Italy: Most want Gypsy camps disbanded, says report

Rome, 9 June (AKI) - Eight out of 10 Italians want Roma Gypsy camps dismantled, according to a survey released on Monday by a leading Italian research institute.

Demos-Coop, an institute that conducts social and political research, interviewed 1300 people across Italy in May. It found almost half of those surveyed were afraid of foreigners and wanted more police on the streets.

Hundreds of people protested in Rome on Sunday after local police dismantled a Roma Gypsy camp in the central area of Testaccio on Friday.

Roma Gypsies interviewed by Adnkronos International (AKI) before they were removed from Testaccio said they were being unfairly targeted by the government and being forced to move from their land.

"We are Italian citizens, we want to live like everyone else," one man told AKI. "We have suffered enough and we don't want our children to go through the same," said 'Mike', a Kalderash Roma.

The new Berlusconi government is committed to step up security and keep an electoral pledge to clamp down on illegal immigration and crime, while Rome's mayor has vowed to dismantle illegal Gypsy camps.

One Roma Gypsy, facing eviction on Friday, told AKI: "We want to live in a house like everyone else."

"We can afford rent, if they want us to pay, we can, we have no problem, but they keep promising us housing and nothing happens," said the woman.

According to the Roma interviewed and experts on the matter, Italians will not rent or sell land to the Roma Gypsies.

Police in riot gear waited at the entrance of the Testaccio camp on Friday and later escorted families in a convoy of caravans to Tor Vergata, on the eastern outskirts of Rome.

Many of the children attended school in Testaccio and families claimed it would be difficult for the children to attend if they were moved outside the city centre where they had lived for almost 20 years.

The dismantled camp had housed 150 people, including 50 children. Several told AKI they were all Italian citizens and had lived in the neighbourhood since 1989.

In an interview with Adnkronos International (AKI) Karen Bermann, an American professor from Iowa State University, spoke to AKI about the widespread discrimination and the unfair treatment the Roma Gypsies face.

Bermann said they had been moved from nearby Campo Boario, where they had lived legally for about 20 years, while they waited for better accommodation, promised by the city government.

"About two and a half years ago, city authorities went to them and told them they needed the space," Bermann told AKI.

"The city said they would have another place to live, and that it would be in the zone of Testaccio, because the children go to school there.

"But (they said) we will in no way evict you until a mutually satisfactory location has been found."

Bermann claims to have a copy of the letter sent by the city government.

"The promise was not kept, and when the day came, the city came with police and told them it was time to go," she told AKI.

Bermann, from Iowa State University, works with Laboratorio Architettura Nomade, studies the living conditions of Roma Gypsy settlements in Rome, as part of an EU-Roma project.

The Gypsies were relocated from Testaccio to an area of land belonging to the University of Rome - Tor Vergata.

On Monday, the university's chancellor said that the government must act quickly to resolve the situation of the Roma, so the area they occupy can be used by students.

"The university reserves the right to protect its interests and assets of whom it owns," said chancellor Alessandro Finazzi Agro.

Tens of thousands of Roma Gypsies have entered Italy in the past few years since Slovakia and Romania joined the European Union, and they are blamed by many Italians for a recent rise in crime rates.

Many Roma Gypsies come from Romania and of the 150,000 Roma gypsies who live in Italy, about 70,000 have Italian citizenship.

Music Review: Princes Amongst Men - Journeys With Gypsy Musicians

Written by Richard Marcus
Published May 17, 2008


It's now pretty much common knowledge that the people most of the world refers to as Gypsies originated in the northern part of India. When they began their western migration isn't exactly known, but it is known that from India they set out on a road that took them first to Egypt, then Turkey, and from there on into Europe. Even though they have spread throughout continental Europe as far west as the Iberian peninsula it is the East that most of us seem to identify as being where Gypsies live.

Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and the Balkan states that stretch from what was once Yugoslavia down to Greece are the primary countries associated with Gypsies. Roma, as they call themselves, have become part of their cultural fabric. This is especially true in Hungary and Romania, where the folk music of these countries is now irrevocably linked to Gypsy music. This hasn't stopped them from being treated like second class, or even third class citizens in the years since World War Two.

Despised by a great deal of the general population, and denigrated as thieves, only Jews have a longer history in Eastern Europe of being ostracized and persecuted and both have suffered horribly for it. Yet somehow they have managed to survive. From the persecutions of the Inquisition to the Death Camps of the Nazis, and the intolerance of repressive Communist regimes, the Gypsies have been marginalized almost since they set foot in Eastern Europe. Living within their own communities and following their own traditions, the only bridge that has been built between them and the rest of the world has been their music.

