Calls against extremism as Roma Holocaust Memorial Day is marked
Maribor, 31 July - Roma Holocaust Memorial Day was marked in Maribor on Tuesday evening with a lecture on the opportunities of the Roma cultural heritage in Slovenia, a concert and an address by Jožek Horvat Muc, the head of the Slovenian Roma Association, who took the occasion to warn against various forms of extremism.
Maribor
Jožek Horvat Muc, the head of the Slovenian Roma Association, speaks at a ceremony marking Roma Holocaust Memorial Day in front of the Maribor Synagogue.
Photo: Gregor Mlakar/STA
Horvat Muc said as he addressed the ceremony in front of the Maribor Synagogue that it is very important to remember the tragic events of eight decades ago, referring to the Romani genocide, or Porajmos, during World War II.
He noted that, in this light, close attention should be paid to the current events in Europe and, unfortunately, also in Slovenia. "Europe is faced with various extremisms that demand political and social attention," he added.
While assessing that the Roma community in Slovenia gets media exposure today, Horvat Muc said that this unfortunately happens mainly in a negative context, based on which various forms of hate speech are then initiated.
Injustices are often done to many Roma in Slovenia, as the public tends to generalise, he added.
The authorities, and especially members of the Roma community, should thus draw attention to the tragic events from 80 years ago, because a similar fate can befall the Roma at any time.
The Roma too were victims of Nazism and Fascism, but it took quite some time for European politicians and academia to realise that this was a true genocide, Horvat Muc said.
"Our goal is to raise awareness among young Roma and to remind them that we live in unstable times. Unfortunately, the events that we remember today are not recorded anywhere in Slovenian textbooks," he added.
His address followed a lecture on the opportunities of the Roma cultural heritage in Slovenia, while the event was concluded with a concert by Gipsy Groove in Jewish Square.
The band is known for its energetic and charismatic performances, as part of which it also raises awareness about inequality and discrimination, freedom of movement, racism, women's rights and human rights in general.
A memorial ceremony for Roma Holocaust Memorial Day, observed on 2 August, will also be held on Thursday in Murska Sobota, with an exhibition on the Roma in the Prekmurje region to be on display in the local archives.
The ceremony will be followed by a talk on the fate of the Roma and Sinti during World War II, and a concert by singer-songwriter Nina Brasseur.