Middle East, BM Contemporary Art Publications, 2007.

Marina Grzinic

Marina Grzinic, philosopher, artist and theoretician. Lives in Ljubljana. Works in Ljubljana and Vienna. Dr. Marina Grzinic is Professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna (Institute of Fine Arts, Post Conceptual Art Practices). Grzinic is a researcher at the Institute of Philosophy at the ZRC SAZU (Scientific and Research Center of the Slovenian Academy of Science and Art), Ljubljana, Slovenia. She also works as a freelance media theorist, art critic and curator. Marina Grzinic has been involved with video art since 1982. In collaboration with Aina Smid they produced numerous videos, a short film and video installations. http://www.grzinic-smid.si/

Dear Friends,

As the director of the Domari Society of Jerusalem, an organization taking care of Dom people, I would like to give you some insight about the realities of our life.

I am saddened to inform you about the plight of our Gypsy sisters and brothers in Gaza. They live together with Palestinian people, thus also becoming the victims of the conflict. Until now the people in Gaza Strip did not have an easy life, it was riddled with poverty, anxiety and lack of hope.

Recently, the situation is really miserable. We receive a lot of information and alarming signals from Dom families. Many Gypsies have already lost their lives, and many more have been left wounded. Those, who are left live in fear and despair, worrying about what is yet to come. The ones living in Gaza have often lost everything they had. It is heart breaking for us, also because our ethnic group, already small, is decimating. Watching our relatives suffer is not easy as well.

On the behalf of Gypsy community from the Holy Land, I would like to ask you to remember about us, and keep our troubles in your minds. The Gypsies should stand united and supportive of each other, in order to survive and protect our culture.

I do hope and believe something could be done, to make the life of Gaza Gypsies a bit better.

Let’s pray for peaceful times to come, as well as take action to make the world a better place.

We count on you and your support. It is important for us, that the people know the facts and mishaps we face.

May God bless you and keep you safe!

Amoun Sleem
Director,
Domari Society of Jerusalem
P.O.Box 51488, Jerusalem (Al Quds)

GSM: +972 54 206 62 10
Office: +972 2 532 45 10

E-mail: amoun_sleem@hotmail.com

URL: http://domarisociety.googlepages.com/

___________

For the ones who would like to assist the victims practically:

Bank account:

Domari Gypsy Organization of Israel
REG: 580350890
Mercantile Discount Bank ltd.
Sallah Eddin Branch no. 638, Jerusalem
Account No. 503878

Az Amaro Trajo „Életünk” Roma Kultúráért Alapítvány a Romani Divat Stúdióval együttműködve kreatív, készségfejlesztő képzést hirdet a roma kultúra és motívumok iránt érdeklődő kézügyességgel rendelkező fiatalok számára.

A képzés gyakorlati beállítottságú, célja, hogy a jelentkező fiatalok olyan divat termékek (ruhák, kiegészítők, ékszerek, használati tárgyak) tervezzenek az alkotóműhelyben a képzés időtartama alatt szakértők iránymutatásával és segítségével, amelyek hagyományos roma mesterségeken, illetve roma motívumokon, színvilágon alapulnak. A képzés egy vizsgamunka elkészítésével zárul.

A képzés része, hogy a fiatalok saját otthonukban, szűkebb, vagy tágabb környezetükben kutatómunkát folytassanak, egy-egy hagyományos roma motívumot, forma- vagy színvilágot magán hordozó tárgynak a képzésen való bemutatásával ötleteket merítsenek az általuk elkészített terv megalkotásához, és ezzel a többi részt vevőt is inspirálják. A képzés keretében lehetőség van a ruhatervezés, ékszertervezés, vagy lakberendezési tárgyak tervezésére irányuló foglalkozások látogatására. Egy tematikus képzés 6 alkalomból áll.