Garth Cartwright is from New Zealand but like so many other people fell in love with the romantic side of Gypsy life. It was that infatuation that brought him to the Balkans in 1991 to begin the travelling that would end up becoming the basis for his book Princes Amongst Men - Journeys With Gypsy Musicians.

The book recounted his meetings with the men and women who performed Gypsy music in the Balkans, specifically Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Macedonia. He chose those four countries for their "deep reservoirs of Gypsy music" and because their proximity allowed him to travel back and forth between the four countries with ease.

The book has been translated into a number of European languages, and is distributed by the Asphalt Tango record label in Germany, who specialize in the production and distribution of Gypsy music from Eastern Europe and Russia. So it's not surprising that they have just released a companion CD for the book.

Princes Amongst Men features the music of some of the best known performers from the four countries that Cartwright travelled through, performers that he spent time with and came to know personally.

While bands like Taraf de Haidouks and Fanfare Ciocarlia have achieved some name recognition in Western Europe and North America through touring and appearances in movies, (Taraf de Haidouks appeared alongside Johnny Depp in The Man Who Cried and he has become one of their biggest champions in the West), others on the disc won't be as well known to audiences outside of their own countries.

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Roma reaching Roma Gypsies key for 10-million plus worldwide

BUZAU, Romania (BP)—Forfeiting a starting position on a professional soccer team didn’t make sense to the parents of Mihail Stoica, a talented young Roma Gypsy believer from the mountains near Buzau, Romania.

For the Roma—an ostracized, poverty-stricken people group dispersed throughout the world—Stoica’s chance to rise above his status was a rare opportunity too good to pass up. Yet, the influence of the professional sports lifestyle came at too great a cost to stay in the game.

In a squatter village near Medgidia, Romania, a group of Roma children play near the railroad tracks. A Roma Bible study meets each week in this village.
“I was playing soccer, my personal idol,” Stoica said. “I didn’t think it was a sin to play soccer, but then I realized the price that came with that. So I left playing soccer and just followed Jesus Christ.”

In the summer of 2006, Stoica obeyed God by joining eight other young believers from across Romania to travel to a foreign city to tell others about Jesus Christ. These growing disciples are the result of the International Mission Board’s most developed work with the Roma.

The result of Roma reaching Roma is a key hope for other Gypsy work that spans throughout Europe, Northern Africa and the Middle East and, more recently, into South America.

The Roma people made their way to Europe in the 14th century after being evicted from their native India. As early as the 1500s, many were removed from parts of Europe and relocated to South America.

Others traveled into parts of Northern Africa and the Middle East by force or by choice.

Through these staggered diasporas, the Roma have put down roots among people who despise them not only for their dark skin, but also for their poverty, illiteracy and poor living conditions.

Wherever their travels take them, Gypsies tend to adopt the local language and beliefs while still maintaining their own. The Romani language, strong family relationships and lifestyle characteristics unite the 10 million-plus Roma worldwide.

Best known for their wagons, fortune telling, colorful clothing and parties, the Roma are a proud, passionate people who fight against the loss of their culture and family circles.

IMB workers and national partners reach out through literacy education, teaching job skills and using Bible storying to evangelize and disciple new Roma believers.

Today, although this scattered people group may vary in dialect or location, IMB workers are able to minister along family and cultural lines to bring the Roma to Christ and train them to reach their own people—to have their own leaders and missionaries.

“When the Roma begin to do their own evangelism, they begin to cross barriers so quickly,” said Jim Whitley, an IMB worker who recently transferred from Romania to work in South America among the Roma. “A real indigenous church-planting movement. ... [T]hat’s the ultimate goal.”

Music Review: Gabi Lunca - Gabi Lunca: Sounds From A Bygone Era - Vol.5

Written by Richard Marcus
Published March 23, 2008

When my mother's grandfather came to Canada in the 19th century from Bucharest, Romania, (according to family legend he knifed a Cossack during a pogrom and had to leave in a hurry) they chose Quebec because they were fluent in French. Bucharest, along with a couple other cities, considered itself the Paris of the Danube. It was common for educated Romanians to be bilingual, and even favour French over their native tongue as a sign of their cultural refinement.

While this influence waned in the twentieth century, especially after Romania was "protected" from the corrupting influences of the West by the Iron Curtain, French cultural influences could still be found in certain areas. At the same time, while Romania's gypsy population had suffered horrible deprivations in World War Two due to being one of the Nazi's targeted inferior races, the influence of that culture on popular music that was performed in clubs in the cities, or community events like weddings in the country, was undeniable.

