Roma anthem and flag

The Flag: The Congress of London of the International Romani Union in 1971 defined the flag of the Roma people like a red wheel, taking again all the Indian symbolic system of the wheel, centered on two-tone bottom: blue higher half, symbolizing the Sky, infinite father of Humanity, and green lower half, symbolizing the Earth, mother of Humanity. This flag can be seen in various festivals and events.

The song, GELEM, GELEM, whose music is popular of Banat and the words were composed by Jarko Jovanovic at the time of his visit in Struthof, became spontaneously during years and by its popularity, the national anthem of the Roma people. It was devoted to be the Roma anthem by the Congress of Geneva in 1978; the Congress of Warsaw in 1990 published the official words in four parties.

The anthem GELEM, GELEM can be interpreted with any style of traditional Roma music (Eastern, lovesong, flamenco, rumba) This freedom of interpretation expresses the richness of the cultural traditions of Roma and the mutual respect of the different groups the ones for the others. Despite this, the melody line and the words are fixed.