The cooperation between the government and representatives of the Roma community in Croatia on boosting the position of Roma is a signpost for many other European countries, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Saturday.

The many projects across Croatia where the Roma minority lives show that is not just lip service, but a very concrete and systematic policy manifesting in prepared projects as well as in funding for those activities, he said at an event marking World Day of Romani Language, observed on 5 November.

The project of the European cultural and sport Roma centre in Istria will show the Croatian public the results of the joint work of the Roma community and the government, Plenkovic said. The future centre, he added, will be “a lasting value as well as an incentive to all in Croatia to maximally take part in the education system, which is a key area where additional progress must be made.”

The initiative to observe World Roma Day originated in the Croatian parliament, which led to that day being recognised by UNESCO and observed in 27 states across the world, Roma MP Veljko Kajtazi said.

It’s not just a formal initiative, but one which took hold in the Roma people, which for more than a millennium has been preserving its language, culture and tradition, which were not destroyed by assimilation processes, he added.

Without the government’s support since 2016, huge progress would not have been made in solving the problems of Roma in Croatia, Kajtazi said. They are not stopgap measures but a systematic approach through operational programmes for national minorities which don’t neglect the safeguarding of the Romani language, Kajtazi said.

Promoting the use of the Romani language in education, media as well as public and everyday life contributes to increasing respect for Romani culture, dignity and identity, said Zagreb Deputy Mayor Luka Korlaet. “Roma have a very important role in that as they must accept that education is imperative,” he said, adding that Zagreb will continue to award scholarships to Roma students.

The year 2012 was especially important for the Croatian parliament as it unanimously endorsed support for the international initiative to establish World Day of Romani Language, said Ivan Celic, envoy for the parliament speaker. “Language was and remains one of the crucial components of every people. It enables us to preserve and transfer our culture to the next generations, connecting us with our ancestors and descendants.”

World Day of Romani Language is a reminder of the importance of language for Roma identity, said Melita Mulic, the presidential advisor on human rights and civil society. Language, she added, “is without a doubt a key link in the chain of identity.”

Preserving language is very important because a people disappears unless it preserves its language, said Suzana Krčmar, president of the Croatian Roma Federation Kali Sara.

Plenkovic presented with Roma Mother award

At the ceremony, awards were presented for special merit in the preservation, standardising and development of the Romani language. Given for the first time this year was the Roma Mother award, which Kajtazi presented to Plenković.