1 00:00:04,000 --> 00:00:08,330 Petr Torák Life in UK 2 00:00:08,490 --> 00:00:12,740 After that first night, immigration officials picked us up 3 00:00:12,860 --> 00:00:16,610 and took us to an asylum detention facility. 4 00:00:17,070 --> 00:00:19,350 And there, for the first time in our lives, we saw people 5 00:00:19,350 --> 00:00:21,680 of different colours and different cultures and religions. 6 00:00:21,710 --> 00:00:25,950 For the first time we saw people in burqas or black people. 7 00:00:25,950 --> 00:00:28,730 It was really a huge culture shock for us. 8 00:00:28,730 --> 00:00:30,970 From the very first moment it was a huge culture shock. 9 00:00:31,770 --> 00:00:35,240 We stayed in that center for, I think, two or three days. 10 00:00:35,420 --> 00:00:39,950 And we were very happy, because you really didn't have any intimacy there. 11 00:00:40,190 --> 00:00:43,840 There were hundreds of asylum seekers. 12 00:00:43,930 --> 00:00:46,080 No one understood anyone properly. 13 00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:50,600 Of course, we were afraid to go anywhere alone in that center. 14 00:00:51,380 --> 00:00:54,400 So we were glad when they took us away afterwards. 15 00:00:54,560 --> 00:00:55,840 We didn't know where they were taking us. 16 00:00:55,840 --> 00:00:58,330 But we traveled for an awfully long time, about two hours. 17 00:00:58,540 --> 00:01:03,610 And suddenly we came to a city where we could see the sea. 18 00:01:03,690 --> 00:01:05,480 And it was practically the first time for me. 19 00:01:05,480 --> 00:01:08,250 I was by the sea in Germany when I was four or five years old. 20 00:01:08,250 --> 00:01:09,770 So I didn't remember much. 21 00:01:09,970 --> 00:01:12,890 But suddenly we were there and there were beaches and the sea around. 22 00:01:12,890 --> 00:01:14,370 We didn´t know what was going on. 23 00:01:14,500 --> 00:01:18,250 Of course, for a while we wondered if they would take us to Dover, 24 00:01:18,290 --> 00:01:23,610 from where they would then ship us back to Europe, home. 25 00:01:23,610 --> 00:01:27,210 But then we went along the beach. 26 00:01:27,210 --> 00:01:32,240 And on the right side up there was a huge complex. 27 00:01:32,240 --> 00:01:36,090 A huge house, or a large building. 28 00:01:36,090 --> 00:01:39,310 And our driver said to us: "Your house." 29 00:01:39,620 --> 00:01:41,470 And he tried to tell us that we were going to live there. 30 00:01:41,470 --> 00:01:43,390 We thought he was joking. 31 00:01:43,390 --> 00:01:47,840 But then he really turned towards it and on that house 32 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:51,320 on that hotel, now I know it was a hotel, it was written Palace Hotel. 33 00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:54,290 We thought that they must be joking, we will live in the Palace. 34 00:01:54,290 --> 00:01:57,760 And it really looked like that, it was a pure white, huge building. 35 00:01:57,760 --> 00:02:01,450 Directly with views of the beaches and the entertainment center. 36 00:02:01,600 --> 00:02:05,160 So we said to each other what it is, what it means and we went there. 37 00:02:05,160 --> 00:02:09,520 And they actually turned the hotel into an emigration center for asylum seekers. 38 00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:12,310 So there were mostly people from Europe. 39 00:02:12,580 --> 00:02:15,280 There were Roma from the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland. 40 00:02:15,330 --> 00:02:20,480 And then a few asylum seekers from other continents, Africa or Asia. 41 00:02:20,690 --> 00:02:22,060 So they accommodated us there. 42 00:02:22,120 --> 00:02:24,900 I had my own room for the first time in my life. 43 00:02:25,010 --> 00:02:29,670 Because I was already an adult, they gave me my own room, with a direct view of the sea. 44 00:02:29,670 --> 00:02:31,520 So one really lived as... 45 00:02:32,760 --> 00:02:35,280 We couldn't even believe it. 46 00:02:35,460 --> 00:02:38,770 And then an interpreter was waiting for us there, who explained to us 47 00:02:38,770 --> 00:02:41,970 that we will live there for some time before they give us a state house. 