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Czech Elections: We have identified 20 Romani candidates running in the early elections to the lower house

16 October 2013
18 minute read

The early elections are sparking many questions and have been at the center
of media attention for several weeks now. Naturally, we also have focused on
them, because the historically largest number of Romani candidates since 1990 is
running in these elections, whether trying to reach the voters through independent Romani parties or
running on the candidate lists of “majority” parties.

We have attempted to reach out to most of these candidates and asked them
several questions. The complete interviews, as well as an historical analysis of
Romani representation in the Parliament of the Czech Republic summarized in a
commentary by Jarmila Balážová, can be found online at
www.romea.cz.

INTERVIEWS

This article presents at least a brief introduction to the men and women who
have publicly espoused their Romani identity and are actively attempting to
reach out to potential voters, non-Romani and Romani alike. At this time of anti-Romani
unrest, demonstrations, falsified statistics and neo-Nazis hacking into the
e-mail accounts and personal social networking profiles of everyone who has been
drawing attention to the deteriorating atmosphere in society, this response from
Romani politicians is not just necessary, it is the most rational one possible.
Unfortunately, most of the candidates are listed in unelectable slots, or in
slots where they could only be elected if they were to receive a large number of
preferential votes, but even so, this is an interesting political enterprise.
Other Romani people may well build on these efforts in the future. Moreover, it
is a clear signal not only to the political parties, but also to society as a
whole, and it seems that the need for Romani people themselves to participate at
the political level is finally being realized by the representatives of other
political parties, which may be an indisputably fundamental breakthrough from
the perspective of future elections.

Lion 21 – National Socialists (Lev 21 – Národní socialisté): This party,
represented by Jiří Paroubek, a former prime minister and former chair of the
Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD), contacted us to let us know two Romani
candidates are running for the party in these elections.

Gabriela Huňáková is a nurse running in eighth place on the Hradec Králové
regional ticket.

1. Why this party? I was very taken with its electoral program and I have
been a member of this party for about two months because of it. I don’t want to
discuss my identification with the various points of the program you that have
asked about – I think the program is a general one and I identify with it
overall. This party doesn’t just think about the state as a whole, but also
about its citizens, and it is taking the questions of housing, inter-ethnic
coexistence, and poverty into account. As far as minorities go, I can quote from
the program: “We want to protect and support all minorities.”

2. My political experience is so far at a “beginner” level, because a few
months ago I just completed my Bachelor’s degree at Slezská Univerzita in Opava
in the field of public administration and regional policy. Why are so many
Romani candidates running this year? Probably because their position in today’s
society is at a very bad level and they want to get involved in improving this
situation because it hasn’t changed much and Romani people don’t have it easy
here at all. We probably all believe that once we have an overview of how things
run in our politics, we will figure out what to do so we can have better lives
here. Also, if the Romani population sees a Romani candidate for this or that
party, it is very likely they will trust that party more than the parties
without Romani members, and this will be an impulse for Romani voters to go to
the polls, because I believe that up until now very few Romani people have
actually voted. It is hard to say whether all of the candidates are aware of
what awaits them in politics, but in my opinion they probably wouldn’t be
running if they didn’t know anything about politics at all.

Zdeněk Gábor is running in the same region in 18th place on this party’s
candidate list. He is a certified mason but has never gotten involved in
politics before now and has been a member of the party only briefly. He has
never experienced any other political engagement and decided to get involved for
these reasons:

1. In its program, this party makes proposals for solving problems in places
with high unemployment. Those solutions are linked to the necessity to revive
the economy, which is not possible without new job opportunities being created
through state commissions, primarily in the construction industry. The result of
failing to address these matters is the growing aversion on the part of the
majority society toward Romani people, which is then exploited by various
extremist, neo-Nazi organizations. It’s difficult with the issue of work. In my
opinion, employers are discriminating against Romani people in this country.
They prefer to hire “whites”. When we apply for jobs they tell us they’ll get
back to us – but you could wait forever for that call.

2. It’s good that in this year’s elections Romani candidates are also running.
As long as we are unable to speak up in politics, nothing much will change here
for us. As for your question whether the Romani candidates should collaborate
with one another, my answer is yes, despite the fact that we are in different
political parties.

Another political entity whose representatives drew our attention to the fact
that a Romani woman was among their candidates is the Citizens’ Rights Party for
Zeman (Strana práv občanů Zemanovci – SPOZ).

Gabriela Kertészová, a social worker and teaching assistant, is running in
14th place on that party’s candidate list. She comes from a mixed family and
espouses her Romani identity, as can also be seen from her choice of career. She
chairs the local SPOZ organization in the town of Kraslice and is of course a
party member.

1. I joined the SPOZ because I agree with its electoral program 300. The main
point of that program is to adopt a law requiring proof of the origins of one’s
assets and income, including the option to confiscate illegal gains, i.e.,
stolen property, as well as legislating a way for politicians to be removed from
office before their terms end. I am of the opinion that a law on proving the
origins of one’s assets should be a priority for every politician in our
country. Unfortunately, this is not yet the case, and that is why the SPOZ is
unacceptable to the right-wing parties. The SPOZ program also discusses reducing
VAT on groceries and medicines by 10 %.

2. Why are so many Romani people running this year? In my opinion this is
because of the situation in the Czech Republic at this moment, when xenophobic
sentiments are continuing to intensify between the majority society and the
Romani minority. On the other hand, it’s good that so many of us are not
indifferent to the fate of the Czech Republic and are doing our best to get
involved in public affairs. We must realize that we are also citizens of this
country and that everyone here is equal before the law. I believe it is very
positive to see so many Romani people running in these elections.

The Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) is running, as is traditional, Romani
candidate David Beňák, the head of the Prague 14 Department of Social Affairs
and Health Care. He has been a member of this party for 10 years and is running
for a third time (this is his second attempt to be elected to the lower house).
He last ran in 2010 in 22nd place on the candidate list and has now been placed
in the number 9 slot on the list for the Prague electoral district.

1. I decided to run for this party because I am convinced it is the only left-wing
party that can create a welfare state that will be sustainable in the long run.
Unfortunately, the party has never received a strong enough mandate to fully
govern in all areas. Prior to this I had never been a member of any other party.

2. How do I believe representatives of the ČSSD do on topics of inter-ethnic
coexistence, anti-Romani demonstrations, social housing, etc? What kind of
chance do I have to influence this inside the party? It may not look like it in
the media, but ČSSD politicians have been speaking out on these areas. Their
statements are not always direct, but nothing says they have to be. When we
discuss security it means for everyone. When the topic is that of more jobs,
that also means for everyone. I think the ČSSD has the advantage of having a
high level of professional backing available to it, and it is possible to
influence the national discussion because of this. In many respects, therefore,
a dispassionate discussion of these topics has been ongoing, and all of the
current main topics are covered by the electoral program of the ČSSD, in
particular the creation of jobs, support for families, a law on social housing,
security, etc. As far as the statements made by some ČSSD members that have been
anti-Romani, this is not the position of the party itself, but of specific
individuals. I personally bring a great deal of experience to the team, e.g.,
from the area of social policy, and I also am contributing to formulating the
Prague cell’s policy. I personally welcome the fact that such a significantly
higher number of Romani people are running for various parties. This is a
certain shift in the right direction. As far as I know, none of the people
running have experience with high-level politics, but that doesn’t necessarily
disqualify them. In my view, a candidate must be linked to the clear political
program that the party is based on. I can imagine that we Romani candidates, if
elected, would seek solutions together to some key topics concerning Romani
people irrespective of our political affiliations. I base this opinion on the
fact that I am convinced that ČSSD is already a strong platform for defending
the interests that affect Romani people in particular.

The Změna (“Change”) political movement was created last year and in those early
elections attempted to reach an agreement with the Green Party about sharing
candidates that ultimately did not come to pass. In the end, Změna is running
together with the Klíčové hnutí (Táňa Fischerová’s “Key Movement”), the “Green
Movement” (hnutí Zelení), the Humanist Party (Humanistická strana) and others.
On their candidate list there are also members of the Moravané party
(“Moravians”), Občané.cz and Hnutí FAIR PLAY (the FAIR PLAY Movement).

