News (134)
Novosti na engleskom jeziku.
Roma women association „Bolja buducnost" Tuzla participated in 6th fair of the national minorities in Doboj, during the period 21-22 April 2018. The fair gathered many national minorities and first award for the best decorated stand was awarded to our association.
In National Assembly of Republic of Srpska we marked the World Roma day
Written by Novosti
The Roma women network “USPJEH” and OSCE Mission in Bosnian and Herzegovina organized a ceremony on World Roma day in National Assembly of Republic of Srpska. This event was part of regional project “For Active inclusion and rights of Roma women in western Balkan II” supported by Austrian Development Agency through CARE International, Balkans.
Attendees had the opportunity to learn more about the work of Roma women's network and activities during month of Roma women activism and the importance of marking the World Roma day as the largest national minority in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The World Roma Day, April 8, is celebrated in honor of the First Roma Congress held on April 8, 1971 in London, considered one of the most important dates in Roma history. The congress was attended by Roma representatives from fourteen countries of the world.
One of the most important decisions was the acceptance of the Roman flag and the official anthem. The flag in the lower part consists of a green color symbolizing the earth (grass), and in the upper part of the blue color symbolizing the sky. The red wheel represents Roma travel and migration. The official Roman anthem is based on the old roman song "Đelem, Đelem" (I'm going, I'm going).
The first congress of Roma resulted in the proclamation of the official Roma language - Romani chiba, as well as the official acceptance of the name Roma, which in Roma language means man. The name "Roma" was chosen to avoid the name "Gypsy" which had a negative meaning.
B & H Federation Parliament: Reception at Vice President Svancer : to Increase the Visibility of Roma Women
Written by Novosti
Within the regional campaign, a month of Roma women's activism "Roma women rights are human rights" implemented within the regional project "For Active Inclusion and Rights of Romani women in Western Balkans II" financially supported by the Austrian Development Agency through CARE International, Balkans: Representatives of Roma Women's Organizations ; The Association of Roma Women of the "Bolja buducnost" Tuzla, the Youth Roma Initiative "Budi mi prijatelj" from Visoko, the Roma women association "Djerdan" from Bugojno and CARE International Balkans were welcomed by Vice President of the House of Representatives of the Federation B&H Parliament, Mrs. Vesna Svancer.
The conversation between the vice-president and representatives of Roma women's organizations was conducted to improve the visibility of Roma women because their status is currently on the margins of society.
They also talked about all other issues in education, health and other issues that affect this population.
They have jointly agreed on a thematic session where women will be represented Roma women as equally active in the community they belong to, demonstrating their knowledge, abilities, values and thus overcoming the prejudices that accompany Roma women.
The 21st of March is International Day Against Racism, the day that the United Nations established in 1966. This day marks the memory of the events that took place on March 21, 1960, when police in Sarpubli, South Africa, opened fire and killed 69 people who quietly protested the apartheid law on documents.
In history, racism also had an institutional form, it was created in mixed communities where racial segregation and racial discrimination were carried out. The most famous examples are some of the parts of the United States and South Africa.
Many movements, organizations, and individuals are involved in the fight against racism, so during time, political orientations against racism have evolved. The League of Nations is one of the international organizations dealing with many of the burning issues of society and was the first organization to propose a program to eliminate racism.
In modern society, racism is considered incompatible with the principles of liberal democracy. That's why institutional racism is almost completely rejected, but that does not mean that racist beliefs are still not present in the world. That is why every year we remind ourselves that every human being needs and must live "in a land where people will not be judged on the basis of skin color, but on the basis of their character."
This year, as part of the regional project "Active inclusion and rights of Roma women in Western Balkans II", supported by the Austrian Development Agency through CARE International Balkans, we join the regional campaign of a month of female Roma activism and in Tuzla on Korzo (City Pharmacy) organized street action symbolically on International Day Against Racism
Meeting at the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Written by Novosti
Within the framework of the regional campaign The Month Roma Women’s Activism entitled "Roma women rights are Human Rights" with the support of the Austrian Development Agency through CARE International Balkans, we organized a meeting at the Parliament Assembly B & H with members of the Council of National Minorities and the Joint Human Rights Commission.
On this meeting we discuss about political participation of Roma women and their participation in work od Council of national minority. They discussed the modalities of cooperation between associations of national minorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina with a view to their better coordination with the Council of National Minorities.
