The Roma Decade in AP Vojvodina - uskolavrsac.edu.rs 48/engleski.pdfRepresentatives of Vojvodjanska...

Monthly Periodical of The Roma Inclusion Office

The Roma Decade in AP Vojvodina

No. 48, april 2015

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This is the April edition of the monthly Decade of Roma in Vojvodina. This month, the International Roma Day was marked, and in the rubric of the same name you can read about the following: the Roma Inclusion Office celebrated the 8th of April, President of the Republic of Serbia welcomed the Delegation of the National Council of the Roma national minority, the International Roma Day marked in the National Assem-bly, and about International Roma Day in Novi Sad club.

What follows is the text in the field of education, where Dr. Trajko Petrovski talks about the importance of establishing a University of Romani Studies.

The Local government rubric contains an interview with Roma coordinator from Pančevo, Vesna Nikolić.

In late March, in Subotica, our Office held a seminar for Roma coordinators in order to improve their work, and you can read more on this topic in the rubric the Roma Inclusion Office.

In the rubric EU institutions there is a text about the roundtable held in the Assembly of AP Vojvodina where representatives of the AER had the opportunity to famil-iarize themselves with the examples of good practice in the inclusion of Roma in Vojvodina.

We would like to remind you that, thanks to the Research and Education Center and Preschool Teacher Training College “Mihailo Palov” in Vršac, you can fol-low our publication in electronic form at www.rec.org/bilten.

Your editorial board

DEARREADER,

Founder and Publisher of the Periodical:The Roma Inclusion Office of the Govern-ment of AP Vojvodina

Editor in Chief: Duško Jovanović

Managing Editor:Aleksandra Mićić

The team:Dragana RajićAleksandra MićićTijana ČubriloLjiljana Maričić

Graphic design Associate: Tatjana Bošković

Correspondents:Ferenc KosoCoordinators for Roma issues of the AP VojvodinaIvana Koprivica

Translation into Romani:Nota Bene, Centar za prevođenje i učenje stranih jezika Novi Sad

Translation into English:Aleksandra Vranić

Technical Preparation and Printing:Lola preduzetništvo, Beograd,www.lolapreduzetnistvo.co.rs

Circulation:1000 copies

Address: Bulevar Mihajla Pupina 25, 21000 Novi SadTel: 021/488-17-23inkluzija.roma@gmail.comwww.inkluzijaroma.vojvodina.gov.rs

CIP - Cataloging in PublicationThe Matica Srpska Library, Novi Sad323.1 (=214.58)(=497.113)

The Decade of Roma in AP Vojvodina: Monthly Publication of the Roma Inclusion Office / Editor in Chief Duško Jovanović

-2011, No. 1 - Novi Sad: The Roma Inclusion Office of the Government of AP Vojvodina, 2011-.30 cm

Monthly. In Serbian, English and Romani language - In Romani printed in reverse

COBISS.SR - ID 261834759

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InternatIonal roma Day

In the presence of representatives of the

Provincial Government, central and provincial

institutions, local governments and

non-governmental organizations, the

International Roma Day was celebrated in the Assembly

of the AP Vojvodina, and the organizer was the

Office for Roma Inclusion, with the support of the

Union of Roma students, Vojvođanska Bank and

Office Print. As part of the ceremony, Roma pupils of

primary schools, Grubb Foundation from Novi Sad

and Tria Mulić performed in an appropriate culture and

art program.

Attendees were addressed by: the President of the Provincial Government of the AP Vo-jvodina, Dr. Bojan Pajtić, Director of the Of-fice for Roma Inclusion, Duško Jovanović, President of the Roma Integration Council of AP Vojvodina, Petar Nikolić, and Director of the “European Af-fairs” Fund, Siniša Lazić.

Support of the Provincial GovernmentBased on the Provincial Government’s effort

to improve the situation of Roma, in his statement

to the media, President Pajtić pointed to the fact that the position of the national communities in Vojvodina is generally better than in any other country near Serbia. “The provincial government has improved the situation of the Roma commu-nity, not only in relation to the environment, but also elsewhere in Europe. This is what all inter-national organizations say, because Vojvodina is the only place in the world with a High School of Professional Studies in Education of Teachers in the Romani language and because today we have

THE RoMA InCluSIon oFFICE CElEBRATED THE 8th oF APRIl

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about 350 Roma students at the University of Novi Sad. Thus, about one percent of Roma in Vojvodina are University students, thanks to the programs of the Office for Roma Inclusion of AP Vojvodina. We also managed to support about 800 Roma pupils in the few years since the establishment of the Office. Together with the Kingdom of Norway we are in the process of realization of projects for the economic empowerment of the Roma community,” said Pajtić.

Pointing out that the Roma community is the conscience of our society, President Pajtić con-gratulated all Roma on today’s holiday. Referring to the successful support of the Province to the Roma community, he said that the main fact that made it possible was the fact that the Province

had let the Roma community define its own priori-ties, making it possible to help them in an effec-tive way.

President Pajtić called attention to the im-portant fact that, it was through the Provincial Secretariat for Economy that dozens of companies were opened and employed the Roma, and to the existence of special programs for the employment of Roma women, pointing out that the policy of the Province has always supported Roma educa-tion, in order to improve their social status. “At the moment, Roma are absolutely the most vul-nerable community in the social sense, not only in Serbia, but on the continent, in general. Roma are on average five times poorer than average citizens of other nationalities, and today every hundredth

Celebration of the International Roma Day

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Roma in Serbia lives up to sixty years. These are dramatic data, and that is why we, in Vojvodina, work so much on improvement of the position of the national communities, and therefore we can say that, at this point, we have better results than anyone else in Europe,” said Dr. Bojan Pajtić.

