Historical overview in the Czech Republic (1939 – 1945)

Adapted by:

DROM, the Romany Centre

Brána Youth Drop-in Centre

The status of Roma in the territory of the present-day Czech Republic was difficult at the time of the first Czechoslovak Republic. The Roma were settled but also lived a nomadic life. The Law on Nomadic Gypsies was established in 1927 aiming for the civilization of the Roma. Importance was given to the proper identification of Roma, to the list of all nomads where half-settled Roma were also counted (those who stayed through the winter in one place and travelled for work seasonally).

Due to the Law on Nomadic Gypsies, the first census of Gypsies took a place between June 1928 and August 1929. Almost forty thousands Roma, older then fourteen and already registered received a so called Gypsy identity card. It was in place of an ID card.

From 1939, the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was declared on the territory of the Czech Republic. Reinhard Heydrich was appointed as the Protector from August 1941. He was known for his extraordinary interest in the ethnic makeup of the occupied territories.

At the end of 1939, the Protectorate of the Ministry of Interior ordered all subordinate authorities to call for immediate settlement of Gypsies with a validity of two months. Gypsies who denied it were placed in labour camps – Bohemian Romani were sent to the camp in Lety u Písku, and Romani from Moravia to Hodonín u Kunštátu.

In March 1942 the Decree on the Preventive Fight against Criminality was issued by which antisocial individuals and people whose deviant behaviour threatened society, could be imprisoned without any criminal offense being committed. The reason arrests could be that they had been caught outside their officially recognized place of residence. Gypsies belonged to antisocial individuals as well. Under this regulation, the camps in Lety u Písku and Hodonín u Kunštátu were changed to detention camps.

In summer 1942, the protectorate police have issued the Decree on Combating the Gypsy Nuisance, measures mainly aimed at Gypsies. The census of all the Gypsies and mixed-race Gypsies was carried out. Their way of life, either settled or nomadic was not taken into account since they were integrated into the majority. What was crucial was ethnic origin. Together there have been about six and a half thousand Gypsies and mixed-race Gypsies.

Camps in Lety u Písku and Hodonín u Kunštátu were changed to gypsy camps and used as family assembly. Accommodation capacity was exceeded and sanitary conditions were neglected in both camps. Families were separated. Everyone had to work in quarries, forests or roads construction. A Typhus epidemic broke out in the camp. There were 14 deportations to Auschwitz between April 1942 and February 1944, mainly directed into the concentration and gypsy camps in Auschwitz II – Birkenau.

The amount of Gypsy survivors after the war was between 600 and 1000 in the territory of the present-day Czech Republic.

Communism

There was a significant resettlement of Roma from Slovakia to the Czech Republic after World War II. On the basis of the decree “Roma were to any useful work“ and presidential decree 88/1945 Coll. “General work duty“ was the transfer of labour allowed mainly to the Czech borderlands that were depopulated after expulsion of the German population. Whereas the Czech Roma mostly had not returned from Nazi concentration camps, most of the Roma living in the Czech Republic come from Slovakia.

Roma have been mainly employed in mountain pasture cooperatives, and later in state property and forestry. A job could be found also in the reconstruction of war-damaged economy - the construction of roads, reconstruction of factories. The second phase of Roma migration to Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia can be considered during the 1950s when people – often due to organized enlistments – to industrial centres in north-western Bohemia (Most, Sokolov, Teplice, Ústí nad Labem, Chomútov, Cheb, Déčín), to Kladno, Tachov, Český Krumlov and Ostrava. The most capable and persistent Roma left from underdeveloped Slovak settlements.

In consequence, migration of Slovak Roma increased the number of Roma living in the Czech lands by 16,000 people in two years. Roma were desirable as a labour force for works within reconstruction as well as the alternative labour force in new state properties, but they were not desirable for permanent settlement. They returned back to Slovakia after their work shifts. This trend continues today.

State authorities didn’t treat Roma as an individual nationality. Roma or Gypsies were not terms which were used but "citizens of Gypsy origin".

There was an opinion that Roma retardation could be overcome by changing their lifestyle and thus adapting to the majority.

The state focused on improving the housing, employment and school attendance. However, those plans were promoted unprofessionally, insensitively, and sometimes violently. Such was the deposition of previously nomadic – Vlach Roma: the then politicians came to believe that living in houses is better than a nomadic way of life. In 1958 a law was issued on which basis they took their horses and carriage wheels. Roma written on the list were not allowed to move without permission from the National Committee. And those who remained in as nomads could be punished by imprisonment of up to three years.

A similar method was used to solve Roma housing. They moved Roma families who were unable to live under new conditions into new blocks of flats. Many families against their will were transported to the Czech districts where they had to permanently settle. Since those Roma felt alone, isolated from their relatives, they began returning to their original settlements.

After the XI. Congress of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia issued the resolution of the Central Committee of Communist Party of Czechoslovakia “On the work of the Gypsy population” which marked the beginning of open assimilation of Roma in Czechoslovakia.

Roma were collectively included in mandatory work in companies and thus 11,000 Roma were employed in two years. This directive resolution of Roma employment meant an increased number of Roma in cities. Thousands of Roma acquired work in large factories in urban areas. The liquidation of Roma settlements, especially in areas of tourism, had started. Hundreds of Roma families who lived there were given flats or loans for their individual construction. Older, abandoned houses were also found that they could live in.

A similar procedure was also used in the education of Roma children: different measures that forced Roma parents to send their children to school were issued which caused the opinion that school is suffering, not necessity. To change the lives of the Roma population the government made considerable financial investments; however, they were applied without any real knowledge of the needs of the Roma. Due to this fact, these measures were not very successful and thus the Roma were blamed. However, many Roma managed to break out from their way of life, gain professional qualifications and solve their own housing.

In 1965, the government of Czechoslovak Socialist Republic issued a resolution setting out a concept of dispersion and the systematic expulsion of the Roma population to other parts of the country. In the context of the "Principles for organizing dispersion and transfer" have been identified as "twin regions" that should accept Roma from Slovakia. In 1967, there were 3,178 people evicted from Slovakia, while 1,034 Roma returned back in the same year. Between 1965-1968, the Roma issue was a subject of "The Government Committee for Gypsy citizens". In 1969, the “Government Commission for Gypsy citizens” was established at the Ministry of labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic. It focused on the problem solving of employment, especially the inclusion of all Roma capable of work into employment, education of Roma youths, re-education of adults, solving the housing standard, and the elimination of criminal activity. This new concept brought the policy of social benefits to the Roma population. Those allowances and social benefits discriminated the rest of population in the same way.

Government Commission, District Commissions and the entire network of fieldworkers were cancelled in 1991. Important means of mutual communication between state authorities and Roma population ceased to operate.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

ŠUVADA, M. 2015. Rómovia v slovenských mestách. Bratislava : POMS, 2015.

MANN, A.B.: Rómsky dejepis, Kalligram, 2001.

NEČAS, C., MIKLUŠÁKOVÁ, M. Historie Romů na území České republiky available on http://romove.radio.cz/cz/clanek/18785