Czech police undergo course to better communicate with Romanies

The first group of policemen from the Czech city of Ostrava have launched a training to improve their communication with Romanies, Ostrava police spokeswoman Vladimira Kejdova told CTK today.

Ostrava has a number of neighbourhoods inhabited mainly by Romanies.

Kejdova said there were problems related to the Romany community that the patrolling police have to deal with nearly every day, such as squabbles, brawls, shoplifting and minor thefts.

If the six-month training, now attended by 15 policemen, is successful, the project that is unique among the Czech municipal police will continue.

Policeman David Jurecka, who operates in the ill-famed Bedriska settlement, said two-thirds of the citizens were socially unadaptable.

"The problems we repeatedly deal with are burning of waste, too much noise in night hours and selling stolen metal items in scrapyards," Jurecka said.

He said some of the people were willing to communicate and seek a solution to problems, but others were not.

The training includes seminars with psychologists, sociologists and also Romanies themselves.