13 June: Remembering the expulsion of the Roma from Kosovo 25 years ago
From 13 June 1999, the Roma were systematically expelled from Kosovo after having lived there for more than 600 years. Today, only a small minority of Kosovar Roma still live in the country, with more than 80 per cent living in the diaspora, scattered across Europe and beyond.
After the Kosovo war and the withdrawal of the Yugoslav army, the majority population of Kosovo began to expel the Roma from their homes and settlements. This ethnic cleansing of 150,000 Roma was accompanied by serious war crimes: many people were tortured, raped and murdered. Hundreds have disappeared to this day, and their relatives do not know what happened to them or where their remains are. The houses and settlements of the Roma were looted and set on fire or occupied. Fabrička Mahalla, the largest Roma settlement in Kosovo, where 8,000 people had lived, was completely destroyed.
The fate of Fabrička Mahalla and its inhabitants is also the focus of the photo exhibition that will be on display in Troyes on 13 June 2024 to mark the 25th day of remembrance for the displaced Roma from Kosovo.
The day of remembrance is organised by the Union des Rroms de l’ex Yougoslavie en Diaspora (URYD) together with the Roma Center e.V./ Roma Antidiscrimination Network, Union Romani de France and RROMEUROPE.
The event will take place in France:
Maison des Associations, 63 Avenue Pasteur, 10000 Troyes
Programme
9:00-9:30 Breakfast
9:30-11:00
Opening of the photo exhibition and minute’s silence for the victims
Speech by Burhan Osmani, URYD
Documentary film
Speeches:
Nedzmedin Neziri, URYD, interpreter, poet, historian of the Roma of Kosovo
Vanko-Stefan Rouda, Honorary President of Rromano Maskarthemutno Khetanipe Rromani Unia and co-founder of the 1971 World Roma Congress
11:00-12:30
Panel discussion with:
Nedzmedin Neziri, URYD, France
Veljko Kajtazi, Member of the Croatian Parliament Croatia
Imer Kajtazi, REU Jekhipe, Belgium
Kenan Emini, Roma Centre e.V./ Roma Antidiscrimination Network, Germany