Persisting difficult situation of RomaDirector of the Office for Roma Inclusion,

Duško Jovanović, gave his warmest congratula-tions to his compatriots in Serbia, and said that his message to Roma is that the process of Roma integration, primarily into the institutions of the Republic of Serbia, must take place more quickly and efficiently. As he said, the aim of marking this date is, first of all, to draw attention of domestic and international public to the extremely difficult situation of Roma ethnic community that persists in the Republic of Serbia, but also in the entire region. “Today, we are witnessing that the Roma are still on the socio-economic, political, cultural and every other margin, and that, as such national community, today we are perceived as a problem, not only within the borders of our country, but within the borders of the European Union. There-fore, I appeal to state institutions, international

organizations need to do more, in order to improve the situation of the Roma ethnic community. “

Director Jovanović reminded everyone that the Decade of Roma was completed in February, and that it was extended to the next ten years. He said that he was optimistic and that he believed

The first organized gathering of Roma on an international level in london, from 4 to 8 April 1971, is the reason why

this event is marked world-wide as an international holiday. This is when the Romani flag of blue-green color with a

dot in the middle was created, the song “Gelem, gelem” was selected as the

anthem of all Roma, and the international term Roma was established (in Romani

language it means – a man) for members of the national community.

Great Hall of the Assembly of the AP Vojvodina

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that what was left undone in the previous decade will be done in this one. Also, he pointed to the significant results of our province, which are also confirmed by international institutions. However, the Director of the Office stressed that this Decade of Roma did not give satisfactory results, which is obvious if we go to the first Roma settlement and see how people live there.

Education and cooperation Petar Nikolić, President of the Roma Integra-

tion Council of AP Vojvodina, sent a message from this meeting that the chance is in knowledge, com-petence and continuity, wishing his compatriots to have even more educated Roma in the future.

Director of the “European Affairs” Fund, Siniša Lazić, said that the doors of the Fund are wide open for all national communities to partner coop-

eration in the improvement and affirmation of our society on the path towards the European Union. On this occasion, the protocol on cooperation be-tween the Office for Roma Inclusion and the “Eu-ropean Affairs” Funds was signed.

Everyone present agreed that the Province has made significant progress in improving the situation of Roma, and that there are still many things that are unfinished and need to be worked on. In the following period, it is necessary to con-tinue to achieve positive results in the inclusion of Roma, by joint efforts of the Provincial Govern-ment, NGOs and Roma themselves. There is a lot of room for improvement, which will be easier, given that good foundation is set and established.

Tijana Čubrilo, Ljiljana Maričić

Representatives of Vojvodjanska Banka

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PHoTo REPoRT

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PRESIDEnT oF THE REPuBlIC oF SERBIA wElCoMED THE DElEGATIon oF THE nATIonAl CounCIl oF THE RoMA nATIonAl MInoRITY

President of the Republic of Serbia, Tomislav Nikolić, met the representatives of the Roma national minority, marking the 8th April, the Inter-national Roma Day.

On this occasion, the Dele-gation of the National Council of the Roma national minority, con-sisted of: the President of the National Council, professor Vi-tomir Mihajlović, Deputy Chair-man, Nenad Tairović, Vice Presi-dent, Amet Arifi, the President of the Committee for the official language use, Dr. Slavica Denić, and the member of the Execu-tive Committee of the Council, Tane Kurtić, who presented the

“Platform for improving the situation of Roma in Serbia” to President Nikolić, as a strategic document and the basis for the full integration and inclusion of the Roma minority in the social, economic, cultural and political life in the Republic of Serbia.

President of the Republic of Serbia, Tomislav Nikolić, ad-vocated improving the rights of Roma in Serbia, emphasizing that the government should do everything possible to facilitate the exercise of their rights.

As stated by the Bureau for cooperation with the media, President Nikolić pointed out that positive discrimination of

the Roma should help to pre-serve their national identity.

Namely, during the conver-sation with President Nikolic, the representatives of the Roma minority emphasized that, de-spite the generally very difficult situation of Roma, progress had been made in the previous pe-riod, in solving the problems of their education and the prob-lem of exercising their right to health care. However, according to the press release, unemploy-ment remains a huge problem for the Roma, as well as the cre-ation of adequate housing.

Tijana Čubrilo

Reception with the President of the Republic of Serbia

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The session was attended by representatives of the National Council of the Roma national minority, representatives of state bodies and institutions, representatives of independent bodies, representatives of international organiza-tions and Roma civil society organizations.

Chairman of the Committee for Human and Minority Rights and Gender Equality, Meho Omerović, emphasized that Serbia has developed institutional and normative mechanisms for Roma inclusion, but that the problems of Roma remain very severe, especially in terms of education, housing conditions, employment, child labor and early marriages.

Concrete resultsDirector of the Office for Human and Minority

Rights, Suzana Paunović, pointed out the commit-ment of the Government of the Republic of Serbia in an effort to improve the position of the Roma minority. In addition to that, she mentioned con-

crete results that have been achieved in the field of Roma inclusion.

Institutional capacities had been strengthened and the mechanisms set up, to monitor progress in the area of Roma inclusion and coordination be-tween state institutions and civil sector. She stated that the activities of the Government’s Council for the Improvement of Roma position have a very im-portant role in monitoring the measures envisaged by the Strategy for the Improvement of Roma, and planning policies toward the Roma national minor-ity. “The established mechanisms of coordination of projects focused on Roma inclusion aim to achieve a more efficient use of budget and donor funds, as well as the exchange of information between all relevant project beneficiaries, donors and teams for project implementing, which would also provide significant support to the process of improving the situation of Roma in Serbia,” said Paunović.

According to Paunović, the Government wants the matters of interest for the advancement of

InTERnATIonAl RoMA DAY MARKED In THE nATIonAl ASSEMBlY oF THE REPuBlIC oF SERBIA In the House of the National Assembly of Serbia, the Committee for Human and Minority Rights and Gender Equality held a session, dedicated to marking the International Roma Day. The topic was Inclusion of Roma men and women 2014/15: Results and Challenges.

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Roma to be are represented by the representatives of the Roma community, through cooperation with the National Council of the Roma national minority.

At the local level, a multi-sectoral coopera-tion has been developed. In the previous period, an operational mobile team was formed in 20 pilot municipalities in Serbia, which consists of a Roma coordinator, pedagogical assistant, health media-tor, representative of the Centre for Social Work and the National Employment Service, in order to contribute to Roma achieving their rights in their community, in a more efficient way. She added that the state and society are willing to work on developing a multi-sectoral co-operation and creating a more humane model of housing care for members of the Roma minor-ity, in order to solve the problem of informal settlements.