A képzésen elkészült vizsgamunkákat a Romani Divat Stúdió elkészíti, és a legjobb terveket egy nagyszabású divatbemutatón fogjuk felvonultatni ezév őszén, szeptember 21. napján az Iparművészeti Múzeumban. A divatbemutatón emellett bemutatásra kerülnek az Alapítvány által meghirdetett nyilvános pályázatra beérkezett tervek is (www.romanidesign.hu Design Pályázat menüpont).

A képzés helyszíne: 1074 Budapest, Dohány utca 76.

A képzésen való részvétel ingyenes.

A képzésre jelentkezni lehet: a jelentkezési lap elküldésével a kepzes@romanidesign.hu email címre és személyesen a 1072 Budapest, Akácfa utca 20. szám alatti üzletünkben a jelentkezési lap leadásával (a jelentkezési lap letölthető: www.romanidesign.hu  jelentkezési lap menüpont alatt)

Dear Friends,

I would like to bring your attention to new opportunities of the Managing Multiethnic Communities Program of the Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative (Open Society Institute, Budapest). We invite you to follow the links provided to learn more and to access application materials. We would also appreciate your help circulating this information.

1. Incorporating Diversity into Public Administration Education: Topical Issues in Curriculum Development Workshop

Co-organized by MMCP/LGI, the Curriculum Resource Center (CRC) and Center for Policy Studies (CPS), Central European University, Budapest, Hungary

Date: 4-7 November 2008

Place: Budapest, Hungary

Deadline for Applications: 15 September 2008

http://lgi.osi.hu/documents.php?id=2068


2. Trainings of the Managing Multiethnic Communities Program


* Introductory Training for Policymakers: Ethnic Diversity and Public Service Delivery

Budapest, 3-8 November 2008

Deadline for Applications: 20 June 2008

http://lgi.osi.hu/documents.php?id=2078

* Training of Diversity Trainers: Basic Skills for Teaching Diversity Management

Budapest, 21-27 November 2008

Deadline for Applications: 20 June 2008

http://lgi.osi.hu/documents.php?id=2079

* 4th MMCP Diversity Management Training Jamboree

Budapest, 23-27 November 2008

Deadline for Applications: 20 June 2008

http://lgi.osi.hu/documents.php?id=2077

For more on all these activities, including application information, visit: http://lgi.osi.hu (see “events”).

For regular updates from MMCP/LGI, as well as news, current resources, and opportunities related to the management of diverse communities, subscribe to the Managing Multiethnic Communities Newsletter: http://lgi.osi.hu.

For registration assistance, write to lgiresearch@osi.hu.

We look forward to hearing from you, and best of luck!

Meghan Simpson

Research Associate
Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative
Open Society Institute
Budapest, Hungary
email: lgiresearch@osi.hu
web: http://lgi.osi.hu

By Marie-Francoise

Created 17/12/2010 UA: 256/10

Index: EUR 39/007/2010

PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 31 DECEMBER 2010.

Please check with your section office if sending appeals after the above date.

The authorities in Cluj, a city in north-western Romania, are preparing to carry out the forced eviction of Roma communities living in Coastei and Cantonului streets by the end of December. Amnesty International is concerned that reportedly houses will be demolished, and some families will be moved to new housing units that do not meet the criteria of adequate housing while others may face homelessness.

On 15 December, families in Coastei street received oral notifications indicating that they have to remove their belongings by 17 December, when the municipality will move them to alternative housing. According to the municipality, there are an estimated 345 people living in Coastei street, including an estimated 140 people who do not have residency in Cluj, and who are at risk of being sent back to their place of residence, raising concerns over their right to freedom of movement.

The authorities have not consulted the affected community on the eviction plans in a full and participatory way. The Mayor announced that 40 families will be housed in new housing units constructed on the outskirt of the city in the Pata Rat area and that those who refuse to be moved will not be provided with alternative housing. This area, according to information received by Amnesty International, is in the proximity of a garbage dump and separated from the rest of the city and the residents will face difficulties in accessing work opportunities and public services, including education and health.

An estimated 429 people (around 100 families) residing in houses, improvised shacks and containers in Cantonului street are also likely to be evicted. The number of alternative housing units which is being proposed by the city authorities is limited and is expected to accommodate only 40 families, which raises serious concerns that a number of people may be made homeless if they are evicted.