48 00:02:41,970 --> 00:02:46,250 So we lived there for about two months. 49 00:02:46,620 --> 00:02:48,920 I remember the moment they dropped us off 50 00:02:48,920 --> 00:02:52,320 and we put our things in our rooms, we went out to eat. 51 00:02:52,320 --> 00:02:53,380 Or we wanted to go out to eat. 52 00:02:53,380 --> 00:02:56,130 But the person had a huge problem how to function anyway. 53 00:02:56,130 --> 00:03:01,050 Also the basic things, when a person would go to the store, buy bread, cut it, the butter. 54 00:03:01,210 --> 00:03:02,190 There was nothing like that. 55 00:03:02,190 --> 00:03:06,420 We searched for maybe two hours for normal Czech bread, a loaf. 56 00:03:06,750 --> 00:03:09,920 And there were those soft, polystyrene-like cubes everywhere. 57 00:03:10,760 --> 00:03:15,690 So it was another culture shock for us, what not to eat. 58 00:03:15,690 --> 00:03:17,790 So we ended up somewhere in KFC 59 00:03:18,090 --> 00:03:20,130 where we had some normal food. 60 00:03:20,130 --> 00:03:24,350 But it took us several, I would say maybe even weeks, 61 00:03:24,350 --> 00:03:27,240 before we got the hang of what a person can eat. 62 00:03:27,420 --> 00:03:31,820 At the same time, there was another aspect of the culture shock. 63 00:03:31,820 --> 00:03:35,540 And that was the relationship between the people there. 64 00:03:35,540 --> 00:03:38,530 I remember that when I was walking in the park in the morning 65 00:03:38,940 --> 00:03:41,180 for example, English people greeted me by themselves. 66 00:03:41,180 --> 00:03:44,810 And even a banal thing like this was a huge thing for me. 67 00:03:44,970 --> 00:03:47,900 It shocked me immediately, because it never happened to me in the Czech Republic 68 00:03:47,900 --> 00:03:51,240 when I went to school, from school, or anywhere, for example, 69 00:03:51,240 --> 00:03:54,360 that non-Roma would greet me like that. 70 00:03:54,360 --> 00:03:57,320 Most of the time, unless there was no interaction. 71 00:03:57,320 --> 00:03:59,820 Or there was the fact that the person preferred to walk 72 00:03:59,820 --> 00:04:02,200 a little further in that park, or to the other side. 73 00:04:02,360 --> 00:04:07,930 But here these people greeted me with a smile, so it was a huge shock to me. 74 00:04:08,110 --> 00:04:11,690 We couldn't work because we didn't have a work permit 75 00:04:11,690 --> 00:04:15,490 during the first year when a person applies for asylum. 76 00:04:15,540 --> 00:04:21,100 So we received some kind of vouchers from the social system, 77 00:04:21,530 --> 00:04:26,330 which we could then exchange for food and other necessary things in the store. 78 00:04:26,460 --> 00:04:28,400 And we received them every week. 79 00:04:28,720 --> 00:04:33,020 I got mine, my parents got it for themselves and for my siblings. 80 00:04:33,180 --> 00:04:35,640 During that time, because we didn't want to be idle, 81 00:04:35,640 --> 00:04:37,800 of course we wanted to function in some way, 82 00:04:38,450 --> 00:04:41,200 so once when we were with our immigration lawyer, 83 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:43,470 who we had right there a short distance from the hotel, 84 00:04:43,840 --> 00:04:48,900 dad had an idea that I wasn't very excited about at the time. 85 00:04:48,900 --> 00:04:53,680 But he asked the lawyer if she would like me to help there for free. 86 00:04:53,890 --> 00:04:57,300 And of course I was completely shocked, I didn't have a self-confidence at that time. 87 00:04:57,300 --> 00:05:01,060 I didn't really know English yet, so I protested. 88 00:05:01,060 --> 00:05:05,530 But, of course, now I know how very progressive that idea was. 89 00:05:05,620 --> 00:05:09,230 Because the lady immediately agreed to it, she was very happy. 90 00:05:09,410 --> 00:05:12,930 And in three months, by going there every day, 91 00:05:12,930 --> 00:05:15,900 I was able to help copy there at the beginning. 92 00:05:15,900 --> 00:05:17,630 Then I started to translate. 93 00:05:17,630 --> 00:05:22,400 So in three months I was able to translate for the other Roma asylum seekers. 94 00:05:22,440 --> 00:05:24,640 I was able to do basic administration. 95 00:05:24,640 --> 00:05:30,240 And I have practically started to improve myself in that system of Britain. 96 00:05:30,240 --> 00:05:32,340 And I already knew what, where and how it works. 97 00:05:32,400 --> 00:05:35,640 So even after work, I went to people's homes 98 00:05:35,730 --> 00:05:39,230 and started helping them, for example, with phone calls. 99 00:05:39,230 --> 00:05:44,770 Or with dealing with how, for example, to change energy suppliers. 100 00:05:44,770 --> 00:05:46,990 I started doing different things like that. 101 00:05:46,990 --> 00:05:51,570 And I think that this started my life career, 102 00:05:51,570 --> 00:05:57,320 or the life path of the social sphere of helping other people. 103 00:05:57,340 --> 00:05:59,530 During that first year, when we couldn't work yet, 104 00:05:59,530 --> 00:06:06,250 both my parents and I joined a local college where we learned English. 105 00:06:06,270 --> 00:06:08,460 It was basic English for foreigners. 106 00:06:09,610 --> 00:06:11,540 My siblings went to school long ago. 107 00:06:11,540 --> 00:06:13,690 They entered elementary school right from the beginning. 108 00:06:13,840 --> 00:06:17,380 And as soon as we improved our English, 109 00:06:17,480 --> 00:06:20,100 of course I wanted to continue. 110 00:06:20,100 --> 00:06:23,310 I wanted to fulfill a dream that I couldn´t fulfill 111 00:06:23,310 --> 00:06:26,290 in the Czech Republic and get to the university. 112 00:06:26,520 --> 00:06:27,920 It took a while. 113 00:06:28,570 --> 00:06:33,000 But in 2006, in addition to my job, already while working as a police officer, 114 00:06:33,280 --> 00:06:36,370 I joined the Open University, 115 00:06:36,780 --> 00:06:40,690 which I studied remotely while working. 116 00:06:40,830 --> 00:06:45,020 And I graduated with a bachelor's degree in psychology and criminology. 117 00:06:45,550 --> 00:06:49,600 After that year, when we got a work permit, 118 00:06:49,700 --> 00:06:51,870 we acted immediately. 119 00:06:51,870 --> 00:06:54,760 That very day I went to McDonald's, 120 00:06:54,760 --> 00:06:57,840 where I saw that they were hiring, in the town of Southend-on-Sea. 121 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:00,000 So I went there, I got a job 122 00:07:00,000 --> 00:07:04,040 and I immediately started working there, the simplest works. 123 00:07:04,220 --> 00:07:07,980 There weren't that many job opportunities in Southend-on-Sea, 124 00:07:07,980 --> 00:07:11,730 that seaside town, so you couldn't really choose. 125 00:07:11,880 --> 00:07:17,860 And that's why, I think it was in May, a year later, 126 00:07:18,180 --> 00:07:22,460 my friend found out, through some of his family and friends, 127 00:07:22,580 --> 00:07:26,670 that in Peterborough, which is about three hours from Southend-on-Sea, 128 00:07:26,670 --> 00:07:29,330 that there are a lot of job opportunities. 129 00:07:29,330 --> 00:07:30,960 And that they want to try it there. 130 00:07:30,960 --> 00:07:32,250 So I went with them. 131 00:07:32,770 --> 00:07:34,100 I found housing there 132 00:07:34,100 --> 00:07:37,170 and subsequently moved my whole family there. 133 00:07:37,310 --> 00:07:39,560 And so we settled in Peterborough, 134 00:07:39,740 --> 00:07:43,170 where there was really a lot of work, we could choose. 135 00:07:43,170 --> 00:07:47,170 Of course, it was still manual work in the fields, in factories. 136 00:07:47,170 --> 00:07:50,200 Packaging, cutting flowers and various things like that. 137 00:07:50,530 --> 00:07:53,800 Or in a potato factory, carrying sacks and so on. 138 00:07:53,950 --> 00:07:56,530 But it was a well-paid job. 139 00:07:56,610 --> 00:07:59,000 There was really a lot of work, we could do a lot of overtime. 