Paunović points out that the most important achievement in this period was the creation of the New Strategy for improving the situation of Roma until 2025. “For the first time, we are start-ing a year more prepared for de-veloping of such a document, given the fact that they are already prepared Initial Guidelines for the drafting of the new Strategy. They are made in the context of a broader consultation process with the representatives of local governments through-out the Republic of Serbia, the state bodies and institutions, independent institutions, Roma civil society organizations and the National Council of the Roma”. She said that the head of the work-ing group for drafting the new strategic document will be a representative of the Roma community, adding that the new Strategy should be based on the principles of inclusiveness, decentralization,

rationalization, cost-effectiveness and efficiency, and affirmative action. Measures of social inclu-sion are anticipated to be implemented through the following strategic areas: education, employ-ment and economic empowerment, housing and health.

Vitomir Mihajlović, President of the National Council of the Roma national minority, said that the Parliament of Serbia is sending a clear signal and a message to the Serbian Government and other stakeholders of society about the very dif-ficult situation of Roma.

Michael Davenport, Head of the EU Delega-tion to Serbia, congratulated the Government of the Republic of Serbia on its efforts in develop-ing the new Strategy for Roma Inclusion, because it will contain all the necessary measures and activities that will contribute to improving the situation of Roma citizens. He believes that the success of joint efforts and the direction in which Roma inclu-sion should take place will be in-cluded in this document.

Peter Burkhard, Ambassador of the OSCE Mis-sion to Serbia, emphasized that the OSCE will con-tinue to support the Republic of Serbia in achieving changes in the quality of life of the Roma minority.

Asija Verbanova, Director of UN Women, pointed out the great inequality between men and women, that especially applies to the members of Roma minority, while Slavica Vasić, in front of the Roma Women Network, informed all the peo-ple present about the activities conducted by the Roma Women’s Network to improve the position of the Roma minority.

Tijana Čubrilo

Finally, the top ten stu-dents of Roma nationality in the Republic of Serbia, received laptops, in rec-ognition of the results achieved in their studies, as a support for their fur-ther education.

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noVI SAD CluBInternational Roma Day was also marked in the premises of the Novi Sad Club. In the pleasant atmosphere, the attendees discussed the current status of the Roma community in our country. The members of the Novi Sad Club had an opportunity to become better acquainted with their "fellow citizens, the Roma," as Dragan Kojić, President of the Novi Sad club, nicely called them.

Keywords in the functioning of the Novi Sad Club are freedom, democracy, citizen, peace, openness and responsibility.

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The keynotesAfter the Roma anthem

Đelem, Đelem was performed by the Mulić family, the conversa-tion could begin. The attendees were first addressed by Dragan Kojić, who introduced the other speakers, congratulated all the Roma world-wide on their holi-day, and invited everyone to en-joy the program. “Novi Sad Club cherishes the most beautiful features of Novi Sad: civic cul-ture and tolerance, living with each other, which we will prove and confirm with this program.”

Gratitude and new knowledge

After the opening speech of the President of the Novi Sad Club, Duško Jovanovic, Direc-tor of the Office for Roma In-clusion, expressed his gratitude for the invitation and hospital-ity of all the members of the Club, and then he presented the work of the Office and the re-sults achieved so far, in the field of Roma Inclusion in Vojvodina. Thus, the members of the Club could learn that the Romani lan-guage has been studied in pri-

mary schools in Vojvodina since 1996, that the Roma library ex-ists only in Novi Sad, unique in the world, that the Romani lan-guage has been present in the media since 1992, that there are affirmative measures for en-rollment of Roma students into secondary schools and univer-sities, that there are Calls and programs for employment and self-employment of Roma men and women. However, Jovanović pointed out that the successes achieved is not sufficient, that the situation of Roma is still very

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unfavorable, and that the Dec-ade has not achieved its goals. Director of the Office comment-ed on the fact that the Roma do not have sufficient knowledge of their history, which should be worked on.

Assistant to the Provincial Secretary, Dr. Slavica Denić, pointed to the high mortality rate of Roma children up to 14 years of age, and to the fact that only one in a hundred Roma lives up to 60 years. Therefore, Slavica Denić considers it nec-essary to improve the housing conditions of the Roma popula-tion, because the least progress was made in this area, during the period of the Decade. In addition to housing, it is neces-sary to work on the education of Roma children and thus raise awareness of the Roma popula-tion. However, the state has to take responsibility for the young and educated Roma and employ them, because this is the best way to show that it cares about

them, and encourage others to educate themselves. The Roma need to try and improve their own position in society, and the Assistant to the Provincial Sec-retary considers it encouraging that a growing number of Roma women are enrolling in univer-

sities and successfully graduat-ing, because it shows a certain change of awareness among par-ents, who previously have not educated their female children. “Each marking of this date is im-portant, because in this way, we draw attention to the problems of Roma men and women living in Serbia.”

Music, poetry and artBetween the speeches, we

could hear the verses of Maja Familić, who recited her poems in Romani and Serbian language, and everyone was able to enjoy the two pictures that she paint-ed. In addition to poems and paintings, music was an integral part of the evening; the Mulić family made a wonderful atmos-phere, performing the tradition-al Roma and Serbian songs. Art is the best way to perceive and experience all the grandeur and talent of the Roma community.

Tijana Čubrilo

With an invitation for the next gathering in the same place, the evening was brought to an end. The members of the Novi Sad Club, in accordance with the postulates by which they act, indeed showed that it is neces-sary to get to know all the citizens who make up a society, and thus en-rich one’s own spirit and broaden the horizons of knowledge.

Director of the Novi Sad Club with his guests

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"THE MoST FAMouS RoMA In THE woRlD" PHoToGRAPHY EXHIBITIon On the occasion of 8th April - International Roma Day, an exhibition "The most famous Roma in the world" was opened at Radio Café, organized by the EU Info Point Novi Sad. The exhibition presented photographs of worldwide famous Roma, painters, actors, musicians, scientists, politicians. The event aimed at using culture as a well-known and most recognizable product of Roma, to contribute to the reduction of ethnic distance towards this people.