PLEASE WRITE IMMEDIATELY in English or your own language:

- Urging the city authorities to ensure that any evictions of the communities currently living in Coastei and Cantonului streets are carried out only as a last resort and in full compliance with international human rights standards;

- Urging them to ensure that the eviction is put on hold until genuine consultation with the Roma community of Coastei and Cantonului Streets to identify all feasible alternatives to evictions and on resettlement options has been conducted;

- Urging the city authorities to provide adequate alternative housing, compliant with requirements under human rights law and that people are not forcibly moved to their original places of residence and prevented from returning.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 31 DECEMBER 2010 TO: Please check with your section office if sending appeals after the above date.

Mayor of Cluj-Napoca

Sorin Apostu

Str. Motilor 5

Cluj-Napoca 400001,

Romania

Fax: +40 264 599 329

Email: sorinapostu@primariaclujnapoca.ro  



Copies to:



Prime Minister

Emil Boc

Guvernul Romaniei

Piata Victoriei nr. 1,

Sector 1, Bucuresti

Romania

Fax: +40 21 313 98 46

Email: drp@gov.ro  



President

Traian Basescu

Palatul Cotroceni,

Bulevardul Geniului nr. 1-3

Cod postal 060116

Sector 6 - Bucuresti

Romania

Fax : +40 21 410 38 58

Email: procetatean@presidency.ro  

Also send copies to diplomatic representatives accredited to your country.

Ambassade de Roumanie

Rue Gabrielle 105

1180 Bruxelles

eMail: secretariat@roumanieamb.be  

Fax 02.346.23.45

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Amnesty International visited Cluj and the Roma communities living in Coastei and Cantonului streets in December 2010. The Roma communities were anxious about the threat of possible eviction. They told Amnesty International that – in the past several months - the city authorities had announced that they were to be evicted. The community in Coastei is situated about a five-minute walk from the city centre. The households receive mail to their address and at least some of them are connected to the electricity supply.

The city authorities confirmed - during a meeting with Amnesty International on 8 December 2010 - that they plan to move the families from Coastei Street to new housing units in Pata Rat area. According to the Deputy Mayor, construction of five units accommodating 20 families should be finished by 15 December. He stated that the future tenants would receive short-term rental contracts which may be extended. The municipality quoted multiple complaints from the staff of the nearby public library and an office of a multinational company in the proximity of the Coastei Street as the reasons for the eviction.

Under international law, evictions may be carried out only as a last resort, once all feasible alternatives have been explored in genuine consultation with the affected communities. The authorities then have a duty to provide them with adequate notice; legal remedies, adequate alternative housing and compensation. They must ensure that persons are not rendered homeless or vulnerable to the violation of other human rights as a consequence of eviction. According to international standards, evictions should not be carried out in particularly bad weather or at night and the authorities have a duty to provide those affected with adequate notice.

As a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Romania is also under an obligation to ensure to everyone lawfully residing within its territory the right to move freely and to choose his or her place of residence. Amnesty International is therefore concerned at the allegations that persons who are not originally from Cluj will be sent back to the places of their original residence, as this would violate their right to freedom of movement and to choose their place of residence.

Romania is a party to a range of international and regional human rights treaties which strictly require it to prohibit, refrain from and prevent forced evictions. These treaties include the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Covenant on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and the Revised European Social Charter. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has emphasised in its General Comment 7 that evictions may be carried out only as a last resort, once all other feasible alternatives to eviction have been explored. Even when an eviction is considered to be justified, it can only be carried out when appropriate procedural protections are in place and if compensation for all losses and adequate alternative housing is provided.

UA: 256/10 Index: EUR 39/007/2010 Isavelives.be: le site d'action de la section Amnesty International Belgique francophone - Rue Berckmans, 9 - 1060 Bruxelles. Tel: 02/538.81.77

Source URL: http://www.isavelives.be/en/node/6297

Your support urgently needed against exclusion of Roma from historic Sulukule!

