Zagreb - The International Day of Remembrance of the Roma Genocide Victims of the Second World War, more than half a million of them, was commemorated for the 12th time in a row in Uštica, one of the execution grounds of the Jasenovac camp.
In the area of the Roma Memorial Center, next to the tomb of the exhumed victims, numerous delegations laid wreaths and lit candles in memory of August 2, 1944, when the last group of 2,897 Roma were executed in the Auschwitz concentration camp.
Wreaths were also laid by the delegations of the President of the Republic of Croatia, the Parliament, the Government, the "Kali Sara" Roma Association, numerous diplomatic delegations from embassies in Croatia, as well as associations and individuals.
Member of Parliament Veljko Kajtazi remembered all the Roma victims of the Second World War, including those from Jasenovac, whose number is not yet final. In the Ustasha Jasenovac camp, the so-called "camp 3c", the Roma, he added, were recorded as a number and not with their personal information.
Kajtazi especially warned about the term "Samudaripen", which was chosen by the Roma community for the wartime genocide against the Roma.
Referring to the current position of the Roma in Croatia, he said that in the last twenty years a lot has been done regarding the status of the Roma community, but he also mentioned objections related to obtaining citizenship and health care.
In some areas, the Roma are belittled, insulted and accused of all problems, which is supported by local leaders, he said.