Minister for minorities in trouble after making comments about the Roma

The minister for human rights and minorities Džamila Stehlíková is in hot water after making comments which have offended members of the country’s Roma population. In an interview for a local paper, Mrs Stehlíková said that the Czech Roma minority were prone to disrespect the property in which they lived, because they had not had to work for it. She was also quoted as saying that in the cases of Romany children underperforming at school, it was the parents who should be blamed, as they sent their children out to steal and not to learn. Mrs Stehlíková said that her comments had been misconstrued and that she was asked questions which set her up to answer in such a manner. She stressed that she did not think this was the case in all Roma households and apologized for sounding as if she was making generalizations.