Rightist group marches again

The untimely death of a 63-year-old woman in Varnsdorf, north Bohemia, may prove a catalyst for more ethnic unrest in the region as right-wing activists ratchet up antagonistic sentiments against the town's Roma minority.

Between 300 and 400 supporters of the Workers and Social Justice Party (DSSS), the reincarnation of a constitutionally banned right-wing extremist party DS, gathered in the town Jan. 29 to voice growing concern regarding the presence of a large Roma minority in the town.

This low-income community, which many residents in this border town of 16,000 call "maladaptive," has again become a target of racially charged public gatherings. Community leaders, described by town officials as political opportunists, are attempting to rekindle feelings of animosity that led to a series of violent protests throughout the region last summer.

During the Jan. 29 protest, which anti-conflict police described as largely problem-free, activists bearing banners with slogans like "Gypsies to work," and "Bohemia only for Bohemians" marched past a low-income housing complex where many of Varnsdorf's poor Roma families reside.

This housing complex, termed Varnsdorf's "very own little ghetto," by town officials, is becoming an increasingly segregated hotspot in the town, Varnsdrof Deputy Mayor Karel Dubský said.

"The situation remains very tense," he added. "The Roma community has been writing to us that they feel inferior, that they have lost their dignity."

Tensions have been escalating since news emerged in early January of a New Year's Eve skirmish between a non-Roma family and a group of Roma men in front of the housing complex. Two 35-year-old Roma have been detained in connection with the attack, which left one person hospitalized and two others in need of medical attention.

A 63-year-old woman, the wife of the hospitalized man, was released from the hospital hours after the attack but died more than a week later. The case is still under investigation, but police have not been able to show a connection between the Jan. 1 attack and the woman's death, adding she had been suffering from long-term illness.

Despite these police reports, many Varnsdorf residents remain convinced the woman died at the hands of a brutal attack by the Roma men, according to Dubský.

"People simply don't believe what the police are saying," he said, adding the far-right demonstrations are slated to continue.

"Now, with the cold weather, organizers are asking the town to provide some indoor space for their rallies, such as a gym or the movie theater," he said.

In the past, these rallies have been organized by local activists seeking to foment existing tensions for political gain. The previous protest, which drew around 200 demonstrators to Varnsdorf Jan. 15, was organized by Petr Heinrich, who Dubský said has previously tried to run in local elections.

Heinrich is a former ally of convicted conman Lukáš Kohout, who gained nationwide notoriety after organizing a series of racially charged protests in Varnsdorf last summer, leading to violent clashes and the deployment of national riot police.

In an effort to prevent the resurgence of violence, a group of civil-society activists and national Roma community representatives traveled to Varnsdorf Jan. 31 to meet with town officials.

"What is happening is just not fair," said Kumar Vishwanatan, an Ostrava-based civic leader who was active in the Varnsdorf region during the summer 2011 unrest.

"Certain people are exploiting the existing bad mood in the town for their own purposes, and the Roma community is paying the price."

Markéta Hulpachová can be reached at
mhulpachova@praguepost.com