Czech NGO consortium RomanoNet calls on lower house to dismiss Stanislav Křeček as Public Defender of Rights

RomanoNet, an umbrella organization of pro-Romani and Romani organizations, has called on the president of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, MP Markéta Adamová Pekarová, to begin steps to dismiss Stanislav Křeček from the post of Public Defender of Rights. The organization made the call in a statement sent to news server Romea.cz.

According to RomanoNet, Křeček's actions pose a threat to the public's trust that he is performing his role independently and without bias, as was confirmed by the resolution passed by the Czech Senate on Friday. "Today's unprecedented removal of the agendas assigned to his Deputy, Monika Šimůnková, is the peak of Stanislav Křeček's failure as a manager. We perceive his actions to be revenge for the resolution of the Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic, which called his various remarks xenophobic. Stanislav Křeček has crossed all imaginable lines and he has absolutely discredited the Office of the Public Defender of Rights," said Michal Miko, director of RomanoNet.

"We hereby express our support for Monika Šimůnková as an expert and a professional who performs her role with a high level of professionalism," Miko said. According to the organizations that belong to RomanoNet, it is Křeček who, through his activity in the media and his public remarks, is undermining trust in the very institution of the Public Defender of Rights, and the Chamber of Deputies should begin immediately taking action to dismiss him.

"The media activity of Stanislav Křeček is, at this moment, damaging his execution of this office and its dignity, and endangering trust in the idea that he is executing this function independently and without bias. The Senate has already confirmed that through its resolution," Miko said.

RomanoNet was created in 2017 for the purpose of coordinating the collaborations of non-governmental and non-profit organizations working with the Romani minority in the Czech Republic, and its mission is to advocate for an inclusion policy that emphasizes the equality of Romani people, their human rights, their participation in public life, and their involvement in decision-making processes. The current members of RomanoNet are: Awen Amenca, IQ Roma servis, Khamoro, Kleja, Otevřená společnost (Open Society), Romano jasnica, ROMEA, Romodrom, Slovo 21, Společně-Jekhetane-Together and Vzájemné soužití (Life Together).