While the music was undeniably gypsy, with the familiar sounds of the tzimbal, violin, and accordion leading the way, and the language being sung was Romanian, the first time I heard Gabi Lunca sing I was reminded of Edith Piaf and others of the great French chanteuse tradition. Perhaps it's because I wasn't paying any attention to the lyrics, as I don't speak any Romanian, but only listening to the sound of the singer's voice, that I made the connection. Whatever the reason, there was no denying to my ears the connection between the two singers.

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Romanian Gypsy Child Groom Jilts Bride Sparking Fight Involving 200 Villagers

February 28, 2008 1:28 p.m. EST

Linda Young - AHN Editor

Sinesti, Romania (AHN) - After the family of a 14-year-old groom canceled his wedding to a 12-year-old bride a fight broke out between the two families of Gypsies in Romania. That event caused about 200 people to fight each other with fists, knives swords and guns in the Romanian village of Sinesti, where 12 people were injured - but no one was killed.

Although the bridal couple was too young to marry even under Romania's relaxed age law for gypsies, the gypsies, or Roma, believe that children should marry when they reach puberty. In Romania it is legal for gypsy children to marry at age 16 with parental permission, while the normal legal age for marriage there is 18.

According to reports, the fight broke out on Wednesday because the bride's family was unhappy over the groom's decision to cancel the wedding and began fighting, the fighting soon spread to involve many villagers.

Before the country joined the European Union, a similar wedding cancellation in 2003 lead to a fight that sparked a debate about Roma weddings, but nothing changed.

About 500,000 people identify themselves as gypsies, but officials think the number is about double that, however, widespread prejudice reportedly causes people to conceal their identities.

Police are holding several people on various charges, including on man who was charged with attempted murder and destruction of property.

ROMANIANS WANT ROMAS TO BE GYPSIES AGAIN

19:25 Mon 10 Dec 2007 - Rene Beekman

Romanians were afraid to be confused with Romas and wanted representatives of this ethnic minority to use the name Gypsies, Romanian dialy România Liberă said on December 10.

The majority of Romanians was said to be of the opinion that the incidents in Italy, of which Romanian citizens were the victims, had been ignited by media publications in which the terms Romanian and Roma were confused. Which was why Romanians wanted a return to the classical name for Romas, Gypsies, Dnevnik daily said.

A young Roma with Romanian citizenship was arrested in Rome in October on the accusation that he had robbed and murdered a 47 year-old Italian. After the incident, the Italian parliament accepted a decree, which would make it easier to expel EU citizens in the name of national security. Prefectures in Italian cities immediately started expelling immigrants, most of them Romanians. Around the same time, Romanian citizens had been attacked in several incidents by Italians.

Public opinion research by Gallup Romania, ordered by the Romanian agency for juridical strategy, showed that, according to 76 per cent of Romanians, foreigners frequently confused Romanian and Roma. According to 52 per cent of those interviewed, use of the word Gypsy would be correct, despite the fact that the ethnic group itself preferred to be called Romas. However, 34 per cent did not agree with the use of the word Gypsy.

More than half of the Romanians who had family in Italy, have been in touch with them since the incidents. Listening to the stories of their relatives, 44 per cent said media represented the situation more dramatically than it really was.

Ninety-one per cent of those who were interviewed, said they have no intention to go to work in Italy in the next six months and 81 per cent said they did not want to go to work in any EU country, România Liberă said.
According to a spokesperson of the agency for juridical strategy, Alfred Boulai, these figures were not the result from incidents in Italy, but from the fact that "those who had reasons to leave, already did so".

The emigration wave of Romanian labour force to the EU also dropped because "the large difference in standards of living has decreased," Boulai said.

Poverty and exclusion blight Roma

By Oana Lungescu
BBC European affairs correspondent, Avrig, Romania

The European Commission is set for an unprecedented meeting with Roma (Gypsy) people from all over Europe.

It is a response to the challenge posed by what has become the biggest ethnic minority in the enlarged European Union.

Europe's roughly 10 million Roma remain the poorest of the poor, often migrating abroad in search of work.

The recent murder of an Italian woman sparked off a wave of hostility against the Roma and dozens of expulsions from Italy.

The main suspect is Nicolae Romulus Mailat, a migrant from Avrig, in central Romania.

Crowded shack

His younger brother Gheorghe showed me the family home - a tiny one-room wooden shack, where four people cook, eat and sleep in two beds propped up with bricks. Most of the light comes from the television.

"Bathroom, bedroom, kitchen, it's all here," Gheorghe explains. "We went to Italy to get enough money to build at least another room."

A tall 16-year-old who rarely smiles, Gheorghe has never been to school.

