Czech Roma in the News
26-02-2000
Christopher H. Smith: Racial Intolerance in the Czech Republic
On May 22, 1998, Congressman Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chairman of the
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, made these remarks on the
subject of "Racial Intolerance in the Czech Republic" in the U.S. House of
Representatives.
"Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my profound alarm at the futher
deterioration of the situation for minorities in the Czech Republic. Since
the Velvet Revolution, that country has witnessed violent and sometimes
deadly attacks against minorities--a pattern of violence which is not being
addressed by the Czech Government.
"Let me describe the most recent examples of this unchecked wave of
brutality. On May 7, an Algerian in a Prague subway station was stabbed by
skinheads; the next day, two Indians were also attacked by skinheads in a
subway station in Prague. On the night of May 16-17, a Rom was beaten by
skinheads and left on a road, where he was subsequently hit and killed by a
truck. And last week, local officials in two different Czech cities--Pilsen
and Usti nad Labem--announced plans to build ghettos. In Usti nad Labem,
authorities stated outright that they plan to build a 15-foot-high wall
around Roma apartment buildings. Pilsen officials described their walled-off
area as a place for putting `undesirables,' using terminology reminiscent of
that used by the Nazis. Former Czech Minister of Interior Jan Ruml has
described these plans as `inadmissible in a democratic society.'
"Unfortunately, these were not isolated events. Last November, Sudanese
student Hassan Elamin Aldelradi was killed by a skinhead in Prague. In
January, a Romani woman was seriously injured in Krnov when her home was fire
bombed. In February, another Romani woman, Helena Bihariova was attacked,
beaten, forced into the Elbe River and drowned. In early March, two Romani
men in Decin were assaulted by a man with a pistol; a Congolese doctor was
subsequently beaten in the town of Prostejov. In late March, skinheads in
Trutnov attacked a Jewish couple. Each and every one of these has been widely
described as a racially motivated attack.
"Apparently, skinheads are not convinced they will be held accountable for
their acts and the Czech Government has failed to persuade Roma that
authorities will do all in their power to protect them. Roma have
increasingly shown their unwillingness to simply stand aside while their
family members are attacked or murdered, one by one. A number of recent
attacks against Roma have been followed by revenge attacks by Roma. The rule
of law appears to be degenerating into the rule of the mob. Official
statements like that made March 17 by the current Minister of Interior, Cyril
Svoboda, exacerbate the charged atmosphere. Mr. Svoboda minimized the
significance of racially motivated violence, claimed it is not destabilizing
and then blamed non-governmental organizations for distorting the Czech
Republic's image through their reporting on this problem.
"The most recent revenge attack by Roma occurred in the town of Novy Bor two
weeks ago, when two Roma attacked Miroslav Sladek, a member of parliament
campaigning for re-election. Sladek is the notorious head of the Czech
`Republican Party' who has called for making one's ethnic identity as a Rom a
criminal act.
"A fair amount of media attention has been given to the fact that the two
Roma arrested in that case were immediately pardoned by President Havel.
Understandably, President Havel's decision has been controversial. What I
think is most interesting is his reasoning: according to the President's
spokesperson, the President did not believe that the local police could
conduct an impartial investigation into the matter. She noted, in particular,
that the police have given an account of events which match that of Mr.
Sladek's, but which is contradicted by other eyewitnesses. She also observed
that human rights groups have reported a consistent failure of the police in
that area to investigate and prosecute successfully racially motivated
attacks against Roma.
"On May 14, the Czech Chamber of Deputies weighed in on this serious matter
and expressed concern about the attack on Sladek. They even called for the
Ministry of Interior to investigate the attack further to determine if it was
a planned attack. Certainly, violence should not have been used against
Sladek. As repugnant and disgusting as Sladek's views might be, he is
entitled to them. What I do not understand is why the Czech Chamber of
Deputies--which has remained silent when Roma have been attacked and even
murdered--has chosen to express its concern in this manner. The bulk of the
Czech cabinet has remained conspicuously silent regarding the most recent
racially motivated skinhead attacks; certainly, the Prime Minister appears to
have said nothing. Instead, Monika Horakova, a Romani representative on the
recently created Inter-Ministerial Commission for Romani Affairs, has been
dispatched to dissuade Roma from taking matters into their own hands. In the
end, however, Ms. Horakova is unlikely to be successful unless she has the
full backing of the full cabinet.
"Mr. Speaker, the Czech Government should not wait until after the June
elections to reach to racially motivated violence. With time, more innocent
life could be lost. Every member of the Cabinet should condemn in decisive
terms the acts of these repugnant skinheads; the Ministry of Interior, in
particular, should unequivocally signal its commitment to ensure that the
perpetrators of these acts are caught, prosecuted and convicted. And the
discriminatory Czech citizenship law, which continues to telegraph the
message that Roma are not wanted in that country, must be amended."
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