Announcement: Second annual meeting of the Non-Kin-State Working Group in Berlin

From 26 to 28 November 2018, the second annual meeting of the minorities without a kin-state is going to take place in Berlin. The meeting will address the topics "Media and Digitisation", and also highlight the culture, languages and institutions of the German Sinti and Roma.

During the work sessions at the Documentation and Culture Centre of German Sinti and Roma in Berlin, the working group wants to focus on the strengths and successes of the minorities without a kin-state. Following the concept of solidarity, the members will exchange best-practice examples on the field of media and digitalisation, in order to help each other to find solutions to problems and challenges their communities are facing.

In addition to the work sessions, a meeting with Ms. Filiz Polat (Bündnis 90/ The Green Party), member of the German Bundestag, is scheduled for the second day of the event. The delegation will not only use this opportunity to report on the minorities’ concerns and activities, but also learn more about the political work of Ms. Filiz Polat, who is also a member of the Advisory Committee on questions of the Frisian ethnic group and the German Sinti and Roma.

The event will conclude with a visit to the monument for the Sinti and Roma who were killed under the nazi-regime and with a visit to the European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture (ERIAC). The ERIAC promotes the exchange and cooperation of European artists and intellectuals in order to break down prejudices and make the culture and history of the Roma in Europe more visible.

The Non-Kin-State Working Group was founded by the FUEN in 2017, and aims to give a voice to the minorities without a kin-state on a regional, national and European level. In the annual meetings, the working group’s members aim to exchange experiences and discuss solutions to the various problems and challenges of their minorities, like the gradual disappearance of their small languages and cultures, discrimination, assimilation or division of their communities.