Several other brothers, he tells me, are in mental institutions or foster care, and one drowned while crossing a river on horseback.

Eight months ago, they sold the horse to pay for the bus tickets to Italy.

"It was better in Italy, it was easier to get by," says Gheorghe.

In Romania, he earns less than $10 (£4.90) a day picking corn or potatoes. In Italy he worked on building sites for $60 (£29) or more.

His mother used to collect scrap metal or beg.

After Nicolae's arrest, the family fled Italy.

But when they tried to return several weeks later, the Italian border police would not let them back in.

Italy setback

"They told us we were up to no good and we should stay in our country," Gheorghe complains.

The Mailat family home, if you can call it that, is at the edge of an illegal Roma settlement in Avrig, at the end of a dirt track where the mud comes up to your ankles and dogs gather in packs to keep visitors away.

The mayor, Gheorghe Fraticiu, says there are plans to install electricity and running water.

But until then, people carry water in buckets from the nearby stream, which is overflowing with rubbish.


These miserable living conditions have driven most of Avrig's 800 Roma abroad.

Ilie Linguraru, an elderly man with a bushy moustache, can barely earn a living by making traditional wicker brooms and baskets.

He and his wife had plans to travel to Italy, but now - like everybody around here - he is too scared to go.

One man, he says, has shamed all of Romania.

But not everyone is complaining.

Next door, Viorel Floca and three of his sons have slaughtered a pig in the middle of the road and are busy scrubbing it clean with hot water and a plastic brush, eagerly watched by several grandchildren - some barefoot despite the cold.

They may not look it, but these Roma are not poor.

Here to stay

The men work as shepherds, own quite a few horses and pigs, and Mr Floca would not even consider emigrating.

"I'm not leaving my country," he says proudly.

"Who wants to work, should work here in Romania. Why should I go abroad to steal or pull faces to beg? God has given me strength and health, so I'm staying here in Romania."

Only a short drive away from Avrig's gypsy shantytown is Sibiu, this year's European capital of culture and a thriving city.

As in the whole of Romania, alarm bells are ringing about a growing labour shortage.

One local factory has even hired about 100 metal workers from India.

Some 35-40% of Roma children don't have access to school
Magda Matache
Roma rights spokeswoman

Some employers argue that the Roma are either lazy or lack the right skills, while the Roma claim they are being discriminated against.

What is clear is that despite millions of dollars from the EU and a government integration strategy, change is slow to come.

Magda Matache, executive director for Romani Criss, a Roma human rights group, says at least 40% of the Roma population is unemployed.

"Although a lot of improvements have been made in the education system, the level of illiteracy in the Roma community is still high and 35-40% of Roma children don't have access to school," Ms Matache explains.

"Roma families will not send their children to school because they don't see the importance of it, as after they finish school they won't get a job, they won't get equal treatment."

Romani Criss has started a television campaign to change perceptions.

Now that Romania is in the EU, the advertisements say, the Roma should not remain on the margins.

But even the most optimistic think it will take a generation or more until people like Gheorghe Mailat can feel at home in their own country and the rest of Europe.

I Don’t Want To Be a Gypsy Anymore

By Ella Veres

Many Eastern European immigrants carry over to the USA their racism and homophobia. This is an account of two incidents that i had to go thru in NYC as a part-Gypsy writer.

A racist incident occurred at my show and I don't know what to do about it. I hope you can tell me a way of dealing with it.

This fall I produced off-off Broadway my dramatic collage, Three Eco-Friendly Self-Propelled Clowns, in an attempt to make American audiences aware of the homophobia and racism that still exist in Romania, my place of birth. My intention was and still is to take the show back there to try to improve the situation.

Some of the text is based on actual words said by real Romanian people, and it was traumatic just translating their words. See, they talk about turning Gypsy people into soap, and I am partly Gypsy. Gypsy people are not hippies that have a romantic life style. They are Europe’s people of color and face situations similar to those that African American here faced before the sixties.

I didn’t know I was Gypsy until I was in my mid-twenties, when I was a student in American Studies and I came home to work on my genealogical tree for an exam. We were in the kitchen and my mom whispered our grandpa, the blacksmith, was a Gypsy, but we shouldn’t dream of saying anything to our father! Can you imagine a life like that? When I gave birth to my son, the first thing she asked was not if the baby was a boy or a girl, but if his skin was dark!
I came to America not to pursue a life of prosperity but to lead a free, authentic life, yes, to celebrate who I am and make sure my son is proud of his heritage and doesn’t face discrimination. I came here believing what JFK in his 1963 Address on Civil Rights said, that is “…every American ought to have the right to be treated as he would wish to be treated, as one would wish his children to be treated.”

