Representation & Politics Editorial Note Probably noise... This article first appeared in June 2001. Since then the MROP has not made much headway. Florian Farkas's association with Fidesz and his general orientation created a massive division between the types of Roma (mentioned in this artilce) but Aladar Horvath began to speak more in "unifying language" and ended up winning a landslide in the national elections in 2003. Aladar Horvath became concerned about the disappearance of funds which had been received by the Roma minority self government which he headed. He openly stated that this would be investigated. Rather than gain the assistance of his politician "colleagues" they entered into panic and immediately voted him out of office to avoid exposure and embarasssment. Such is the shady nature and lack of transparency in the minority self-governments which the Hungarian goverments parade worldwide as an example of minority representation and inclusion. Magyarországi Roma Összefogás Párt gets moving... Music or Noise? Return to the Representation list A new Roma political party has been taking the Roma population in the rural regions by storm. The MROP(Magyarországi Roma Összefogás Párt) The Part for Hungarian Roma Union, is headed by Roma from the traditional musical groups but includes some well known political activists such as Pusoma Jeno. This movement seems to have broken a traditional mould in that it is attracting the broad base of Romungro who make up over 75% of the Hungarian Roma population. Meetings are well-attended by unusually enthusiastic Roma and the meetings tend to be open air affairs. Roma travel many miles to attend these meetings. A meeting at Kápolna , some three weeks ago was attended by over 3,500 Roma. Over 3,500 Roma attended this early MROP rally in Kápolna in June, 2001 Photo© 2001, RomaniWorld Messages The messages coming from the speeches at these meetings are clear and to the point. As Hungarian citizens the Roma want full access to good quality education, training and employment. It is frankly declared that the experiment with Roma self-government has failed. The speakers do not criticise those in the Roma self-government but rather emphasise that the lack of funding has turned the whole system into a farce, at the expense of the Roma. MROP offers collaboration with the other Roma factions and there is no hint of rivalry. The term, "Its now or never!" is repeated frequently. Jenö Pusoma made popular contributions Photo© 2001, RomaniWorld Delivering the message Some of MROP's leadership is new to politics. They are somewhat sophisticated in their use of Hungarian and, although making excellent strategic points on Hungaraian policy and minority issues which might interest foreign journalists, they did not seem to engage the audience. But this was early days. On the other hand, more seasoned speakers, like Jeno Pusoma, fully engaged the audience and had them cheering at every declaration he made. The MROP is not content to remain with the government of Hungary making declarations about the Roma on which they do not deliver. The issue has become direct participation by the Roma in the decisions which affect them; a push towards participatory democracy. The MROP has its sights therefore on the Hungarian Parliament hoping to campaign for the election of Roma politicians. This is leaving Lungo Drom and other Roma parties somewhat in the shadows because they have not focused on this angle. At Kal one of the largest groups was from the village of Tiszanana, a village which has become increasingly active in Romani affairs during the last three years through the development of private NGOs and rural action groups.