One of the oldest Romani communities in the World, the Sulukule Romani population is being forced to leave their historical neighborhood.

The Sulukule neighborhood, situated in the Historic Peninsula of Istanbul is being depopulated through a gentrification project implemented by the Metropolitan and Fatih municipalities of Istanbul. As it stands, the project, promoted as an "urban renewal" is in its last phase. In February 2008 the demolishing of the houses will be started.

Despite the efforts of the local people, of the Sulukule Association for the Enrichment of Roma Culture and for Solidarity, of the academicians from several universities, and of the NGO’s, the project is developed by local authority under non-transparent conditions, without consulting the community and without considering their demands, needs and feedback.

The alleged "urban renewal project" is a reconstruction plan which involves the complete demolition of the current neighbourhood, home to more than 3000 Roma, and its replacement with housing which is unaffordable for most of the original inhabitants. The Roma will be forcibly moved from their 1000 year-old historical neighborhood to an area 40km outside the city. Moreover, as the municipality wants them to pay for the public housing they will receive, this forcible move is accompanied by a debt obligation that they will not be able to meet.

Because it will evict the Roma of their home, annihilate and assimilate the Roma culture in Istanbul, the project needs to be stopped. Your support is crucial to carry out this feat.

The 1000 year-old home of the Roma
The Roma first came to Istanbul from India in the 11th century when the city was still the capital of the Byzantine Empire. And they spread around the World from here. Following the conquest of the city by the Ottomans in 1453 and with the permıssıon of Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror, they were settled near the city walls in the Sulukule as well as in the nearby Ayvansaray neighborhoods. For hundreds of years, Sulukule acted as a pilgrimage location for Roma from all over the world. It is one of the most important cultural centers of Roma music and dance as it continues to be a crucial worldwide resource for training musicians and dancers.

Your support is needed for the cessation of the "urban renewal project"

Because;

The Sulukule urban renewal project is a non-transparent non-participatory project.

It is against the clauses of the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

It is implemented in the buffer zone of the ancient land walls of Istanbul, which are on the World Heritage list. As such, it fails to abide by the principles of the Vienna Memorandum and the Convention regarding the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.

To help prevent the forced exile of the Sulukule Roma,
To protect the historical and cultural values of Istanbul, which are on the World Heritage List,

Please express your objection to this project by writing to the following officials,

Abdullah Gül
President of Turkey
Mail Address:
T.C. Cumhurbaskanligi
Cankaya-Ankara
Turkey
e-mail: cumhurbaskanligi@tccb.gov.tr

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
The Prime Minister of Turkey
Mail Address:
Basbakanlik
Kızılay
Ankara
Turkey

Ertuğrul Günay
Minister of Culture and Tourism of Turkey

Mail Address:
T.C. Kultur ve Turizm Bakanligi
Ataturk Bulvari No. 29
06050 Opera
Ankara
Turkey
e-mail: ertugrul.gunay@kulturturizm.gov.tr

Kadir Topbas
Mayor of Istanbul
Mail Address:
Istanbul Buyuksehir Belediye Baskanligi
Sarachane
Istanbul
Turkey
e-mail: baskan@ibb.gov.tr

Mustafa Demir
Mayor of the Fatih district of Istanbul

Mail Address:
Büyük Karaman Cad.
No. 53
Fatih
Istanbul
e-mail: mustafademir@fatih.bel.tr

Contact Persons:
Hacer Foggo (hacerfoggo@gmail.com)
Derya Nüket Özer (deryanuket@gmail.com)
Viki Ciprut Izrail ( vikichco.@hotmail.com )

Italy, February 18th, 2010

ITALY, TWO HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS FROM EVERYONE GROUP RECEIVE A PENAL ORDER (A CRIMINAL CONVICTION WITHOUT GOING TO TRIAL) FOR THEIR HUMANITARIAN WORK: "IT IS THE FIRST TIME IN THE WORLD "