Based on the facts I describe below, I fear it is not so.

1. Last week I had the director of the Romanian Cultural Center, a non-profit put together by anti-communist immigrants in the '70s, disrupted the show during an anti-racism/pro-Gypsy monologue. The gentleman heckled the actress and then when I asked him to keep his comments for after the show, he left in a huff, disparaging the show and saying to his companion, but loud enough for my crew to overhear it, “Who the fuck gives a shit about the Gypsies?!”

Earlier, when I told this same gentleman over the phone (he had called to make reservations as a result of my mailing out the show press release) that I am myself part Gypsy, he remarked that I for sure was a temperamental woman and he was eager to meet me. Then over coffee he asked me to read his palm. I didn't tell him to fuck off with his stereotypical, racist remarks because I was taken by surprise. It was the first time that I’d made it publicly known to Romanians that I am part Gypsy, and because I respected his anti-communist activities and we were looking for a sponsor to go with the show to Romania, I didn’t want to make waves. But it offended me.

2. In an attempt to reconnect with the local Romanian arts community I attended a Romanian production at la Mama Theater sponsored by the Romanian Cultural Institute, a state agency. The play, about a lesbian nun who was killed during an exorcism in a monastery in Romania in 2005, was based on a book of interviews, so we got a realistic depiction of Romanian day-by-day life and speech. That is, from beginning to end we heard homophobic, racist/anti-Gypsy, and anti-Semitic discourse going on in Romanian on stage and translated accurately in supra-titles. The anti-Semitic remarks, however, were not translated. The play’s racism was not addressed either in the Q&A session or in the playbill. The homophobia was slightly touched upon, but all that we really heard was how fantastic the director was. The intention of the creator was not clear: Was he attempting to portray Romanian reality in order to make us react against it, or he was unaware of its homophobia and racism? If he was going for reaction, then why didn't he translate the anti-Semitic remarks too?

Could it be that he is well aware that in America, in NYC, the Jewish community would have been highly offended and likely to react negatively to his enterprise, whereas he knows that as Edward Said remarked, “Gypsies are the only group about which anything could be said without challenge or demurral”?

It hurts me that such shows get applauded in NYC, today. I left a racist society, and here it is again in my face, in my hometown.

It is sickening what's going on in Europe. People, journalists, even the Foreign Minister say incredibly racist things and they go unchecked. Examples, “Gypsy people are monkeys, scumbags, sub-humans, thieves, and born criminals.” “Too bad Hitler didn't exterminate them.” “We should relocate the Gypsies in the Sahara Desert.” This was the Romanian Foreign Minister during his visit to Egypt commenting on Roma immigrants being expelled from Italy.
Also, as I was reading the supra-tiles I realized it is so weird, all nation names are written in English with capital letter. But Gypsy is always lower case… Basic respect denied.

I would like to do something about it, but I don't know how and what. I hoped there was a mechanism that concerned citizens could use, but wherever I called in NYC, they told me we have freedom of speech here and everybody can say whatever they want, so the only thing I can do is raise awareness thru the media.

I got in touch with the Roma writer of the pro-tolerance/Gypsy monologue and he said this situation is explosive and he’d raise hell in Romania. Well, I am torn about raising hell. I don’t want my incidents to create more conflict, but to make all parties involved that racism is unacceptable. Also, I asked him if it was safe for my parents and sister who are unprotected back home. He said I shouldn't worry and nothing will happen to them. Well, I do worry. Gypsy villages do get burnt down in Romania!

I hope you advise me on what to do, or connect me with some organizations that might take interest in the issue.

On my part, I’m writing letters to all people I’ve mentioned above, asking them to explain and rectify their positions and to be aware of the impact their racism has.

This experience was depressing. Whoever’s idea it was for me to come out of the closet publicly as a Gypsy should go to hell. Were it up to me, I wouldn't want to be a Gypsy anymore.

People are so busy with their Christmas shopping, they don't hear you. Gypsies? Who? What? I think it’s everybody’s issue, but it seems that American people have forgotten their own past, both with its horrors and victories. Again, as JFK said, “This Nation was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds. It was founded on the principle that all men are created equal, and that the rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.”
Someone, can you help, please?

Happy holidays.

Ella Veres is a writer/performer/image maker living in NYC, hailing from Transylvania.

By Ella Veres http://www.ellaveres.com

Romanian Gypsy royalty embroiled in leadership struggle

Variously known as fortune tellers, musicians and beggars, the Gypsies in Europe are both romanticised and persecuted.

