Roma targeted in Slovak massacre?
On Sept. 2, Slovakia commemorated the victims of a massacre in the Devínska Nová Ves quarter of Bratislava three days earlier with an official day of mourning, following a decision at an extraordinary cabinet session. The cabinet also approved compensation for relatives of the victims. In the attack, a 48-year-old attacker shot seven people and injured 15 others, including a Czech citizen, before committing suicide after evidently being fatally shot by a police bullet. The targeted family was of mixed ethnic Slovak and Roma composition, leading widespread suspicion of a racist motive in the attack. (Romea.cz, Sept. 2; Romea.cz, Sept. 1; Radio Slovakia International, Aug. 31 )
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Slovakia gets a Brown v. Board of Education
Public Radio International reports Dec. 18 in how schools in Slovakia are faring a year after a court struck down the practice of segregation practiced in most localities, with separate and unequal classrooms for Roma children. The answer is: things remain tense despite the progress towards de-segregation.