Czech Republic: Demonstration against intolerance in Teplice draws less than 100 people

Almost 100 people, most of them Romani, gathered on the main square in the North Bohemian town of Teplice today for a peaceful demonstration "Against Intolerance" to honor the memory of Ivan Jarka. The event is a direct response to Jarka’s recent murder, which local Romani residents unequivocally describe as having been racially motivated. Police reportedly disagree with that assessment.

Shortly after the demonstration began, the protesters moved to the scene of the murder and lit candles there. The gathering then continued on to the main square, where people honored the memory of the Romani victims of racially motivated murder in the Czech Republic with a minute of silence.

Štefan Tišer, chair of the Equal Opportunities Party (Strana rovných příležitostí – SRP) then gave a speech in which he explained why the party had been founded. In his view the other political parties have not done anything for the Romani minority. Salesian Society member Jan Hurník then led everyone in prayer.

"In other places Romani people live normal lives, because they do not feel humiliated the way they do in the Czech Republic," saxophone player Jaroslav Ferenc of Teplice said in his speech. Someone in the crowd responded by shouting:  "This is a racist state." Other Romani demonstrators disagreed, saying:  "Not everyone is the same, only some are racists." 

The next speech, by Jakub Berko, called for mutual comprehension and understanding. "Today it doesn’t take a lot of artistry to get some money or a BMW. The art of today is to have a heart, to love and understand others. We are not doormats for you to kick around. Parents want their children to have some kind of a future… I live among white people and I don’t have any problem with them, but they should think about what they are doing," Berko said.

SRP Vice-Chair Čeněk Růžička then read the names of all Romani people who have been murdered because of their race in the Czech Republic. Speeches were also made by Štefan Gorol and Miroslav Kováč.

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"If you care about why our people are being murdered, if you care about your children’s future, come and let’s say ENOUGH together!" was the motto under which the demonstration was convened. For the time being, everything indicates that police and the town leadership are doing their best to suppress information about the murder.

Police are maintaining a strict silence about the case. There are strong suspicions that what happened was the racially motivated murder of a Romani man by a non-Romani man. This contrasts to the usual behavior of the police when Romani people are alleged to have committed crimes; in those cases police are very willing to inform the public of all the details. 

Romani residents of Teplice recently organized a meeting at which they planned to deliver a report to the Mayor of Teplice, Jaroslav Kuber. When they arrived for the meeting, they were first informed that the mayor was no longer in the office; then, after some time, the mayor left the building and drove away, refusing to speak with the surviving relatives of the murder victim.