There are about eight million living in Europe, while Romania is home to the continent's biggest population - an estimated two million - and it is there that the Gypsy royalty live.

The Gypsy festival in the village of Costesti is a carnival of feasting and merriment. It is a time to indulge in some medieval-style decadence where the good life means a big belly and lots of bling.

The women wear long, colourful skirts, scarves over their hair, gold hoops in their ears and gold teeth in their mouths. The men flash their round midriffs, drink whisky straight from the bottle, admire their gold watches and rings and gnaw meat off the bone.

Every year, the massive party spreads across a village field in south-west Romania.

Each family seems to own a BMW or a Mercedes Benz. Their tables are bursting with food - roast meat piled on roast meat - and the music just does not stop.

It is a scene of fun and extravagance that belies the reality for most Gypsies.

Arguably Europe's most despised minority, they are more likely to live with disadvantage and discrimination. Even the term 'Gypsy' is a centuries-old misunderstanding, based on the notion that these travellers were from Egypt, hence the misnomer 'Gypsy'.

In fact, their ancestors came from northern India and the name they call themselves in their own language, 'Roma', is slowly taking hold.

Even though the Roma have been in Europe for centuries, they are still regarded as outsiders. In Romania, the Gypsy presence is strong - from the ghettos of the capital Bucharest, to the countryside villages.

And it is here in Romania that you will meet the gypsy elite, like Florin Cioaba. He is a politician, a businessman, a preacher - and wait there's more - because he is also His Royal Highness, the King of the Roma.

The King's palace, in the town of Sibiu, is a three-storey mansion with a throne room adorned with portraits of his late father. He was the first King Cioaba - a survivor of a Nazi concentration camp and a union official.

He crowned himself king in the early 1990s after the Communists were thrown out, and his son inherited the title.

King Cioaba usually wears a suit and tie, the trappings of a modern monarch, as he likes to call himself. On special occasions, he pulls out the good stuff - a gold crown, sceptre and medallion.

"As a king, I fight to defend their rights, because the Roma have to have a symbol to believe in - a man that they know is on their side and fights for them," King Cioaba said.


Vying for the throne

But the King of the Roma is not the only monarch in the neighbourhood.

Just around the corner, barely half a kilometre down the road, there is another ruler to meet, a man who claims to be the real leader of the Gypsies.

He is the self-declared Emperor of all Roma Everywhere - Iulian Radulescu.

A big man in his 70s, the Emperor walks slowly down the steps of his palace. He wears a gold robe and proudly boasts it was made in Turkey to looks just like one worn by the Pope.

Emperor Radulescu is King Cioaba's cousin and his biggest rival.

"Everybody you ask will say I am the greatest leader, that is what everybody will say," Emperor Radulescu said.

The Emperor says he has the noble blood to prove it - his father was a prominent Gypsy chieftain, too. He explains that in the late 90s, he was voted in by thousands of Gypsies unhappy with the rule of the King. So now he calls himself the Emperor.

Their long-running feud has descended to the level of personal slurs, with the Emperor accusing the King of "crowing like a rooster".

He says he thinks the King might be "sick in the head" and has told him to go check himself in to a mental hospital.

But King Cioaba stands firm in his position.

"Anybody can call himself the king of soccer or the king of beer, but I am descended from a family who led this nation and everybody knows that the real King is Cioaba," he said.


'Self-serving businessmen'

Both the King and the Emperor have a loyal following, but their conflict lies at the upper echelon of a society that lives on the fringes.

The Roma are at or near the bottom of just about every social indicator there is - employment, housing, education and general living standards.

At the village of Bratei, the Roma are traditional craftsmen, making copper pots and trays by hand. They once sold their wares from village to village.

But they have given up the travelling life to set up shop at home. Now they eke out a living day by day and dismiss the King and the Emperor as self-serving businessmen.

"He is King Cioaba and a king just for his type," one man said.

"He does things just for them. He says up front that he is on our side and he does something for us, but we get absolutely nothing."

The King and the Emperor at least agree on one thing - they both brush aside the complaints.

But they also both believe in the innate decency of their people.

The fortune told for the Roma has often been bleak, but these outsiders have also proved themselves to be survivors, enduring inequity and injustice to remain free in spirit, at least.

Roma camp goes up in smoke

THE Roma camp in Ballymun was set ablaze last week shortly after its 99 gypsy residents left for a charter flight back to Romania.

Our exclusive pictures show flames and smoke rising from the deserted camp just hours after the last remaining gypsies left following talks with gardai and representatives from Pavee Point.
Firefighters were called to tackle the blaze which was quickly brought under control.

Workers from Fingal County Council moved swiftly onto the camp after it was vacated and secured the site with steel fencing.

