Anti-Roma Stigma of Czech President Miloš Zeman Threatens Progress Over Romani Rights
Members of the Czech government council for Roma community affairs reacted angrily to Zeman’s allegations.
Czech president Miloš Zeman faces a tough run-off against rival Jiří Drahoš in the second round of the presidential election on January 26-27. Voters will deliver their verdict on Zeman’s open hostility to refugees, Muslims, and the European Union, and his support for Russia.
While the vote can be seen as a choice between the country leaning east or west in the future, Zeman’s controversial remarks about Roma demonstrate that many of the questions dividing Czechs are also rooted in the nation’s past.