Abstract
Our chapter draws attention to the events of the winter of 2003/2004 in Slovakia when a wave of social unrest circulated in the Romani communities within the country. It was a reaction to the cuts in social benefits provision by the then prevailingly neoliberal government. The government’s response — dramatic in its scope for a post-socialist ‘democratic’ regime in Europe — was to mobilize the army for the first time since the revolution in November 1989. We consider these events as the first grassroots mobilization of Roma against the effects of free market capitalism and neoliberal ‘reforms’ in Slovakia. Romani people living in segregated communities are the most excluded population group in Slovakia and their struggle shares both ethnic and social components. Therefore, we would wish that the events of the Slovakian ‘winter of discontent’ are not lost. To the country, it is hoped that our exploratory contribution here would inspire further research on these events.
Parents don’t let their children go to school because they can’t afford to pay the bus fare. The ones with decent shoes walk to school. Although hungry children are sent to school because their parents don’t want to lose family benefit. I witnessed how a 7-year-old girl collapsed from hunger […] no after-school activities are possible. Children are hungry […] these are families with three or four children, and they do not even belong to the most ‘backward’ families.
Nataša Bažová, Romani teaching assistant, Roma Press Agency (2004)
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Media sources
Korzár, 5 March 2004, ‘Parlament Rómov odvolal blokádu dial’nic a hranicnych priechodov’ (The Romani Parliament called off the blockade of highways and border crossings).
Pravda, 1 March 2004, ‘Vláda Romom neustúpi, tί chcú blokova dial’nice’ (The Government will make no concessions to Roma, they want to block the highways).
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Roma Press Agency, 26 February 2004, ‘Opatrenia vlády SR považuje Patkólo za nedostatočné’ (Patkolo considers the governmental measures as insufficient).
Roma Press Agency, 9 March 2004, ‘Medzinárodné organizácie pracujú na torn, aby sa u nebohého Pukyho previedla druhá pitva’ (International organizations seek for another forensic expertise of the dead Puky).
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© 2009 Martin Marušák and Leo Singer
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Marušák, M., Singer, L. (2009). Social Unrest in Slovakia 2004: Romani Reaction to Neoliberal ‘Reforms’. In: Sigona, N., Trehan, N. (eds) Romani Politics in Contemporary Europe. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230281165_9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230281165_9
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