Abolishing the Borders from Below

Our Roma community in Rakovice was settled in 1981. Most of us came from Medakovic a suburb of Beograd, were we had our own houses. It was a decision of the post-Tito government that there should be build roads. We were moved by force of the police, they took us in trucks and left us here. So forceful, like Nazis.

Here they gave us first containers and said it would be just temporary, this was 23 years ago. The most of us are not educated. So we have lousy jobs. What we do is collecting from containers. What we find: metals, car boards etc. we sell to the factories. Most of us would like to do an education process, but we have to care to have jobs.

Our community was growing bigger and bigger, but we still have only the containers the city gave us long ago. We have 20 m for one family, no matter if Familly is of 20 persons or 5. In the Roma community young people marry early because the safety lies in the family. Its something sacred to us. We are 76 families, about 500 people and over two-thirds are kids or young.

Our biggest problem is with the hygie ne. We have a work that is not clean. The garbage pit of our community is near the entrance. During the day both parents have to go to work, the older children have to look after the small children, but lots of times when the kids are on their own they are on the streets dont know what to do and at the deponie they are sometimes playing in the garbage.

The most of our lives is working, working, working. Our culture is not based on hygiene. So if somebody of us feels that there is something wrong, they would just continue. When they look to a doktor they are usually totally wasted and its much too late. Our average life time is 60. In the last three years there have been 10 people of us dying at the age of 30 - 45. Cancer is one of the main reasons of death. We had children infected by hepatitis and then when one gets sick after a time the others get sick.

For example: its in the cities responsibility to give and empty the trash containers. A thousand times i took a phoneline to the representatives but they just tell they have no resources for that. One time they even asked 200 Euro for a trash container. On a state level we have the rights than all others have, too: free movement etc.. But in praxis its nothing worth, cause of the corruption all money is swallowed up and also they just dont want to help. For example, if we apply for a regular job on the telephone everything is allright, but when we come they say they have already found somebody else for it. And they look at us as if we were not like a human being.

On a governmental level they dont give a fuck about the Roma. Of course people evrywhere are good and bad. But for examle the Nationalists formed organized groups to beat us up. And from time to time they do an organized action! The highest point of violence was in 1996 when they killed one Roma guy. Fourteen months ago one boy got an iron stick in the stomach in an attack by three others.

There was this Grovosy action where they were putting plakats in the streets "Serbia for Serbs, out with Roma" and they wanted to attack the community of Cemon. We informed the public and got people to help us and fortunately it was raining. They did not show up or try it again. In the city of Nis there have been grafities of nationalists who forbid the Roma kids to go to school ...

Our Roma village is just one of like 50. Much of the Roma communities have even worse conditions. Some have no water, no houses so they live in selfmade huts on citydumpsters. There is lots of those cases. Here we have a better position, but not good enough. We are on paper not discriminated and the media does all to create in the public the opinion that we have the same conditions like others. But its not true, the reality is different.

But thats not all. Most of us worked in Germany and other western countries. Of course lots got returned, but others are still there and work for us here also. Maybe people work there in doubleshifts, they come back to build a house and also give money here. We as Roma got to make better conditions, but the main problem is that most of us are not politically aware simply because there is no time for it.

I am for example in the Roma National Theater in Belgrad. So last year was a Roma musicfestival in Berlin, just Roma. We were invited and were the only theater there. After that we were travelling.

As a representative of our Roma community i was working to get a cooperation on a state level. But i quit this. Everywhere i was to get some understanding and support they chased me away out of the office. Now four months ago we formed a group, some kind of NGO to find and make contacts. Mainly to make the Roma to help themselves, as Roma to go for better conditions. We need to see some light, cause its now the 21st century.

Now its in process to make some money for a Roma Cultural Center. We are starting from Zero. The first things to do are: to make basic living conditions and to make the Roma aware of themselves and in time develop some strategy. It should be a training center. In the first period we gather people to do things. We are not accepted by the serb society, so if we are working in the Roma Center we might be able to educate ourselves or if a non-Roma want to help they can come too. In this training center we could build a second chance on getting abilities. For example if we have computer we can learn to work with this. At least the next generation should get an education process. We have to have some external contact, now we are looking for NGOs to help us with the projekt and accomodation.

So that we can communicate with the world. The Roma would appreciate every solidarity or support. And in the end help also back.

For respond, international solidarity groups or in dividuals - just write to: romano-bg@trust-me.com, the giver of the interview will be happy to get in contact with You.