Rich and significant culture“We are doing all of this because we want

to convey a universal message about the accept-ance of diversity and respect for the Roma culture, which is very rich and significant, and from which

we can see and learn a lot. Also, we believe that these events help us raise awareness about the im-portance of respect for human rights, tolerance and non-discrimination of the Roma population, which is still very common”, says the Media Coordinator

Provincial Secretary Miroslav Vasin with participants of the event

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Sofia Kovalevskaya (scientist), August Krogh (scientist), Charlie Chaplin (actor and director), Django Reinhardt (jazz guitarist), Juscelino Kubitschek (President of Brazil), Pablo Picasso (painter), Rita Hayworth (actress), Yul Brynner (actor), Michael Caine (Actor), Elvis Presley (musician), Ronnie Wood (musician), Adam Ant (musician), Sait Balić (President of the International Romani Union), Šaban Bajramović (blues singer), Eugen Huc (musician), Victoria Mohači (politician).

Photo exibition

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in the office of EU Info Point Novi Sad, Snežana Pupovac. She added that, in this way, they want to raise awareness of the general population about the importance of participation of the Roma popu-lation and how important it is that we all, from our positions, contribute to participation, equal access and respect for human rights in general, to get to know the Roma culture, tradition and history, to so-cialize, make contacts and understand that we can work together.

”This exhibition shows how magnificent, emotional, talented and

precious this community is. let's show them we can recognize how precious

it is.“

Miroslav Vasin, Provincial Secretary for Economy, Employment and Gender Equality

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The Provincial GovernmentMiroslav Vasin, Provincial Secretary for Econ-

omy, Employment and Gender Equality, welcomed the participants on behalf of the Provincial Gov-ernment, which organised many programs that are unique even at European level, related to inclusion of Roma. Vasin pointed out that the exhibition is the best designed introduction to the Internation-al Roma Day, which shows the significance of the mark that the Roma made in the history of man-kind. “This is an event that encourages all of us who are trying to include ourselves in the story of improving the situation of Roma. We are proud of the fact that, in Vojvodina, we managed to have a large number of Roma pupils in secondary schools and students at the University of Novi Sad, and that there are about 200 companies in Vojvodina, whose founders are the Roma. We will do every-thing we can to improve the situation of Roma in the years to come.” The Provincial Government has made progress both in terms of housing and relocation of unhygienic Roma settlements, but that is just the beginning; the policies of helping the Roma will continue through programs of edu-cation, employment and housing improvement.

Slavica Denić, Assistant to the Provincial Sec-retary, said that the celebration of this day aims to draw attention to the adverse and difficult situa-tion of the Roma community. The Decade of Roma will end this year, and the Assistant to the Pro-vincial Secretary reminded us that Roma, unfor-tunately, still live in poverty. ”Certain steps have been made, but that is not enough, and it means that the work in this area must be continued.“ Fu-ture tasks will be related to housing, because not much has been done in this area.

After the exhibition, visitors had a chance to attend a concert of the acoustic band “Kal”.

Marking the International Roma Day makes it possible to preserve the Roma culture and tradition, and it represents an opportunity for the general popu-lation to become more familiar with the Roma people and their culture. The people on the photographs that could be seen in this exhibition used their Roma heritage in the best possible way. Their work made a mark on the period they lived in, but also on the future.

”I wish more work for all Roma men and women in Serbia, more Roma children in schools and more Roma students in

universities.“

Slavica Denić, Assistant to the Provincial Secretary

Tijana Čubrilo

“our goal is to inform the general population about the issues related to the European union, about its institutions, existing funds and programs, and the benefits we can expect from the

European Union. On the other hand, we also organize various educational, cultural and artistic events, and we mark important dates. Eu Info Point was established in novi Sad in August last year, and at the same time it was opened in niš, while our colleagues in Belgrade have been

working since 2011.”

Snežana Pupovac

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Education

Interview with Dr. Trajko Petrovski, researcher of Roma folklore, ethnology, language and history

A unIVERSITY oF RoMA STuDIES SHoulD BE ESTABlISHED You work at the Insti-tute of Folklore “Marko Cepenkov” in Skopje, at the department of Roma culture. Why is it impor-tant that the Roma are part of the cultural and educational institutions?I have been working at the

Institute of Folklore “Marko Ce-penkov” since 1980, as a scien-tific advisor and researcher of Roma folklore, ethnology, lan-guage and history. I have pub-lished over 200 scientific pa-pers on Roma. Roma should be part of the cultural and educa-tional institutions because they deserve it and because they are a very important part of Eu-ropean culture and an integral part of European nations today. What are the activities of this Institute? At the Institute of Folklore

“Marko Cepenkov” in Skopje, I explore Roma folklore, folk literature, Roma identity, dia-lectology and ethnology. This Institute is the first in the world where Roma identity, culture and traditions are systemati-cally and professionally investi-gated, and where a Roma sci-entist works professionally.

Folk literature includes the various forms of creative and artistic works of art that are Dr Trajko Petrovski

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Education

created, nurtured and preserved orally, and passed down across gen-erations as a part of tradition. These are poems, stories, puzzles, prov-erbs, riddles and other oral expres-sions.

Oral folk literature of Roma is very old, varied and extensive, and it originates from India. It is char-acterized by certain rudiments of Roma primordial verbal creativ-ity that various problems and phe-nomena assimilated with, from the oral literature of some peoples of the Middle East they were passing through and dwelt in their migratory movements towards the Balkan Pen-insula. Some phenomena taken from oral folk literature of the contempo-rary Balkan nations should be added to this, as well.

The most original are the folk tales with an abundance of elements and motifs of verbal creativity of the people and the tribes of the Middle and Far East, which is imbued with Roma magic, myths and legends. The best Roma storytellers are the traveling Roma, horse traders, as well as some Turkish Roma.

