Roma To Protest Against Plan To Bulldoze Miskolc Slums

(MTI) – Members of the Roma community in the north-eastern Hungarian city of Miskolc plan to hold a demonstration on June 25 in protest against a recent local council decree on the elimination of slums on the outskirts of the city, which “discriminates” against their community, a local Roma leader said on Thursday.

Gabor Varadi, president of the Roma National Self Government of Miskolc, told a press conference that they had asked Prime Minister Viktor Orban in an open letter “to help resolve the mounting crisis.”

The city council approved a ruling Fidesz-KDNP-sponsored decree on dismantling “ghettos and slums” in Miskolc which aims to make the city safer and more liveable.

Under the decree, the city council offers tenants of buildings regarded unsuitable for human habitation 1.5-2 million forints (EUR 4,900-6,500) to help them purchase better homes outside the city.

The open letter says that “the text of the decree avoids labelling the Roma collectively, but in statements by local politicians the Roma are made to appear as potential threat and a security risk.”

The Roma community sees “a real threat” in reactions triggered by the decree, namely that several other towns and cities in the area of Borsod County have made strong statements rejecting the affected inhabitants of Miskolc.

Varadi said they were asking for the prime minister’s intervention to ensure that the city council seeks to resolve the issue in cooperation with the Roma and not against them.

The demonstration is planned to be held in front of the city council on Wednesday afternoon, he said.

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters