Ionel Rotaru

Ionel Rotaru (1918-1982) was a Romani activist. Born in Bessarabia, now Moldova, he survived World War II and settled in France. Rotaru contributed significantly to the advocacy for his people, famously crowning himself as Vaida Voevod III, claiming to be the supreme leader of the Romani people. His founding of the Communauté Mondiale Gitane, the first international Romani organization, furthered his efforts to advocate for Romani rights and education. Despite challenges, including legal issues over specially issued passports for Roma, his efforts eventually led to the establishment of the International Romani Union and popularized the bicolor Romani flag.

Early life Ionel Rotaru was born in Bessarabia, now located in modern-day Moldova, in 1918. He had a middle-class upbringing living with his parents, three brothers, and two sisters. His family was literate; his father was an engineer, while two of his brothers held jobs as an architect and a journalist.

During World War II, he was a conscript in the Romanian Army before fleeing west in 1946 as the only surviving member of his family, the rest of them executed by the Nazis. He escaped to Italy, then Egypt, before settling in France in 1947. It is unclear whether he entered the country illegally. Before reaching Paris, he struggled to maintain a job, bouncing between various occupations and cities. He worked as a sailor in Marseille, a miner in Lens, and once in Paris, he was a porter in the Les Halles market for an unspecified period. At some point, e married his wife and moved into a one-bedroom apartment on 75 Rue Victor Hugo. The theatrical nature of the ceremony intrigued Romani intellectuals in Paris who considered themselves ‘the real Bohemians’.

Rotaru already had a support base among the Roma immigrants in Paris from Romania and other countries before this event. He had initially assisted the immigrants with issues of immigration, and was becoming increasingly involved in helping individuals with reparation claims against West Germany. The Romani intellectuals of Paris joined forces with him in support of this cause. the CIT was eventually renamed and became the International Romani Union.

Romani Flag

Ionel Rotaru played a significant role in the adoption and revival of the bicolor flag as a symbol of Romani identity and leadership. The bicolor flag, featuring green and blue stripes, appeared in Rotaru's sash when he asserted his leadership of the Romani people. By 1961, he openly declared the bicolor flag as the Flag of the Romani people.