The content of Roma folk songs is mostly lyrical. There are many of them, and they usually sing praise of love and beauty. There are also Roma songs that speak about overall life, fear of death, and the like. You wrote Grammar of the Romani language, Romani primer and you are one of the authors of The Macedonian-Roma Dictionary, which form the basis for the study, pres-ervation and teaching of the Romani language. How diffi-cult it was to gather materials for these books, and how im-

portant they are for the Roma in Macedonia? I published The Macedonian-Ro-

ma and Roma-Macedonian Diction-ary, in Skopje in 1993, together my colleague Veličkovski. A few years later, I published Grammar of the Romani language in Macedonian lan-guage. I worked hard for more than a decade in order to collect all the materials for these two linguistic and lexicographic publications. You are the author of the books that deal with Roma folk tradition and verbal cre-ativity. Is Roma tradition im-portant not only as a part of the past, but also as the foun-dation for the future of the Roma people and how did you find and record the Roma folk songs and stories? From the beginning of my in-

volvement and scientific work at the Institute of Folklore “Marko Cepen-kov”, I systematically explored the Roma folklore, ethnology and lan-guage in almost all regions of the Republic of Macedonia, through In-stitute’s scientific projects. It took me about two years to research one region, and then I systematized that folkloristic and ethnological field material on my own, scientifically processed it, and then I staged sci-entific books, studies and reports. Who supported you when you were publishing your books? Some of the publications were

published by the Institute, some by the Roma association “Romano ilo” from Skopje, and there are publica-tions that I published independently. You insist on the necessity of

Roma education. What else needs to be done, in your opinion, to

The wealth of the Roma folklore should be preserved, fostered and researched even more, because it is of great cultural, historical and linguistic importance to us, the Roma. If it gets lost and forgotten, our identity and our existence will also disappear.

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Education

raise the level of awareness about the importance of education to a higher level?

Education is the most essential and important key to all Roma, if we want to get out of this vicious circle in which we, unfortunately, still are. Roma are the most illiterate nation in the world. The Roma are to be blamed for this, because Roma parents who are illiterate are not able to invest in the education of their children.

The situation of Roma in edu-cation in Europe today is very dif-ficult. It is the fault of some Roma representatives occupying signifi-cant political positions in various in-stitutions, who are uneducated and therefore do not get involved in re-solving this very important issue.

When talking about the suc-cess of the Office, I want all simi-lar Roma organizations, societies and Roma political representatives, together with the educated Roma (intellectuals, professors, Magisters and Doctors of Science) to hold one big meeting. At this meeting, we would talk about how to solve the issue of education of Roma in Ser-bia, as a very important country on the Balkan Peninsula, which is highly populated by the Roma. A Univer-sity of Romani Studies should be established in Belgrade or Novi Sad and Skopje, where the young Roma would study Romani language, eth-nology, history. Every four years, at least 30 Roma would graduate at this University, and then this profes-sorial staff would be immediately employed in schools where there is Roma population. To achieve this goal, I suggest an intensive coopera-tion of all Roma political leaders in Serbia and the Balkans, in order to

establish such Universities in several cities in the Balkans.

If we solve this problem in edu-cation, it will reduce poverty among Roma, there will be no more mi-grations and emigrations, and dis-crimination and prejudice will be reduced. Educated Roma should be assigned a bigger role in resolving all the key problems that Roma face today. They should be respected by Roma themselves, Roma political or-ganizations, Roma leaders and asso-ciations. If we want good education of Roma, we should have as many publications in the Romani language as possible. There are only a few Roma writers, and they do not get money to publish their books. There is no Roma foundation to support the cultural development of Roma. Do you think that there is a good attitude towards Roma culture and language in Mace-donia, and how is it represent-ed? Can you compare Serbia and Macedonia in this matter?There are Roma representatives

in many state institutions in the Re-public of Macedonia. There are two Roma private television stations that broadcast music and different TV shows, but there is not enough cul-tural programs. In elementary schools and many towns in Skopje, the Rom-ani language and culture is taught as an optional subject. That is a good start, but I believe that this educa-tional program should be developed and expanded. For now, Macedonia is slightly ahead of Serbia in the field of education, because Roma children attend elementary and high schools in large numbers, and there are many students of universities.

Tijana Čubrilo

I am very pleased with the fact that there is the Office for Roma Inclusion in Novi Sad, which works very successfully and achieves great results. I also appreciate the magazine that is published by the Office. The Office, successfully led by the Director Duško Jovanović, has an excellent strategy and leads a successful policy to enhance and improve the lives of the Roma in Vojvodina.

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GoVERnMEnT InSTITuTIonS GoVERnMEnT InSTITuTIonS

JuRISDICTIon AnD AuTHoRISATIonS oF THE CoMMISSIonERS FoR InFoRMATIon oF PuBlIC IMPoRTAnCE AnD PERSonAl DATA PRoTECTIonCommissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection is an independent state body, independent in the exercise of its jurisdiction, which protects the right to free access to information of public importance.

what is the information of public importance?It is the information that can be found in the documents in the possession of any public

authority, that was made in their work or in connection to their work, and that the public has a justified right to know. (Article 2 of the Law). Therefore, the right to free access to information of public importance is essentially the right on access of official documents.

Commissioner for Information of Public Im-portance and Personal Data Protection is compe-tent and authorized:

1According to the law on Free Access to In-formation of Public Importance (“Official Gazette of RS” No.120/04 and 54/07) to:- monitor compliance with the obligations of the

authorities under this Law and report to the public and National Assembly thereof;

- initiate the preparation or change of regula-tions for the implementation and promotion of the right to access information of public im-portance;

- propose to public authorities measures to im-prove their work regulated by this Law;

- undertake necessary measures to train employ-ees of state bodies and to inform employees of

their obligations regarding the rights to access information of public importance, for the ef-fective implementation of this Act;

- decide on appeals against the decisions of pub-lic authorities that violate the rights regulated by this Law;

- informs the public about the content of this Law and the rights regulated by this Law;

- initiate a procedure for assessing the constitu-tionality and legality of laws and other general acts;

- issue and update the manual with practical guidelines for the effective exercise of rights regulated by this Law, in Serbian language and the languages that are, according to the Law, the languages in official use in the press, elec-tronic media, the Internet, public panel dis-cussions and other ways, informs the public of

Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data ProtectionBulevar Kralja Aleksandra 15Belgrade 11000

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GoVERnMEnT InSTITuTIonS GoVERnMEnT InSTITuTIonS

the contents of the manual for law enforce-ment;

- issue guidance by which the State Body Direc-tory is published and perform other duties specified by this Law.