In addition to the difficulties in political participation, during the meetings it was pointed out that many Roma settlements in B&H are illegally built, which causes additional problems regarding the registration of residence because, according to the legal regulation in force, for the realization of certain rights all persons in B&H must have proof of ownership, co-ownership or possession of the apartment, house or other housing facility to get personal document (ID).
Members of the Joint Commission for Human Rights PSB&H have expressed support for solving the problems encountered by the associations of national minorities in B&H, and point out that a thematic session should be organized in the forthcoming period, which will discuss the rights of the Roma population and the position of Roma women in B&H.
The meeting was held during the month of women's Roma activism implemented in the framework of the regional project "For Active Inclusion and Rights of Roma Women in Western Balkans II" supported by the Austrian Development Agency through CARE International Balkans.
Within the month of Roma Women's Activism, a workshop was held in the Lukavac Primary School i, where the teachers of this school and Roma parents participated. The theme of the workshop is human rights with a focus on women's rights. The workshop is implemented within the project "For the active inclusion and the rights of Roma women in the Western Balkans II" supported by the Austrian Development Agency through CARE International Balkans.
The Gender Equality Commission of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina in cooperation with the Agency for Gender Equality of B&H, Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees and the Sarajevo Open Center, with the support of the OSCE Mission in B&H, on the occasion of marking the Week of Gender Equality, held thematic session titled "Towards the Elections 2018".
At the thematic session, they discussed the activities that domestic institutions and non-governmental and international organizations undertake in order to establish gender equality in public and political life as well as expectations regarding this issue from the upcoming electoral process.
Campaign A Month of Roma Women's Activism "I Have the Right to Have Rights"
Written by Novosti
In the world, women are still in a discriminatory position when it comes to employment, insufficient involvement in political decision-making and governance in government institutions, and data from relevant institutions show that every other woman has experienced some form of violence.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is a major part of this statistic, and when we talk about marginalized groups of women, Roma women are in a much worse position compared to other. Roma women are exposed to multiple discrimination, based on their ethnicity, based on gender and on the basis of their social background or status. For this reason, the Roma Women's Network "USPJEH" has launched the campaign entitled "I have the right to have rights" which is implementing for seven years.
The campaign was created with the aim of highlighting the position of women with special emphasis on Roma women in B&H and the importance of their involvement in the public and political life of our country through a series of activities to be implemented throught this month. In the period from March 8, International Women's Day to April 8, World Roma Day 2018, members of the Network organize a series of activities that include street actions, meetings with representatives of local institutions and community events.
On the International Women's Day (March 8), in town squares in Tuzla, Visoko, Kakanj, Prnjavor and Bijeljina has officially launched campagin with street actions where volunteers shared promotional materials and talked with citizens about the status of Roma women in B&H.
The messages that they want to send this year's campaign are that the Roma women have the right to life without violence, the right to political participation; the right to life without discrimination; the right to life without poverty.
Delegation of the EU / Office of the EU Special Representative in B&H, in cooperation with the Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees of B&H on 31 January 2018 in Sarajevo organized a seminar on Roma Inclusion.
The seminar is an opportunity to consider the progress made with regard to the implementation of agreed operational conclusions from the last Roma seminar held in June 2015 as well as to discuss concrete measures to improve Roma inclusion in B&H.
The discussion was focused on cross-sectoral issues and entry into the registry, housing, education, employment, social affairs and health care. Active participation on this seminar had the representative of the Roma women association „Bolja buducnost“ and and the representatives of the Roma women network "Uspjeh“.
The seminar was co-chaired by the Roma Affairs Adviser at the DG Environment and Sustainable Development Negotiations DG (DG NEAR), Martha Garcia Fidalgo, and the BH Minister for Human Rights and Refugees Semiha Borovac.
Ambassador Lars-Gunnar Wigemark EU Special Representative in B&H, Chairman of the Roma Committee at the Council of Ministers of B&H and head of the project team for Roma 2020 integration at the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) Orhan Husein are in the introductory part of seminar addressed to the participants.
During the period from 13-14 December, Jahorina, organized by UN WOMEN, held a meeting of the Civil Society Advisory Group. Representatives of UN WOMEN have pointed out that it is their pleasure to work with long-standing activists and civil society leaders and to develop ideas and approaches to improving gender equality in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Civil society is one of UN Women’s most important constituencies - providing a dynamic source for ideas and policy perspectives, partnerships and support for the organization - which can assist UN Women in achieving its strategic goals. Closely linked is the vital role played by civil society in advancing shared objectives in promoting women’s rights, gender equality and the empowerment of women.
