Czech Republic: Romani students send video message for International Romani Day

During the fifth BARUVAS meeting at the end of March in Týnec nad Sázavou, Czech Republic, 22 students in different areas of secondary education filmed a video with a strong message. The clip was published by news server Romea.cz on the occasion of International Romani Day (8 April).

"We are Roma, we live in the Czech Republic and this is our home. We are studying, we have vision, we have aims, and we want to be successful," the Romani students say in the video.

The students were aided in their creation of the strong message by a team from the ROMEA organization and ROMEA TV together with Richard Samko, a moderator for Czech Television who collaborates with Romea.cz's editors. The BARUVAS ("We Are Growing") meetings of Romani students are implemented regularly during the course of the year by ROMEA as part of its Romani Scholarship Program.

Currently 81 students of secondary and higher technical colleges are receiving scholarships through the program. Dozens of other students are receiving tutoring, mentoring, or the opportunity to complete various courses and internships thanks to the program.

The students themselves perform volunteer activities in various facilities and organizations as part of the program. The concept behind the regular meetings of Romani students is to support selected participants with their education, self-development, and intensifying their knowledge, experience and contacts to use both in their personal and their professional lives.