New flag on Budapest’s City Hall: do you recognize it?
Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony on Saturday said his administration had displayed the Romani flag on the facade of City Hall in honour of International Romani Day.
International Romani Day raises awareness of both the Roma community’s rich culture and difficult social situation, Karácsony said on Facebook. “Budapest belongs to everyone, which means it is also home to all of our Roma compatriots,” the mayor said, adding that “unfortunately, many of them live in deep poverty.” “Our job is to help them break out of it and make sure they do not suffer any discrimination at job interviews, when renting a flat or on the tram,” Karácsony said. “The government has a job to do, the city has a job to do and so does everyone”, MTI wrote.
“The advancement of our Roma compatriots is in our shared interest,” he said. Prejudices are always based on ignorance, the mayor said, underlining the importance of being open to learning about the Roma community’s history, culture and values. The Budapest city council devotes special attention to helping the city’s Roma community, Karácsony said, noting that the Romano Kher Roma cultural centre will soon move to a new refurbished location. He also highlighted a mentoring scheme launched by the city council aimed at helping young Roma people pursue a career in civil service and the Romaversitas Foundation’s leadership training programme.
Opposition parties mark International Romani Day
The opposition Democratic Coalition (DK) and LMP parties on Saturday marked International Romani Day, hailing Roma culture and calling for respect for the community. Roma culture has been making Hungarian and European cultures, languages and history more diverse for centuries, DK said in a statement, calling it a “universal and inalienable component of Hungarian and European culture”. DK called for making room for the Roma community to express its dual identity with pride.
“We cannot build a welcoming society, we cannot tear down institutionalised anti-Roma sentiment without mutually respecting each other, which requires that we view the Roma people as assets and a part of our society and social heritage,” the party said. LMP’s parliamentary group said all ethnic groups were equal parts of the Hungarian nation, emphasising that the identity of the Roma community made Hungary stronger and richer. The government has a duty to do everything in its power to give the Roma people a chance to preserve their culture and to ensure equality for the community in all aspects of life, they said in a statement. International Romani Day “reminds us that we must accept each other’s differences and respect dignity in every single person, because everyone is equally valuable and important”, LMP said.
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