THE NEWS GIVEN BY THE HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATION: "A CONVICTION BASED ON INACCURATE EVIDENCE GIVEN BY A POLICE OFFICER. IT IS THE UMPTEENTH EPISODE OF ABUSE OF POWER BY THE ITALIAN AUTHORITIES "

EVERYONE GROUP APPEALS TO THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION AND THE FRONTLINE FOUNDATION: "WE ARE ASKING FOR SUPPORT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS, VICTIMS IN ITALY OF VIOLENCE, INTIMIDATION AND JUDICIARY ABUSE OF POWER, A WORSE SITUATION THAN IN TOTALITARIAN REGIMES WHERE THE INDIVIDUAL IS AT LEAST GUARANTEED THE RIGHT TO DEFEND HIMSELF

On February 12th, 2010, Roberto Malini and Dario Picciau, co-presidents with Matteo Pegoraro of EveryOne Group, international human rights organization based in Italy, received notification of a penal order, with the prison sentence commuted into a heavy fine. In the decree, issued on 5/11/09 by the Pesaro Justice Court - Office of the Magistrate for Preliminary Investigations – condemns the activists for the offence punishable by art. 110, 340 of the Italian Criminal Code, because on December 20th, 2008 "in complicity with each other, they caused the interruption, or at least disturbed a police operation aimed at identifying three foreign citizens, and used abusive and disparaging language towards the officers from Pesaro-Urbino Police Headquarters, and interfered in the carrying out of their duty. "

"It is the umpteenth episode of abuse from the authorities (and in particular from the Police Headquarters) we have been subjected to in Pesaro and in Italy " say the co-presidents of the Group. "Throughout 2008 and in the early months of 2009 we were repeatedly summoned to police headquarters because of our humanitarian work in defence of the Roma community living in our Country ".

After the protests of our Organization for the endless camp clearances of Roma families (without any offer of assistance) and after our protests over the illegitimate expulsion of a group of Afghan refugees who had applied for asylum, the Pesaro Police Commissioner issued Roberto Malini a verbal warning on the following grounds: "Seeing the Roma are notorious criminals, I consider EveryOne Group part of a criminal organization and I invite it to cease its activity ". Following this warning, the activists of EveryOne Group were subjected to various episodes of intimidation and provocation, while the brutal operations aimed at driving the Roma out of the city continued. The attitude of the Police Commissioner and the anti-Roma programme carried out by the Pesaro authorities have been the subject of various Parliamentary questions, leading to the transfer of the Police Commissioner to a different detachment.

Following the camp clearance (in mid winter) of the last Roma families to take refuge in Pesaro, EveryOne Group filed a complaint to the Public Prosecutor's Office at the same Pesaro Justice Court - reporting both the violation of human rights and the open hostility shown towards human rights defenders.

"We were expecting the Prosecutor's Office to investigate the abuse committed by the local authorities towards the Roma community ", say Malini, Pegoraro and Picciau, "actions that have led to several deaths (due to the hardship suffered by seriously ill people, who were suddenly left without a shelter over their heads), miscarriages (due to the stress and fear experienced by the pregnant women faced with so many armed police officers) and serious humanitarian emergencies.

Instead, the same authorities made use of a legal instrument that exists only in Italy, an instrument that violates article 24 of the Italian Constitution. We are talking about a conviction without a trial, yet another intimidatory tool used against human rights defenders which allows an untrue statement made by a police officer to become law without the accused being given the opportunity to contradict him.

We are aware that there is a danger of falling into a legal ‘black hole’, but we have decided to oppose the sentence and we will continue to oppose it on all levels, even if this means taking the case before the European Court of Human Rights. It is a fundamental principle of civility and democracy which does not only concern this episode, but international activism as whole, and the endless obstacles and dangers involved in defending the lives and the dignity of our most vulnerable citizens ".

As for the case in question, Roberto Malini and Dario Picciau say "on the evening of December 20th, 2008 a police officer was talking in an arrogant manner to a young Roma man, while his colleague waited in the patrol car in front of the bar to be served with sandwiches and drinks. We greeted the young man, Nico Grancea, who we knew very well seeing we had been offering him assistance for over year. In answer, we received from the first officer a brusque and threatening invitation to show some identification. We have had dealings with the police force for years and therefore have sufficient experience to know not to rise to the bait. The police officer took down our details without issuing any notification. The magistrates investigating the case did not listen to what the owner of the bar, Mr. Grancea, or the EveryOne activists had to say. The Pesaro investigating magistrate then decided for "a conviction without a trial ".

"Through our appeal and the relevant procedures for defending our humanitarian work" says EveryOne Group,"we intend to bring the case to the attention of the authorities in charge of protecting human rights defenders, in order for them to establish efficient organisms that defend the work of activists who are forced to operate in extremely difficult conditions ".

On February 14th, 2010 Malini and Picciau's case was brought up by the co-president of EveryOne, Matteo Pegoraro, in Dublin, during the 5th Frontline Platform for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, which EveryOne Group (the only European organization) had been invited to attend along with 99 other human rights defenders from all over the world – activists who have received several threats during the course of their human rights activities. "We are appealing to the Frontline Foundation (which protects human rights activists all over the world in cooperation with the United Nations and European institutions) to take up our case. We hope too that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navanethem Pillay, and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, - always very alert to episodes of this kind - to immediately intervene against this judiciary abuse, which has no precedent in European activism. We will fight " says Pegoraro, "to ensure that these two human rights defenders – who have been involved for many years in difficult campaigns in defence of minority groups – are not subjected to this violation, even more so if we consider that as co-presidents of EveryOne, they were operating in Pesaro and on Italian territory on behalf of the European MP, Viktoria Mohacsi with the precise aim of investigating the behaviour of the authorities towards the Roma people in Italy.

On behalf of our group, we invite civil society, the politicians who are more alert to matters of fundamental rights, the human and civil rights associations and organizations and the European and international institutions and authorites, to express their criticism of an action that goes against all the charters on the human rights of the individual – as well as violating the international laws on the protection and freedom of action and movement of human rights defenders ".

For further information:

EveryOne Group

+39 393 4010237 :: +39 334 3449180 :: +39 331 3585406

www.everyonegroup.com :: info@everyonegroup.com

Dear all,

In 2008, we completed our award winning film A Blue Hole in the Sky (see http://vimeo.com/35878778 for an impression).

We need your help for our present film production Broken Silence, that deals with the cruel parallel between the genocide on Sinti and Roma during world war II and the present uprising hatred amongst Roma people.

We are looking for recent pictures and videos / new items that portray or show contemporary anti-Roma racism. No comments, just images. It can be everything, from mobile phone captured material, scanned newspaper headings to broadcast quality footage. If possible, we would like to know where and when the images were taken. Please send links or material to our emailaddress info@solfilmprodukties.nl.

Best Regards,

Raoul de Zwart (producer)

Bob Entrop (director)

Orhan Galjus (narrator)

Dear Friends, We, the Roma Community Centre, would like to draw your immediate attention to the impending planned demolition of the houses of four Romani families in Vilnius, Lithuania. The situation is especially urgent in the light of the extreme weather conditions and the fact that all of the families have children under 12 years of age.

On 27th January 2012 four Romani families, residing in the informal settlement of Kirtimai on the outskirts of Vilnius, Lithuania, received notifications that their houses are to be demolished at 8.00 am on 13th February 2012. The decisions are based on the conclusions of the Vilnius District Courts between the years 2010 and 2011 as regards the illegality of the buildings.

As the court decisions were taken among several cases almost two years ago, the motivation to carry them out now in February, which is usually the coldest month, is unclear. Out of the 10 people in the three houses concerned, there are seven children under 12 years of age, including a six-month-old infant. The temperature in Lithuania in the current period reaches -30 degrees. The local authorities are not providing any alternative housing solution for the families facing eviction.

Unfortunately, this event contradicts the effort of Lithuanian authorities to close the gap between the Roma minority and the majority of the population, as was stated, when committing to submit the National Roma Integration Strategy under the framework of the European Commission.