2According to the law on the Protection of Personal Data (“Official Gazette of RS” No.97/08):- supervise the imple-

mentation and en-forcement of this Law, i.e. to monitor the im-plementation of data protection;

- decides on appeals in the case prescribed by this Law;

- keep the Central Regis-try;

- supervise and allow trans-border data flow from the Republic of Serbia;

- indicate the violations noted during the data collection;

- create a list of coun-tries and international organizations with ad-equate provisions on data protection;

- provides their opinion in connection with the formation of new data, i.e. in case of the in-troduction of new in-formation technologies in data processing;

- give their opinion, in case of doubt whether a data set is considered a data file within the meaning of this Law;

- give their opinion to the Government in the process of adoption of the act on the manner of filing and safeguards for particularly sensi-tive data;

- monitor the implementation of measures to protect the data and suggests improvements;

- make proposals and recommendations for the improvement of data protection;

- gives a prior opinion on whether a certain pro-cessing method constitutes specific risk to the rights and freedoms of citizens;

- monitor the regulation of data protection in other countries;

- cooperating with the bodies responsible for su-pervision of data protec-tion in other countries; - determines the manner of further data manage-ment, when the con-troller ceases to exist, except as otherwise pro-vided; - in connection with the conduct of the Central Registry, annually publish a list of data collections in the “Official Gazette of the Republic of Ser-bia,” and to make sure that the Central Registry, which is publicly availa-ble, is also publish on the Internet;- within a period of three months from the end of the fiscal year, submit to the National Assem-bly an annual report on the activities undertaken by the authorities in the implementation of this Law, as well as their own activities and expenses. The Commissioner sub-mits to the National As-

sembly other reports, as he/she deems it nec-essary. The report submitted to the National Assembly, the Commissioner shall submit to the President of the Republic, the Government and the Ombudsman and appropriately makes it available to the public and performs other tasks within his/her competence.

who can you ask for information?Information can be requested by any

of the public authorities in terms of this Law, which, according to the knowledge of the applicant, given the scope, should have that information. Public authori-ties are:- sall state bodies (e.g. The National As-

sembly, the Government, ministries, courts, prosecutors and others);

- territorial autonomy and local gov-ernment bodies (e.g. The Provincial Council of AP Vojvodina, provincial secretariats, mayors, presidents of municipalities, municipal administra-tive authorities, etc.);

- organizations entrusted with the exer-cise of public authority (e.g. agencies of privatization, telecommunications, environment, etc., universities and other institutions, public enterprises);

- legal entities founded by or funded wholly or predominantly by one of the above organs (e.g. institutions in the field of culture, health institutions, state funds, etc.).

www.poverenik.rs

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The Roma InclusIon offIce

As in previous years, the Office for Roma Inclu-sion planned three semi-nars this year, for training of Roma coordinators. This time, seminars were also intended for NGO representatives, who need institutional support to make their work more visible and more productive.

The main topic of the seminar was the work of the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Per-sonal Data Protection. Milica Basta, a Senior Advisor to the Office for Information of Pub-

lic Importance and Personal Data Protection, presented the work of the Commissioner to the participants of the seminar and introduced them to the provisions of the Law on Free Access to Information of Pub-lic Importance, the Law on the protection of personal data, as well as the legal position of the Commissioner, as an executive director.

The topic was very inter-esting and educational, con-sidering the fact that the work of the Commissioner for Infor-mation of Public Importance

and Personal Data Protection is relatively unknown to the general public. It is especially important for the Roma coor-dinators, whose work often requires from them to create databases for the application of affirmative action. Coordi-nators were introduced to the procedure and method of stor-ing data that are especially sensitive, related to ethnicity.

Through interactive work and concrete practical exam-ples, the seminar participants had the opportunity to gain knowledge and learn about

SEMInAR FoR RoMA CooRDInAToRS AnD nGo REPRESEnTATIVES

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The Roma InclusIon offIce

Information about citizens, such as national origin, sex-ual orientation, political affiliation and personal identifica-tion number had been collected for many years in various databases, and it is possible to manipulate them in various ways. Citizens are advised to protect their personal infor-mation, keep an eye on their identity card, passport and credit cards, and to always keep track of who uses them.

In its report to Serbia, the European Commission high-lighted the lack of progress in the protection of personal data, which means that we still do not have data protec-tion laws in some important areas. A worrying fact is that, based on the Article 146 of the Criminal Code (unauthor-ized collection of personal data) no court judgment has been made.

the legal regulations, which is of great importance for their daily work. Special attention was paid to the protection of

personal data and the method of processing the data in the process of exercising certain rights.

Mićić Aleksandra

Vice-president of the AP Vojvodina with Roma Coordinators

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EU institUtions

EXCHAnGE oF EXPERIEnCES In RoMA InCluSIonAssembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, through its membership in the Assembly of European Regions (AER), cooperated with the Swedish Norrbotten County, whose representatives visited Novi Sad in the period from 29 to 31 March, during which a round table was held. The topic of the round table was "Roma Inclusion - examples of good practice".

The roundtable was opened by Aleksandar Jovanović, Deputy Sec-retary for Education, Regu-lations, Administration and National Minorities - ethnic communities, whose Secre-tariat was also the organizer of this event. He welcomed all the attendees, representatives of renowned institutions of the state and NGO sector, who deal with Roma as a particular-ly vulnerable community, and Monica Carlson and Elizabeth

Lex, representatives of the AER. “It is very significant that you have shown interest in this topic. This is one of those situ-ations when someone can learn from us. As a society, we have a good practice and I think we are suitable for this field – hence, other people can learn from us. This is not a topic that should be discussed only in Vo-jvodina, or in Sweden, but eve-rywhere,” said Jovanović.

Monika Carlson, Vice-President of the AER for Equal

Opportunities, said that she thinks that inclusion of Roma is very important for Europe, because the Roma are lacking hope and trust, which is justi-fied, of course. She added that the key question is how can we trust Roma society and how they can trust us. The reason she returned to Novi Sad was to see what is happening in this field. “We started a very long journey that has many steps and that will be difficult, but the most important thing

The round-table participants

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EU institUtions

is that we have started it. In addition to this, we need to spread knowledge among our-selves. This is the main reason why I am here - to talk about your examples of good prac-tice”, said Carlson.

