Pardubice, Czech Republic: Representatives of the local Romani and Ukrainian communities, the police, the city and the Czech Govt Commissioner for Roma Minority Affairs met to reduce tensions. Local Roma condemned Sunday's demonstration

The meeting at the Pardubice Regional Police Directorate was attended by Czech Government Commissioner for Roma Minority Affairs Lucie Fuková; a representative of the Ukrainian community, Father Marian Kurylo; Deputy Mayor of Pardubice Jakub Rychtecký; and other representatives of local police, state police, and the Regional Authority. “The aim of the meeting was to bring the interested parties from the streets to the negotiating table and send the signal that the affected subjects are meeting together and that each is able to contribute to calming the situation,” said police spokesperson Markéta Janovská.

“The purpose of this meeting is to have a non-emotional discussion about what happened, what we can do about it, and how we can contribute to reducing tensions in society. We decidedly did not meet in order to find a culprit, because that is the task of the criminal proceedings we are currently conducting,” said Colonel Jan Ptáček, director of the Pardubice Regional Police Directorate.

Fuková: I am for dialogue, let’s not incite more conflict

Fuková expressed her support for dialogue and for any further conflicts to be nipped in the bud. “I unequivocally support dialogue and further conflicts not being incited,” she said, appealing for the importance of preventative activities when it comes to security in cyberspace and social media.

“I want to amplify the awareness that the police are working as they should. I also want to warn against disseminating disinformation so violence doesn’t move from the virtual environment into the real world,” the Commissioner for Roma Minority Affairs said.

The incident over the weekend sparked a wave of emotions and reactions, and not just on social media -on Sunday several hundred people assembled in Pardubice to express their support for the victim and their disagreement with violence, calling for security in the streets. According to organizers, a young Romani man was injured during the street brawl on Saturday, whose treatment involved two stitches to his face.

Such demonstrations might spark even more emotions, and Fuková said she considers them a cheap gesture. “This city has a functioning municipal Romani Council,” she said.

“It is important to involve Romani people at the local level. The city can ask what is bothering their local Romani residents, I believe that is the way we should move forward,” the Commissioner said.

“Collective guilt is not a good way to go. We Romani people ourselves know the meaning of being labeled in this society,” Fuková said.

“Romani people are frustrated by this situation, they are succumbing to the disinformation on social media,” the Commissioner added. Deputy Mayor Rychtecký (Žijeme Pardubice/ČSSD – “We Live in Pardubice/Czech Social Democratic Party”) said there have never been clashes before in Pardubice between the Romani and Ukrainian communities.

“It is necessary to be patient, the police are collecting evidence. We have agreed that both the local and state police will increase the number of their patrols in that locality,” the Deputy Mayor said.

According to the Deputy Mayor, the city has crime prevention programs in place that have been set up well. Father Kurylo, the Roman Catholic priest representing the local Ukrainian community, said: “I am sorry such a conflict happened.”

“I want to assure Romani people and other inhabitants that Ukrainians are not a threat. Our people were surprised by this,” said the priest.

“In every state there are people who are bad and those who are good. We can’t judge all Ukrainians by one case,” said Kurylo, who aids temporarily protected Ukrainians in Pardubice and has lived in the Czech Republic for seven years.

Pardubice Roma condemn Sunday’s demonstration and are against extremism

Fuková said representatives of the Ukrainian community have already visited Anenská Street and spoken with Romani residents there about the incident, reportedly very much in the spirit of reconciliation. Jiří Gašpar, chair of the Pardubice Romani Council, said he was grateful for the meeting.

“The investigation has just started. I can praise the state police for intervening quite quickly, otherwise it would have ended up even worse than it is now, possibly as a tragedy. I am glad this [meeting] has taken place, it’s calmed me down a bit, I will spread the word,” Gašpar said.

“Vyšetřování je na začátku. Můžu pochválit státní policii, že zasáhla velice rychle, jinak by to tam skončilo hůř než teď, možná tragédií. Jsem rád, že to tady proběhlo, trošku mě to uklidnilo, budu to ventilovat dál,” uvedl.

The Pardubice Roma said they had wanted to hold a demonstration that would be peaceful, but Romani people from other towns joined it and gave hateful speeches against Ukrainians, which they disliked, according to local resident Andrej Horváth. He added that he is against extremism.

All of the parties affected by the events of the weekend agreed that the conflict in Anenská Street was not some sort of outcome of longterm conflicts between the two communities, but an isolated incident. They also emphasized the need for mutual respect and tolerance.

Pardubice Police are investigating three foreign nationals for disorderly conduct

Pardubice police arrested three foreign nationals who were under the influence of alcohol after the conflict on Saturday. They are treating the case as one of disorderly conduct and working with several versions of how it unfolded.

The foreign nationals face up to two years in prison for disorderly conduct. “After the incident, three persons were arrested, booked and released. Three foreign nationals were involved. They were all given breath tests for alcohol that were all positive. I can guarantee you the investigation will be objective and transparent,” said the director of the Pardubice Regional Police, Jan Ptáček, who did not comment on the nationality of those involved in the brawl.

According to the regional police chief, the situation was a one-off and there is no need to adopt extraordinary measures in response. “After the call came in, police patrols made it to the scene within minutes and the conflict ended. There is no threat of further danger, the relationship between the majority society, the Roma and the Ukrainians is not escalated at all,” he said in response to questions from journalists.

The absolute beginning of the conflict involved three foreign nationals and 8-10 Romani people, according to the police chief. Later more people went to the scene and video footage will unravel everything that happened, he said.