Furthermore, the planned evictions violate numerous human rights provisions, including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).

We would like to bring the attention of the international community to this precarious situation and ask them to support us in demanding:

1. suspension of the eviction until suitable weather conditions

2. provision of alternative housing to the Roma families Thank you for your attention.

Kind regards,

Roma Community Centre

For more information please contact: Ana Rozanova

Email: ana.rozanova@gmail.com Website: www.roma.lt

The Roma residents of İstanbul's Sulukule neighborhood, who now have to empty their houses after losing a legal battle earlier this year to save their quarter from the local municipality's urban renovation project, are making their voices heard on the other side of the world thanks to a new song by the US gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello.

The New York-based multi-ethnic gypsy punk band, best known for its theatrical stage performances, is lending moral support to the residents of Sulukule through the song “Educate Thy Neighbor,” the Anatolia news agency reported on Friday. The group performed “Educate Thy Neighbor” during appearances across the United States throughout the summer as part of their US tour, which wrapped up earlier this month with a concert at the All Points West Festival in New Jersey. “Educate Thy Neighbor” will also be featured on the band's upcoming studio album, set for release next month, Anatolia reported.

Gogol Bordello frontman Eugene Hütz was inspired to write “Educate Thy Neighbor” during a visit to İstanbul last summer, during which the band's members also visited the neighborhood, billed on the band's Web site as “the oldest Roma settlement in the world.” Through their Web site, http://gogolbordello.com, the band is also lending support to alternative civil society projects to save the area from being demolished.

Part of the lyrics of the song read: “Streets of Sulukule / Are down, down, down / Urban progress bullies / Try to steal its crown / Till first note a-ripples / And street beats erupts / Now you see who's heart and soul / Is bankrupt … Educate thy neighbor / Bout the urban plot / To pave over culture / For new parking lot.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pO7cwm98vB8

ERRC wishes to announce the vacancy of the post of ERRC Legal Administrator. Below you will find all the relevant information for applying for the post.

Please go to http://www.errc.org/cikk.php?cikk=2765 to access the ERRC application documents. You can search our website for information about the work of ERRC at www.errc.org.

The criteria we use for short-listing is set out in the person specification and follow on from the job description tasks. Please take time to read the guidance notes on how to fill out your application. It is important that your application shows how you meet ALL points mentioned in the person specification. If you do not meet all of the criteria or do not have experience on some of the points listed, please state how you would aim to accomplish the work.

Closing date for applications: 18 June (8:00 am Budapest time)
Interview date: Provisionally planned for 9 July 2007 in Budapest

You are kindly asked to send your application (letter of interest, application form and the equal opportunities form; the latter is not obligatory) preferably by e-mail to dora.eke@errc.org. Applications in other formats than outlined in the guidance notes will not be considered. Please ensure your e-mail has been received by requesting confirmation.

ERRC offers a competitive salary and benefits package based on experience which is subject to negotiations.

We kindly ask you not to call for information before you are invited for an interview.

We wish you every success with your application and thank you for your interest in ERRC.

European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC)

Salary £26,810 (pro rata for part time staff)

Amnesty International is looking for two campaigners to work at the International Secretariat to lead its campaigning work on the Western Balkans. Amnesty International is recruiting one full time position (1 year fixed term contract) and one part time permanent position.

You will lead on the development and implementation of specific campaigning strategies and actions to mobilize the organization's worldwide membership to campaign effectively against human rights violations in the region. You will act as a focal point to provide advice to Amnesty International’s membership on actions and develop campaigning materials. You will need proven campaigning experience, first hand working experience or knowledge of the Western Balkans, proven knowledge of human rights as well as political judgement. You will also need to have effective writing and communication skills and an understanding of membership organizations. You must have an excellent ability to speak, read, write and understand English. Ability to understand and read Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian is essential; knowledge of Albanian and/or Macedonian and/or Slovenian and/or a relevant Romani language is desirable.

If you are interested in applying for the above role please visit the website at www.amnesty.org/jobs