Czech Republic: Čikhatar Het II to run in České Budějovice alongside anti-Romani assembly

České Budějovice is readying for assemblies that will take place tomorrow on Přemysl Otakar II Square and at the Máj housing estate. Both gatherings are in response to an incident during which children, their parents and then unrelated adults got into conflict with one another a local playground.

Several people were injured as a result of the conflict between ethnic Czech residents and Romani residents. A pregnant woman was among those injured. It is not clear who started the conflict or how, because police have not yet publicized the exact causes and circumstances of the incident. 

At the Máj housing estate, just like last week in Duchcov, a gathering with a cultural program called "Čikhatar Het/Z bahna ven II" ("Out of the Mud II") will be held by the Konexe civic association together with the local Romani community. "The gathering is to support the local community of Czech-Romani neighbors and improve their relations," Miroslav Brož of Konexe told news server Romea.cz, adding that the gathering will start at 13:00 on Na kopečku Street.

According to the posters advertising the event, the bands Gypsi Song, Kladivo and others are scheduled to perform. "We announced the gathering to the town hall on Monday," Brož told news server Romea.cz.

Another assembly is planned for 16:00 on Přemysl Otakar II Square. Immediately after the incident at the Máj housing estate, a Facebook page was created entitled "Protest Action against Inadaptable Citizens", under which all of such anti-Romani actions are apparently now being planned. They estimate that between 700 and 800 demonstrators might attend.

Organizer Michael Choura had previously informed the public of the protest preparations. "We invited the mayor of České Budějovice to Saturday’s event when we visited him. In his view, however, we are exaggerating the situation around the Máj housing estate," Choura said earlier this week.

The housing estate is part of a locality where a high number of socially vulnerable families and individuals live. A large proportion of them are people from the Romani community.

"[Last] Friday’s conflict is simply the result of bad policy on the part of the municipality, the region, and the state. The economic and social situations of many people are truly desperate, and everyone is burying their head in the sand about it," former town councilor Marie Paukejová, who has long lived at the Máj housing estate, said.

The housing estate is the largest in the town, accommodating roughly one-fifth of its total population, and is one of many localities where no one wants to buy property. Real estate agencies report that the cost of real estate there is significantly lower than in any other part of town. At the start of the 1990s, people were moved to the Máj housing estate after the lucrative buildings in the town center where they had been living were privatized, some of them through restitution.

"I am concerned that these conflicts will increase. I just hope blood doesn’t start flowing," Paukejová said earlier this week.