{"id":662,"date":"2010-12-17T17:22:20","date_gmt":"2010-12-17T17:22:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/memorial.local:8888\/www\/662.html"},"modified":"2011-08-09T12:32:51","modified_gmt":"2011-08-09T12:32:51","slug":"the-education-of-romani-children-has-become-a-subject-for-discussion-amongst-academics-social-activists-and-officials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/news\/the-education-of-romani-children-has-become-a-subject-for-discussion-amongst-academics-social-activists-and-officials\/","title":{"rendered":"The Education of Romani Children Has Become a Subject for Discussion amongst Academics, Social activists and Officials"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Education of Romani Children Has Become a Subject for Discussion amongst Academics, Social activists and Officials<\/strong><\/p>\n

The International Festival of Roma Art took place recently in Moscow, as a part of which the conference on \u201cThe Socio-Cultural Specifics of Romani Education in the Russian Education System and the Preparation of Teaching Staff\u201d<\/span>was held on 23<\/span>rd<\/span><\/sup> March 2004. The conference was organised by The Union of Romani Social Organisations \u201cRomani Prala\u201d with the support of the Moscow City Administration and took place in the Moscow House of Nationalities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Deputy Minister of Nationalities, N. F. Bugai, noted that \u201cUntil now, organs of state power have not paid sufficient attention to the Romani ethnic minority. The history of the Romani is tragic. Besides their annihilation during the Second World War, they also endured deportations along with the peoples of Adzharia, the Crimea and the Kuban. It is the state\u2019s duty to restore historical equilibrium in its attitude to nations. It has to be admitted that often the Romani themselves are inactive, but the callousness of some officials is surprising. It is pleasing to see that academics studying the Romani have raised such an important issue as education and culture. I hope that this voice will be heard and with our collective strength we will solve these complex problems. We cannot lag behind Europe, where national minorities are supported at a national<\/span>level.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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V.A. Mizherikov, an advisor to the Russian Ministry of Education\u2019s Department of General and Pre-School Education, emphasised that the issues at hand have \u201cpolitical, cultural and educational importance\u201d and noted that the conference had a \u201csymbolic character\u201d. He expressed his readiness to co-operate at a high level.<\/p>\n

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N. I. Kiyashchenko, Head of the Department of Axiology and Philosphical Anthropology at the Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Science (Moscow), in his lecture \u201cTolerance and the Problem of Cultural Integration\u201d stressed that Russian society must aim to preserve the culture of minority peoples, given that in today\u2019s world, where globalisation is gaining momentum, there exists a genuine danger of losing cultural wealth and diversity. The preservation of Romani culture will be a tremendous victory for Russian culture as a whole.<\/p>\n

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N.G. Belugin, an expert on Romani language and culture (Moscow), in her lecture \u201cSocio-Cultural Prerequisites of the Necessity for Education of Romani Children in Modern Conditions\u201d laid out the key stages of the development of the Romani Intelligentsia. She also pointed out the unacceptability of the behaviour of some journalists who only write about the negative side of Romani life, creating a false impression of the whole Romani people. N.G. Belugin pointed to the need for the adoption of a government programme to support the education of Romani children and their integration into a non-Romani environment, and for sociologists, psychologists,<\/span>educational specialists and philosophers to take part in its creation.<\/span><\/p>\n

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N.I. Samulevich, president of the social organisation \u201cRomani Community of the North-West\u201d (St. Petersburg), said that the organs of state power often fail to meet the demands of the Romani people\u2019s representatives.