Objectives
UN Women CSAG in BiH will be a consultative forum for regular dialogue between UN Women and civil society in BiH. The goals for the group are:
• To enable UN Women to consult with civil society and draw upon the rich and diverse expertise, experience, outreach and networks, perspective and knowledge that civil society can offer.
• To foster dialogue and engagement, with a view to advancing goals of gender equality and women’s empowerment.
• To serve as a consultative forum of ideas and strategies for UN Women’s programming, including identification of the most pertinent and emerging gender equality issues in the region
More...
Build a better life
In Travnik municipality in which they live the Roma population there are a large number of young people who consume drugs. The young Roma Edmir Bektic, Esmeralda Osmanovic and Safeta Osmanovic recognized this problem in Travnik and implemented 3 activist initiatives under the following names:
- Say NO to drugs
- The failure to reach life goals- Raising awareness of elementary school pupils in Travnik
- Awaken the consciousness of young people
With these initiatives, young people want to awaken the awareness of young people, as a large number of young Roma and Roma women who are already exposed to abuses of narcotic drugs, such as cigarettes, drugs, alcohol.
By implementing the initiatives of Edmir, Safet and Esmeralda, they emphasized that they wanted young people to engage in various sports activities to develop healthy lifestyles and also believe that education is very important and they organized a workshop in Travnik with their parents and discussed with them about the importance of education. Also included in the initiative were packages for small children who attended the workshops, besides Edmir, Safet and Esmeralda, they provided t-shirts for all participants with a clear message "BUILD A Better Life"
In the area of Donji Vakuf municipality live very many young people who are not familiar with the dangers of abuse of narcotics. With this involvement young Roma Adna Jusić and Aldina Jusić implemented initiatives titled "Education Against Narcotics" and "Problem of Schooling of Roma Children".
Adna and Aldina want to raise awareness of parents whose children attend primary and secondary school and who are not familiar with the problem of substance abuse. Initiatives are also very important because of the large number of Roma children whose parents do not have enough resources to afford basic schooling resources to their children.
Aldina and Adna believe that it is important to address parents about this problem so that their children do not go wrong and to have a healthier and better life also emphasize that it is very important for children to finish their education. However, children are leaving education for poverty often happens that their books carried in plastic bags and other kids make fun of them. Aldina and Adna recognized this problem and provided for the (10) children's school supplies that will so much help the children in further education.
The initiatives were funded under the YOUNG ROMA FOR RIGHTS AND INCLUSION project which is financially supported by the European Union and implemented by CARE International in the Balkans in cooperation with the partner organizations of RWA "Better Future"Tuzla and Otaharin Bijeljina.
Street action on the occasion of International Human Rights Day
Written by Novosti
Every fourth woman in Bosnia and Herzegovina is a victim of some form of violence, including sexual violence. The last report of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights points to the widespread distribution of violence against adult women.
The Association of Roma Women "Better Future" from Tuzla, along with the Women's Roma Success Network, participates in the implementation of the global campaign "16 Days of Activism Against Violence against Women", within which numerous activities have been organized.
"We had street actions, theater forums, performances, including topics of gender equality such as early marriage, human and women's rights. Also included are topics in the area of action plans, namely housing, employment, health care and education, "said Indira Bajramović, president of the Association"Bajramovic points out that many women do not recognize any form of violence other than physical, and therefore do not seek help on time. Also, from the "Better Future" Association, there is a need to work on raising awareness of this issue on a daily basis, not just within this campaign. "How to prevent violence, perhaps raising awareness in communities, not only with our members but with women in general", Bajramovic points out, adding that it is necessary to work on types of violence, as well as with institutions dealing with issues of prevention of violence against children and women.
The "16 Days of Activism" campaign began on November 25 at the International Day of Combating Violence against Women and includes several important international dates that link women, violence and human rights to the International Day of Human Rights until December 10th.
The ongoing campaign activity of 16 days of activism implemented this year in the framework of the regional project "Active inclusion and rights of Roma women in the Western Balkans II" supported by the Austrian Development Agency through CARE International Balkans was held in Tuzla as a street action on the occasion of the 10th International Human Rights Day rights.
International Day for the Suppression of Slavery - December 2
Written by Novosti
For 30 years, the second December is marked as the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery in the memory of the Convention on combating human trafficking and the exploitation of the prostitution of others by the United Nations adopted in 1949.
Today we are together with our volunteers mark 2 December - International Day for the abolition of slavery on the city square in Tuzla