For the third time, the International Cultural and Sports Association of Roma Carmen e.V. hosted a Community Evening to mark the end of the year on 25 December 2025 at the Schützenhaus of St. Sebastian Schützenverein Düsseldorf-Eller e.V. Sami Dzemailovski, Chairman of the association, welcomed more than 250 interested guests, including many children, and presented an overview of the year’s activities and project outcomes. Alongside the Week of Roma Culture, he particularly highlighted the information campaign aimed at mobilizing the Roma community to participate in the municipal and integration council elections in North Rhine-Westphalia in September.
“Never before have so many Roma shown interest in and participated in the elections,” Dzemailovski noted, emphasizing: “Mobilization is also succeeding in rural areas.”
In Greven, in the district of Steinfurt, a Roma representative, David Berisa, an employee of Carmen e.V., was elected to the Integration Council for the first time. He also succeeded in encouraging the Roma community of Romanian origin in Bönen, district of Unna, to take part in the elections. Berisa stated: “Our project title ‘Roma Shape the Future’ is not just a heading—it is our program.”
The children’s activities, inspired by characters like Super Mario and Luigi, were also combined with a meaningful message: “Respect and tolerance make life better,” they emphasized.
Accompanied by live music from Emran Karimani and his band, the evening became a vibrant celebration for all participants—offering encouragement for the year ahead and ending on a hopeful and forward-looking note.