The Roma began to leave the camp on Tuesday but women and children continued begging at the roundabout up to last Wednesday morning.

By lunchtime on Wednesday the camp was deserted as the inhabitants prepared for their journey home.

Debris was left strewn around the site and uneaten food left on broken pieces of furniture. Damp mattresses and soggy armchairs highlighted the third world conditions the Roma were living in.
Empty cans of baby food and filthy nappies were scattered around the site and a wad of empty bank bags for coins left on a table.

The Roma had set up a camp on the roundabout at the busy junction just over two months ago.
Motorists complained that gypsy children were putting lives at risk as they dodged through early morning traffic to beg as adults watched from nearby bushes.

Just last month, Northside People reported how children – some as young as 10 - were weaving through busy traffic begging for cash from frustrated drivers.

The aggressive begging tactics shocked locals and the Roma were soon in the national media spotlight.

An alliance of 20 strong non-government organisations (NGOs) came together to highlight the appalling conditions in the camp. However, despite the squalid, makeshift, rain soaked conditions, the Roma claimed the camp was better than their living conditions back in Romania.

The Romanian embassy strongly denied the claims saying that unlike in Ireland, the gypsies were entitled to social benefits in their home country.

Pavee Point – who provided representation to the Roma community – defended their intervention in the crisis.

“We have every confidence in the role we have played over the past number of months in relation to the Roma and that we have not deviated from our remit,” a spokesperson said.
“Pavee Point never ever attempted to undermine or question the integrity of the Department of Justice or the courts to decide on the fate of the Roma on the M50.

“Pavee Point’s exclusive concern from the very start was the humanitarian crisis on the M50 roundabout. We were attempting to highlight the crisis and call on the State services to provide the basic necessities of life - accommodation, food, heating and clothing to allow the Roma live a dignified existence until the department or the courts decided on their fate.

“Pavee Point in its reporting obligations to its funding agencies has always emphasised the need for work with Roma. This has been reflected in our annual reports to funders, submissions and strategic plans. These are freely available for anyone who wishes to inspect them.

“We will of course cooperate with any request from the Government in their enquiries into this matter.”

The Spellbinding Music of Vardos

By Emma Hall
Special to the Epoch Times Jun 21, 2007


Vardos' Alana Hunt with her quick violin, Sofia Chapman plays the piano accordion and Indra Buraczewska on the bass at the Surrey Music Cafe in Box Hill. (Jarrod Hall)

Stories of cheese, milk, flies, horse taxis and mountains may not sound like the ideal night out, but it's merely the appetiser to the gypsy music that regularly sweeps the audience off their feet when Vardos work their magic. The trio play gypsy as well as traditional Hungarian and Romanian songs with a few Russian tunes thrown in.

Vardos energetically play a game of cat and mouse with their instruments while closely interacting with each other and the audience. Violinist Alana Hunt drives the trio with her violin; Sofia Chapman plays the piano accordion, while Indra Buraczewska – "the authentic European" – plays the bass.

Sofia Chapman explains why she is drawn to specialise in European music: "With the folk music and the gypsy music it just seems to be very lively and when you go and hang out in those communities you see everyone in the village just gets involved and so for weddings they'll go for days on end. It's just dancing and enjoying the music. It's exciting to get caught up in that too."

The band was formed in 1993 in Perth by Alana Hunt and since then Alana, along with Sofia, has made several trips to Europe to enhance their gypsy music training.

Watching them perform, it really doesn't matter where they're from; they've certainly captured the European gypsy music spirit excitement and humour.

During the show, Alana tells earthy stories of cheese, milk, flies, horses and mountains to introduce the origin of many songs. Some of Vardos's songs, particularly the Romanian ones, have slow melodies that are perfectly interwoven with each other. Other songs spin into a dizzying passion and dancing, and showcase the fantastic interaction between the three musicians who exchange meaningful looks.

One Romanian song about fairies at a stream had a lingering and mysterious quality to it that really made one feel as if walking in a deep forest.

"A lot of the people that we've learnt from do happen to be gypsies. That section of the gypsy community that plays the music, they just try and outdo everybody and play the best that they can and that's why whatever sort of music they play, gypsy musicians can excel at it," says Sofia Chapman.

Apart from playing to live audiences, Vardos have also branched out into film and television with a line-up of several short-film soundtracks to their name, including the ABC series "Seachange". More recently, in March this year, they were guests on The Footy Show playing their version of It's more than a Game.

They also featured in Ruth Cullen's documentary on artist Vali Myers, Painted Lady.