Elizabeth Lex, representa-tive of the AER, expressed great satisfaction with the op-portunity to attend the round-table and said she was sure that there is a lot to learn from the example of Serbia. “It is the job of state institutions and all of us to take care of national minorities,” said Lex.

Romeo Mihajlović spoke for the Office for Roma Inclusion. He stressed the importance of the Office, presented its history and results and he pointed out the importance of internation-al cooperation. “We should all be together; government and non-governmental and inter-

national institutions, in order to be able to adequately carry out the integration of the Roma in the sphere of socio-political life. The fact is that a large number of Roma are seeking asylum in Sweden and we are here today to discuss how to help not only them, but also all other Roma, and to teach them how to use of certain programs and inform them about the things they are offered. What we are extremely proud of is the program of employment or self-employment. In coopera-tion with the EU Delegation in Serbia, twenty members of the Roma community have opened their companies; within the previous project, realized in cooperation with the Embassy of the Kingdom of Norway, ten Roma women from Vojvodina have been employed. These are the proofs that the pro-

jects can help us come out of the vicious circle of poverty,” Mihajlović explained.

Examples of good practice were presented by Slobodan Vasić, as a Senior Associate for International Affirmation of Tolerance and Multicultur-alism, Jelena Kriš-Piger, inde-pendent expert associate to the field of development of ed-ucation and student housing, and Marija Aleksandrović, for the Preschool Teacher Training College “Mihailo Palov”.

The round table was also attended by representatives of the NGO sector: Stanka Janković, representative of the Ecumenical Humanitarian Or-ganization (EHO), Suzana Čepo, from the Roma Educational Center in Subotica, and Dani-ca Jovanović, President of the Roma Association in Novi Bečej.

Ljiljana Maričić

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LocaL Government

Interview with Vesna Nikolić, the Roma coordinator in Pančevo

woRK on EDuCATInG THE RoMA - THE GREATEST SUCCESS IN PANČEVO

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LocaL Government

Does the job classification of local government enlist the workplace for a Roma coordinator?The staffing of the city administration of

Pančevo lists the workplace for a Roma coor-dinator. Does the municipal budget include special funds for the realization of plans for the Roma?Yes, the funds for implementation of the

Action Plan for Social Integration of Roma 2013-2016 are planned and allocated within the City of Pančevo budget for 2015. What does your co-operation with local governments, provin-cial and national au-thorities look like? Since I myself am part

of the local government, I can say that my coopera-tion with colleagues is very good and useful. The same goes for the authorities at the provincial and national level. How do you get in-formation that you need for your work? How do you improve your knowledge?Through trainings that

are provided for Roma co-ordinators, through insti-tutions, national and provincial, dealing with improving the position of Roma, which regu-larly provide me with information that is rel-evant to my work. Explain the functioning of the City Service Center and your part in it? The City Service Center is a public coun-

ters hall with 22 seats, which are located on the ground floor of the City Administration of Pančevo building. The City Service Center has an electronic call system that enables faster communication and shortens counter wait

time which increases the quality of services provided by the City Administration. The rules that apply to all services in the Service Center apply to the Roma coordinator, as well. What does your workday look like? I work as the Roma coordinator at the Sec-

retariat for Public Service and Social Affairs. I work behind the counter with clients at the Municipal Service Center every day. My job is to contribute to more efficient and higher quality service in the field of health, educa-tion and social protection, as well as coop-eration with non-governmental organizations

and various institutions in order to maintain effective coordination and organiza-tion of joint work. What kind of problems do you encounter at work?

Working as a Roma co-ordinator for the last four years, I have not encoun-tered any significant prob-lems at work. What are your priori-ties and plans for 2015?

For the City of Pančevo, the priority and plan for 2015 is for all planned measures and activities of the Action Plan for the social integration of Roma 2013-2016 to be realized as much as possible and for

them to be directed towards the faster pro-cess of integration of the Roma in Pančevo. Can you tell us what are you particu-larly proud of in your work and what do you consider the greatest success? Due to the realized activities and the im-

plementation of measures and services for the Roma population and conducted researches on the site, the City of Pančevo has been rec-ognized as an example of good practice. The greatest success is achieved in the field of ed-ucation.

A message to your fellow Roma.

I would like to tell my fel-low Roma that in order to solve problems and difficulties they encounter they need to main-tain unity, mutual assistance and solidarity in all areas of life.

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LocaL Government

The activities that we conduct for the Roma in the City of Pančevo are defined by the Local Action Plan for social integration of Roma.

Education ― Within the City of Pančevo budget the funds are allocated for priority task of the Action Plan for the social inte-gration of Roma 2013-2016, in cooperation with professional services, educational in-stitutions provide all Roma pupils of primary or secondary schools with free textbooks, school supplies and season tickets for free transport (High school students whose par-ents are regular users of social financial aid), in cooperation with the Center for Social Work. After the end of the school year, in ac-cordance to data pro-vided by the schools, local government has rewarded primary and secondary school stu-dents who have com-pleted the school year with a ‘very good’ and ‘excellent’ grade point average with one-time financial as-sistance. The awarded students stated that this reward motivates them to continue their successful learning in years to come.

Employment – Implementing the Roma into various employment programs has been made more difficult, since a large per-centage of them have not finished primary school. Previous investment in the local communities and in education of Roma chil-dren gave results, but they are still insuf-ficient. Therefore, the priority task in the coming period is to make even bigger pro-gress in the field of education, because that is the only way out of the cycle of poverty.

Housing - In the City of Pančevo there

are 14 identified Roma settlements. The Roma population lives mainly in the city periphery and the periphery of settlements in slums. Improving the existing housing conditions of the Roma population in set-tlements in the City of Pančevo is one of the most difficult tasks. Since the City of Pančevo is unable to solve living conditions problems of the Roma population by its own means, taking into account the overall eco-nomic crisis, it is ready to solve this prob-lem with the help of European partners and funds from the state budget.

Health - Local government cooperates with the Roma health mediator who records

the health status of citi-zens in Roma settlements and, where appropriate, includes them into the health system (identifying the chosen doctor, inform-ing the in-charge services about the occurrence of epidemic infections).