In the
Ústí Region, Romani candidate Drahomír Radek Horváth is running in seventh place
on the candidate list. He is an activist and a social services worker who runs a
counseling center. As with all of the other candidates, you can read his
interview in full on the romea.cz website.

1. Změna reached out to me and was not the only political movement to do so.
What I am promoting personally, and what has met with a friendly response from
inside the Změna movement, is a clear, detailed definition of a concept for
addressing the situation of socially excluded Romani localities and a recipe for
improving coexistence between the majority population and the Romani minority.

2. I welcome the fact that Romani people are currently engaging in politics more
than ever before. This is an indication of the fact that we are really concerned
about the quality of our coexistence with others in this country. Many people
expected negative developments in the light of these recent anti-Romani
demonstrations, they expected we would radicalize and respond militantly and
primitively, but it is evident that Romani people are individuals who
contemplate matters rationally and who clearly, by participating in public
affairs, are making known their willingness to change this situation for the
better.

The Romani Democratic Party (Romská demokratická strana – RDS) emerged in August
2013 just before these elections to the lower house. Its chair is Miroslav
Tancoš, whom you may have noticed on the Czech Television program “Interview
with Daniela Drtinová” as the chair of this party (for which he is not running).
The RDS has posted candidate lists in the Central Bohemian and Liberec Regions
only.

In Liberec Region the candidate list is led by medical orderly Milan Cina,
followed by Patrik Kotlár, who works in social services, followed by
entrepreneur Jiří Netušil. In the Central Bohemian Region the party is running
two candidates, the first of which is Emil Horváth, who owns a firm that repairs
engineering networks. He is most concerned about Romani people gaining greater
workplace literacy because today’s youth are in a different situation that he
was at their age and it is very difficult for them to find work.

“They are realizing that without work, all that awaits them are collections
agents,” Horváth said. The party’s second-place candidate in that region is
receptionist Dezider Balog.

The party’s program counts on creating new jobs and building social housing. It
prefers employment to the passive drawing of welfare.

RDS chair Miroslav Tancoš has said the following on the party’s decision to run
independently:

1. We established an independent Romani party because we regularly participate
in various actions supporting Romani people when the neo-Nazis are marching
through the streets and trying to terrorize Romani residents. We have
encountered many people who are of the opinion that we must have a strong
political party, representation, so that decisions won’t be made “about us
without us”. We spent a year designing the emergence of the RDS, its program and
its statutes.

2. No, we did not negotiate with any other party about a possible coalition or
shared candidate list in these elections. We are under no illusions that we will
win. I know about the collaboration between the SRP and the SZ and I think they
chose good Romani candidates. Our electoral priorities are unemployment,
housing, education, and the creation of a tolerant environment without
prejudices in which one’s affiliation with a group defined by race, skin color,
language or membership in another nation cannot be a reason for someone to be
judged or treated differently.

We have intentionally left the Equal Opportunities Party (Strana rovných
příležitostí)
and the Green Party (Strana zelených) for last. Here we see the
most significant collaboration and offer for non-Romani and Romani people to run
together since 1990.

The Green Party, as you can see from an extensive interview
with its chair Ondřej Liška elsewhere in this issue, has long focused on the
topic of inter-ethnic coexistence and related questions, as well as taking a
stand against manifestations of racism. It is no surprise that Romani people are
directly running as party members – such as the social anthropologist Lucie
Horváthová (Pardubice Region, eighth place) and the activist and student of the
Romani Studies department at the Philosophy Faculty of Charles University in
Prague, David Tišer (Plzeň Region, third place). Again, for reasons of brevity,
we refer you to news server romea.cz where you will find extensive interviews
not only with these two candidates, but with all the others. You can also take
advantage of the social networking site through which candidate Tišer is running
his campaign.

Because of this historically significant agreement between the Equal
Opportunities Party (SRP) and the Greens, the candidates proposed by the SRP
(which also emerged just recently, in January 2012) have been offered a total of
seven slots on the Green Party candidate lists. In this issue we introduce, in
conversation with Senator Alena Gajdůšková, Čeněk Růžička, an outspoken figure
of the Romani movement post-1989, who has dedicated himself for many years to
Holocaust issues and to human rights in general (Hradec Králové Region, 4th
place).

