Czech Republic – New Research Shows l/3 of Romani Women Have Experienced Domestic Violence
Author: Administrator
Date: June 20, 2025
The Romani are a group of people who travel around and lead a nomadic life. Although most of them live in Central and Eastern Europe they can be found on every continent. About 12 million Romani live in our world today
Czech Republic – New Research Shows l/3 of Romani Women Have Experienced Domestic Violence; Discussion of This in Romani Families Remains Taboo
By Lukáš Cirok – Soňa Kalejová – Zdeněk Ryšavý – Gwendolyn Albert
05 June 2025 – Almost 30 % of Romani women in the Czech Republic have had personal experience with domestic violence. Those are the findings of research undertaken by the Slovo 21 organization which were presented at the “Speak Up” (Mluv nahlas) conference during the Khamoro World Roma Festival in Prague last month.
Romani women usually turn to their relatives for aid in such cases, not to institutions, the research found. They fear the perpetrators, are financially dependent on them, and frequently do not know where to turn.
The research surveyed 500 Romani women from 19 towns in the Czech Republic. More than two-thirds said they know somebody who has experienced domestic violence, while 28.6 % said that they have experienced it personally themselves.
An alarming finding is that more than half of the women said violence in their circles happens repeatedly or even constantly. Of the different kinds of domestic violence, the respondents said they experienced physical assault most frequently (272), followed by psychological violence such as curses, ridicule, or intimidation (263).
More than 10 % of the Romani women said they had also encountered sexual violence or being denied access to the family’s finances. “Romani women usually do their best to cope with addressing domestic violence on their own or turn to informal networks of support. I am of the opinion that this is related to the limited availability of services or a lack of information about where they can turn,” said Selma Muhič Dizdarevič of Charles University’s Faculty of Humanities, who analyzed the research findings.
It is exactly this distrust and isolation that the “Mluv nahlas” [Speak Up] project, created by the Slovo21 organization, is attempting to address. “The Speak Up project has been running since September 2023. Thanks to the Manushe women’s group, we are trusted in the localities and we can at least direct these women to those who can professionally aid them,” project coordinator Claudie Laburdová said.
Discussion of domestic violence remains taboo in the Romani community
Domestic violence remains a subject nobody discusses in many Romani families, including because of deeply-rooted values prioritizing family cohesion. “Yes, discussion of this is taboo. We frequently hear from Romani women that they don’t want to break up their families because of their children. The woman’s apron is meant to shield everything that happens in the home from view,” Jarmila Kuchárová, coordinator of the Manushe group in the Ústecký Region, told ROMEA TV.
Kuchárová said she has encountered several cases of such violence herself. For instance, she came to the aid of a young mother whom she helped get to safety in time and found a lawyer to assist her as well as shelter for her in collaboration with the White Circle of Safety organization (Bílý kruh bezpečí).
Most Romani domestic violence victims never get professional aid, though. More than a third of the Romani women surveyed said nobody ever assisted them with their domestic violence situation.
What were the reasons they were so isolated? The concern that nobody would believe what was happening to them, fear of the perpetrator, financial dependency on the perpetrator, and lacking information about what to do in such a situation.
Cultural and systemic obstacles
In the Czech Republic, Romani women have to deal with their specific position. They are discriminated against on the basis of their ethnicity and their gender in the majority society and on the basis of their gender within Romani communities.
Such women frequently experience multiple discrimination. “Our respondents know domestic violence exists, but even if they realize what its various forms are, some of those forms, such as economic violence, are still less recognizable to them,” the author of the research warned ROMEA TV.
Most of the Romani women surveyed said they disagree with the idea that a woman should stay in the home and only have social contact with others in the presence of her partner. “Certainly we see progress. Romani women are unafraid to say they want to be heard and respected, not just at home, but also in society,” Laburdová said.
Although most of the Romani women surveyed said they reject traditional gender roles, more than one-fourth said they still believe their sons should be raised to be the future heads of their families and almost half agreed that their daughters should be obedient.
Information and trust are part of escaping domestic violence
The vast majority of the Romani women surveyed (95 %) said domestic violence must be discussed more. “That number is essential to us. It shows the women want change, they want to speak openly about what they are living through, and they are looking for ways to defend themselves,” said Laburdová.
In April a new campaign against domestic violence began in the Czech Republic called “Podej ruku” [Give A Helping Hand]. The campaign targets people who may know a domestic violence victim.
The aim of the campaign is to instruct victims’ acquaintances or loved ones on how to provide them with effective aid. The acronym RUKA (“hand”),
for Rozpoznej, Ubezpeč, Konzultuj, Asistuj [recognize, secure, consult, assist] is meant to help such people remember what to do.
Anybody who knows a victim of domestic violence should consult experts on how to address the situation. Experts and the research team warn that without the active involvement of Romani women themselves, it will be impossible to effectively address domestic violence in the Romani community.
It is exactly Romani women’s experiences, their trusted positions in their community, and their willingness to speak up which are crucial. In addition, it is necessary to build up Romani women’s trust in aid from institutions, expand the network of shelters for domestic violence victims in the Czech Republic, and strengthen prevention measures.
According to the research findings, these are the only ways to break through the silence about domestic violence in the Romani community, to eliminate the stigma surrounding it, and to open up a path to safety for the women concerned.
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