Human and other rights - Apart from the aforementioned activities, within the im-plementation of the Action Plan for the so-cial integration of Roma, the City of Pančevo has provided free legal assistance, help of the City Ombudsman, free stay of Roma pu-pils attending primary school (who attend an extended stay in elementary school) in a children resort on Mt. Divčibare, and the International Relations Council for National Minorities was formed, where our member is involved. Within the City budget the funds are provided for the payment of adminis-trative fees at the Police Administration for issuing identity documents to socially dis-advantaged individuals.

Tell us about the activities in the areas of the Decade of Roma on the territory of your municipality in education, employment, housing, health and human rights.

Tijana Čubrilo

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EnvironmEntal protEction

THE RolE AnD IMPoRTAnCE oF THE REGIonS In wASTE MAnAGEMEnTA round table discussion on the topic "Regional Waste Management - Changes and Challenges" was held in the Ecological Center Radulovački in Sremski Karlovci. The organizer of the round table was Arhus Center in Novi Sad, with the support of the OSCE Mission to Serbia. The meeting was attended by representatives of relevant institutions in the Province, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection, Lafarge company from Beočin, the Office for Roma Inclusion and the Center for modern skills, as well as the media, NGOs and representatives of local governments.

The moderator of the roundtable was Rosa Stiković, Independent Senior Associate of the Munici-pal Administration of Beočin, who is also a member of the Arhus Centre. In the introduc-tory part, the attendees were addressed by Predrag Simić,

independent advisor to the Department of Waste Manage-ment of the Ministry of Agri-culture and Environmental Pro-tection and Ms. Tatjana Đurić, Assistant Provincial Secretary for Urban Planning, Construc-tion and Environmental Protec-tion.

“This is an everyday prob-lem, and it will probably be for many years on the agenda of the Republic of Serbia. It is our job to try and solve this problem in the most effective way, by using the experiences of others. Waste Management Strategy for the period from

EnVIRonMEnTAl PRoTECTIon

Organizers of the round-table

30


2010 to 2019 plans to establish 26 regions for waste manage-ment on the territory of the Republic of Serbia,” said Rosa Stiković.

Ministry PlansIn his speech, Predrag Simić

from the Ministry presented the situation of municipal waste, the state of the regions and the strategic objectives on the path towards the EU. When it comes to data on generated municipal waste, modeling was done in 2014, and the results

show that, compared with 2008, the amount of gener-ated waste has increased by 0.5% per year. The Ministry estimates that about 70% of municipal waste in Serbia is or-ganized to be collected, main-ly in urban areas, while rural areas are poorly covered. “As far as the strategic objectives are concerned, the establish-ment of regional solid waste management is planned to be completed by the end of 2015. It is also planned to establish a system for the reduction of

biodegradable waste to landfill sites by 25% by 2022 and 50% by 2026 and 65% by 2030. These are the obligations that await us on the path towards the Eu-ropean Union”, said Simić and added that the investments in infrastructure for municipal waste must be well-coordinat-ed, in order to build a specific waste management system. In the first phase of construction of infrastructure, the Ministry plans to expand the collection coverage to 100%, establish the primary selection, to use sec-

Participants at the round-table

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ondary separation facilities, build recycling centers, con-struct a sanitary landfill, bio-waste composting and to close the existing illegal landfills. In the second phase, more expen-sive technology is planned to be introduced.

The results and plans of AP of Vojvodina

Provincial Secretariat for Urban Planning, Construction and Environmental Protection is responsible for legislation, control, implementation and approval of the project-plan-ning documents and therefore is included in each region and all the working groups in Vo-jvodina. In front of the Sec-retariat, the audience was addressed by Tatjana Djuric, Assistant Provincial Secretary. She talked about the steps taken in the field of regional waste management in Vojvo-dina, and about the status of regional landfills in Vojvodina. She said that nine regions will

be formed, inter-municipal agreements have already been signed, and the local and re-gional waste management plans have been made. “The majority of municipalities in Vojvodina have their own land-fills, but none is in compli-ance with EU technical stand-ards; they are all filled, so it is necessary to find a solution for their future work, until re-gional centers are built. An ad-ditional problem is the large number of illegal landfills. There are about 600 of them in Vojvodina,” said Assistant Pro-vincial Secretary.

Round table participants were representatives of inter-municipal working group for waste management Novi Sad, which gathers the seven mu-nicipalities of the South Banat region (Bačka Palanka, Vrbas, Bački Petrovac, Srbobran, Te-merin, Beočin, Žabalj) and the City of Novi Sad. They presented their current activi-ties and future plans. The re-sults and recommendations of the project Green Initiative of the Center for modern skills, as well as the initiation and results of the project of the Roma Recycling Center in the municipality of Žabalj, funded by the Open Society Institute from Budapest. Roland Fekete, Industrial Ecology Managing Di-rector at Lafarge, presented the way to use municipal waste in the production of alterna-tive energy sources.

Everybody agreed that waste management in Ser-bia is inadequate, that disposal sites often do not meet minimum technical requirements, and that all of this causes pollution. Participants agreed that mu-tual cooperation in this area is very important, as well as the financial mechanism (Environmental Protection Fund), in order to produce new solutions for the op-eration of regional waste management. Cooperation with NGOs is necessary for raising citizens’ awareness of the importance of environmental protection and proper waste management.

Ljiljana MaričićParticipants at the round-table

Jul 2014. - Jun 2015.MINISTARSTVO ZA LJUDSKA I MANJINSKA PRAVA

DRŽAVNU UPRAVU I LOKALNU SAMOUPRAVUUPRAVA ZA LJUDSKA I MANJINSKA PRAVA

Rumunija 1. Jul 2005 - 30. Jun 2006, Bugarska 1. Jul 2006 - 30. Jun 2007, Mađarska 1. Jul 2007 - 30. Jun 2008,Srbija 1. Jul 2008 - 30. Jun 2009, Slovačka 1. Jul 2009 - 30. Jun 2010, Češka 1. Jul 2010 - 30. Jun 2011,

Makedonija 1. Jul 2011 - 30. Jun 2012, Hrvatska 1. Jul 2012 - 30. Jun 2013, Crna Gora 1. Jul 2013 - 30. Jun 2014.

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Transcript of The Roma Decade in AP Vojvodina - uskolavrsac.edu.rs 48/engleski.pdfRepresentatives of Vojvodjanska...