A former Romani representative in the sport of boxing, trainer Stanislav Tišer
is running in 15th place on the Green Party candidate list in Prague for the
SRP. His previous political experience includes working with the European
Democrats (SNK Evropští demokraté), who previously reached out to him.

In the Moravian-Silesian Region, the Greens chose SRP candidate Antonie
Burianská for their 11th-place slot. She graduated from long-distance study at
Ostrava University in the field of special needs pedagogy for nursery school
teachers and school staffs. She works as a teacher and after-school tutor at a
primary school in the town of Vítkov, a former “special school” where 90 % of
the pupils are Romani.

In that same region, field social worker Elena Gorolová is running in 31st
place.

Those voting in Liberec Region will find social worker Emilie Horáčková running
in eighth place on the Green Party candidate list. She too was nominated by the
SRP and is a member of that party. She is of the opinion that there is a need to
take an organized stand against the wave of hatred and racism that is starting
to take over society. She also identifies with the SRP’s efforts to fight
against poverty. She believes that after a long hiatus, a party is now here that
wants to fight for Romani people and negotiate social reconciliation and aid for
all.

Jozef Miker, originally a professional industrial locksmith, lives in Krupka and
is running in the Ústí Region, where he is known for his work with youth and his
participation in blockades against neo-Nazi marches. He is running in the number
six slot.

Štefan Tišer, the SRP chair, is also running in that same region. The Greens
offered him fifth place on their candidate list. As he told us: “The SRP emerged
at the instigation of Roman people based on the current situation in the Czech
Republic. There was a direct challenge to us to finally do something on our own
so that others don’t act ‘about us without us’. I was also involved with the
Romani Civic Initiative when it began.”

1. How do I view our chances? In general, I believe they are rather high because
we have entered into this agreement with the Green Party, with whom we have
almost the same program. Other political entities reached out to us as well, but
the Greens won.

2. Yes, compared to the past, many Romani candidates are running now. I am glad
that the Roma too have finally stood up and are going to fight not just for
themselves, but mainly for a better life for our children – they are our future
and we must do everything we can so that one day our children won’t be
reproaching us for remaining idle when we had the opportunity to act.

The Czech Pirate Party is inspired by a similar party in Sweden. Just
as in other European countries, this party has been created to resist what its
founders allege are restrictions on fundamental civil rights being implemented
by influential lobbying groups. Their main topics include civic freedom, the
sharing of information, the efficient use of technology, protection of privacy,
education, and healthcare.

The party has nominated Štefan Horvát, a
resident of Duchcov, to run in 11th place on its list in the Ústí Region. Horvát
is not a member of any political party and is a social services worker.

We don’t know how these elections will turn out, which party will win what
percentage of the vote, or how many preferential votes the individual candidates
will receive. However, what is certain is that all of the candidates will gain
immeasurably valuable experience, and the same applies to the parties that have
offered candidacies to Romani politicians. I don’t have to emphasize the
significance of communicating, negotiating, gaining recognition, meeting one’s
fellow citizens on the streets, etc.

After the long process which my colleague and I undertook of communicating with
all of the candidates, which was very demanding in terms of time, we have made
some interesting observations. Basically, all of the candidates claim that
collaboration across the political spectrum is possible if there is political
will on the part of both individuals and the party secretariats. Their only
difference of opinion is on how to do this and to what degree it is purely
theoretically possible. The second interesting observation concerns the rational
approach taken by most if not all of these candidates, who are aware that they
may not make it into the lower house, but that running is about their personal
success and that of their party. In the case of the SRP, their collaboration
with the Greens may continue into the future, for example, during the upcoming
municipal elections, and that naturally will depend upon how many voters the
Romani candidates attract in this election.

Our last bit of experience: Most of these candidates are aware that if they want
to be involved in politics, they must get used to answering critical questions
and not take them personally. A minority of the candidates named here has a
problem with this fact and they are just going to have get used to it.

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