Case of Stanislav Tomáš discussed during plenary session of the European Parliament

Yesterday's plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg included a debate about police brutality against Romani people, scheduled to begin after 17:00 CET and to last approximately half an hour, to discuss the case of Stanislav Tomáš, who died after police intervened against him at the close of June in Teplice, Czech Republic. News server Romea.cz carried the live feed of the debate, during which Romani MEPs Romeo Franz of Germany (Greens) and Peter Pollák of Slovakia (OLANO) spoke.
"Finally, after more than three months of persuading people, after many phone calls, reports, articles and protests, we have managed to combine our forces to get the case of Stanislav Tomáš, the young Romani man in the Czech Republic who died after two officers kneeled on his back and neck as he was prone on the ground, included on the program of the plenary session in the European Parliament," Franz posted to Facebook at the start of November. On 19 June 2021, officers used force to handcuff Mr Tomáš and he passed away later that day.
Bystander video of the arrest was shared through social media, saved and published by news server Romea.cz, and broadly criticized by both Czech and international activists and organizations, sparking protests all over Europe. The footage shows a police officer kneeling on Mr Tomáš's neck area in a way that is reminiscent of the arrest during which a police officer in the USA murdered a Black man, George Floyd, in May 2020.
At the close of October, the Czech Police published a brief statement referencing the final autopsy report on Mr Tomáš, which they say proves there was no association between how the officers dealt with Mr Tomáš physically and his subsequent death. The lawyer for the family of Mr Tomáš has cast doubt on the findings of the expert assessments referenced by the police, and the European Roma Rights Centre responded by saying that such rhetoric from police is customary in such cases and that they will continue to pursue justice in this case through their support for the family's legal representation.
RECORDING OF THE DEBATE
Don't miss:
- European Parliament will discuss police brutality against Romani people in EU, on the basis of Czech case
- Czech Police: Autopsy clears us in death of Stanislav Tomáš, attorney for his family doubts its findings, ERRC says they will continue to pursue justice despite police rhetoric
- LIVE BROADCAST TODAY: Discussion of the case of the death of Stanislav Tomáš, Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic
- Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe rapporteur: Instead of aiding Romani people during COVID-19, some European politicians are promoting antigypsyism
- European Parliamentary delegation plans to visit Romani settlements in Slovakia
- Stano Daniel: Czecho-Slovak perspectives on elections to the European Parliament
- VIDEO: Roma Week in the European Parliament continues with a conference about antigypsyism
- European Parliament holds fourth annual Roma Week, news server Romea.cz to broadcast live from Brussels
- European Parliament: Shouting matches over Italian "census" of Roma - Járóka finds it reasonable, Post calls for a halt
- Emiliya Dancheva: Can we trust the European Parliament if its members are deaf and blind to anti-Gypsyism in Bulgaria?
- Roma Week at the European Parliament: 40 young Roma discuss antigypsyism with MEPs
- Lívia Járóka becomes first ever Romani Vice-President of the European Parliament
- European Parliament: Roma in the EU face antigypsyism and everyday discrimination that must stop
- Czech MEP responds to antigypsyism at the European Parliament: Roma are underrepresented and positive examples should be highlighted
- VIDEO: Discussion of International Romani Day at the European Parliament
- Hungarian Roma activist, former member of European Parliament emigrates to Canada
- European Parliament backs resolution for strategy on Roma inclusion
- European Parliament wants more pressure on Canada over visas for Czech citizens
Related articles:
- Romania: 100 Roma demonstrate in Bucharest in front of Russian Embassy with mockup of the tank that Romani Ukrainians captured from the occupiers
- Czech capital's "tent city" receives first Romani refugees from Ukraine
- Czech university distances itself from e-mail alleging increased security needed for dorm because of refugees from Ukraine
- Czech Interior Minister wants stricter checks on the passports held by refugees and changes to the aid offered them
- Volunteer aiding refugees from Ukraine in Czech Republic: Institutionalized racism definitively condemns Romani people to a hopeless fate
- Czech detention facility housing 130+ refugees from Ukraine, half of them are Romani
- Prague asks the Czech state for aid with accommodation of groups of Romani refugees from Ukraine, mayor says the state's effort has failed so far
- Mayor of Czech Republic's second city alleges Romani refugees sleeping in the train station can access benefits in other countries, then admits she can't prove it
- Czech Deputy Public Defender of Rights: Police ignored whether the man they restrained was even alive, ambulance called too late
- Bulgarian MEP fined for giving Nazi salute at the EP, Czech MEP calls it a mild warning
- Czech state acknowledges problem with finding accommodation for Romani Ukrainian refugees, Mayor of Prague calls for all free capacities to be provided
- In Czech Republic, the Hungarian passports held by some Romani refugees from Ukraine have not proved to be an advantage