Vardos have toured in the US, Germany, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Switzerland, around Hungary and also played at the Famous Spiegeltent in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. In 2003 they were nominated for the BBC Radio3 World Music Awards.

It is rare that musicians who are not native to the cultures of Romania and Hungary can hold their own when playing the music to which locals claim ownership. But even the locals admit that gypsy music is best left to gypsies; the fact that Vardos dare to tread into such emotionally charged territory speaks volumes. A quote from a Romanian local newspaper illustrates their passion: "If in the beginning of our careers we thought that we couldn't live without music, now we are sure that we can't live without Romanian music."

Vardos will perform on Saturday June 16 at the Austrian Club in Heidelberg West in Melbourne and at the Czech House on June 17 in North Melbourne. In true gypsy fashion the trio perform at a whole range of events that also include weddings. To find out more and sample their spellbinding music visit www.vardos.com.au.


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Copyright 2000 - 2007 Epoch Times International

Gypsy Caravan: US Theatrical Release!

Gypsy Caravan (a.k.a.: When the Road Bends...tales of a Gypsy Caravan) launches its U.S. theatrical release in New York City this June! It will screen in over twenty US cities throughout the summer.

Don't miss this dazzling display of the musical world of the Roma, juxtaposed to the real world they live in! Check for screening dates and theaters in a town near you.

For more details contact Little Dust Productions at 212-228-7777 or info@littledust.com
-or-
Karen O'Hara at karenoh@aol.com or 520-326-0813.

More about the film...

This rich feature documentary by Jasmine Dellal (American Gypsy) and shot by Albert Maysles celebrates the luscious music of top international Gypsy performers and interweaves stirring looks at their home life and personal stories.

GYPSY CARAVAN is an uplifting and moving documentary which explores the real lives of the Roma as we travel to their homes in Macedonia, Romania, India and Spain. Meet their families and see what music brings to their lives – a link to an ancient culture, a common language, a traditional career – all of which is a stark and often painful contrast to life on the road.

The personal drama and stories of these characters are interwoven with their performances, reflecting the imagery and emotion of their music. We see love and death and tales of lives that are raw and rich. They make us laugh and cry and laugh again, allowing us to understand and expand on the riches of Romani music and history, and letting us enjoy knowing the people intimately.

GYPSY CARAVAN is currently screening at festivals in Seattle, London and Transilvania. It launched at Tribeca and garnered festival awards from San Francisco to Nashville and Vancouver, and from Korea to the Czech Republic.

Read about the outreach efforts of Gypsy Caravan and the lessons learned about bringing this film to Roma communities and new and unexpected audiences around the world.

• Gypsy Caravan Outreach Journal I by Lucy Kay

•Gypsy Caravan Outreach Journal II by Sara Nolan

•Salon.com summarized it well: "Let me read your thoughts: You're not much interested in Gypsy music, and the historical and cultural stuff might be pretty dry. That's what I thought too: Wrong and wrong. ...a cinematic and musical experience that's absolute magic."

Read the full article.

When the Road Bends...tales of a Gypsy Caravan released by Shadow Distribution

Starts
06/15/2007
Ends
08/11/2007

Issues
Economic Justice, Family & Society, Immigration, International, Politics/Government, Racial Justice, Poverty, Asia, Europe, Middle East, Romany

Homepage
www.GypsyCaravanMovie.com

Contact
info@littledust.com

Posted on June 15, 2007 in Film / Screening by Anayansi

Student helps children in Romania

Posted: Monday, Feb 19, 2007 - 11:31:32 am CST
By Hillary Wundrow
Daily News staff writer

One Beloit woman was so touched by the children of Romania, she has visited them five times.

Melany Williams, the daughter of Stephen and Joyce Williams, enjoys traveling to Romania to share her faith and warm scarves with the impoverished children.

A Beloit College sophomore studying education and international relations, Williams first traveled to Romania at age 17 for a short-term mission trip. She was supposed to go to South Korea, but the trip was canceled because of the SARS outbreak.

“It was kind of a fluke,” Williams said. “I got there (to Romania) and fell in love with the country that I had hardly heard of before.”

During the first trip she traveled with Word of Life, an international Christian organization. Once in Romania, she spent her time in orphanages, doing evangelism on the streets and joining in drama and choir performances.

“It was something that took me out of my comfort zone, but I enjoyed it,” Williams said.

Although it took a while to warm up Romanians, the people were hospitable. When she got to know them better, they opened their hearts and took her in.

“They aren't as open as Americans on the first meeting, but once you have a connection, they are very warm and loving people and very committed to family, friends and relationships,” Williams said.

What really struck her was the many children in orphanages and on the streets.

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