140 00:07:59,000 --> 00:08:03,970 So I suddenly started to have relatively decent amount of money. 141 00:08:04,040 --> 00:08:07,970 And for me, as a young person, it was very interesting. 142 00:08:07,970 --> 00:08:12,200 So I went through the work in the factories first. 143 00:08:12,290 --> 00:08:14,770 Subsequently, in those factories, when I already knew English well, 144 00:08:14,770 --> 00:08:17,700 I helped other immigrants to translate. 145 00:08:17,700 --> 00:08:22,120 This was noticed by my superiors and I became a team leader in the factory. 146 00:08:22,170 --> 00:08:25,130 And I gradually started to build my career. 147 00:08:25,130 --> 00:08:29,220 From those factories, I transferred to the Tesco supermarket, 148 00:08:29,360 --> 00:08:33,800 where I started working first at the shelves. 149 00:08:33,940 --> 00:08:39,080 Then I transferred to security, where I guarded the store at night. 150 00:08:39,130 --> 00:08:44,910 And during that job in security, I also started getting to know the policemen. 151 00:08:44,910 --> 00:08:48,190 We always called the police to deal with some theft. 152 00:08:48,260 --> 00:08:50,190 That's how I got to know the policemen. 153 00:08:50,300 --> 00:08:54,180 We started talking about what it would be like if I worked in the police. 154 00:08:54,220 --> 00:09:00,350 And during the time I worked at Tesco, I had some other activities. 155 00:09:00,540 --> 00:09:03,250 I helped the local bureau with the translation. 156 00:09:03,880 --> 00:09:08,960 I helped immigrants fill out various forms, make phone calls and stuff like that. 157 00:09:09,120 --> 00:09:16,820 And at the same time I decided to run for the local office for the Labor party. 158 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:23,700 And since it didn't work out, I finished third in that order, 159 00:09:24,820 --> 00:09:29,400 so right after the election my friend Greg, a policeman at the time, have told me: 160 00:09:29,400 --> 00:09:32,180 "You didn't get into politics, don't you want to try the police?" 161 00:09:32,300 --> 00:09:34,180 And I told him that I would like to. 162 00:09:34,180 --> 00:09:39,940 But around 2003 or 2004, I already tried to join the police. 163 00:09:39,970 --> 00:09:42,840 I went to the police station and I was told 164 00:09:42,840 --> 00:09:45,370 that I had to be British to work for the police. 165 00:09:45,370 --> 00:09:47,310 And my friend Greg told me: 166 00:09:47,310 --> 00:09:50,500 "No, no, that's not true at all, they gave you the wrong information." 167 00:09:50,590 --> 00:09:56,600 And he helped me get through the process and apply for the PCSO position, 168 00:09:56,600 --> 00:09:58,680 which is Police Community Support Officers. 169 00:09:58,860 --> 00:10:03,410 Something like the equivalent of a city policeman in the Czech Republic or Slovakia. 170 00:10:03,690 --> 00:10:08,640 So I joined the city police for the first year. 171 00:10:08,680 --> 00:10:12,500 And after a year, I was transferred to the state police, 172 00:10:12,800 --> 00:10:14,650 where I worked for the next ten years. 173 00:10:14,720 --> 00:10:20,370 And it was during that police work that I decided to go to college. 174 00:10:20,440 --> 00:10:24,600 When I started working as a community police officer, 175 00:10:24,600 --> 00:10:27,930 my main job was to talk. 176 00:10:27,970 --> 00:10:34,120 Talking to people outside and really spending most, 95% of my time outside on the street. 177 00:10:34,480 --> 00:10:38,520 Going to schools, nursing homes, shops, 178 00:10:38,520 --> 00:10:40,920 talking to people outside in the park and so on. 179 00:10:41,020 --> 00:10:44,610 On the one hand, to present a positive image of the police, 180 00:10:44,760 --> 00:10:51,180 but at the same time, of course, to obtain data or information about the crime. 181 00:10:51,240 --> 00:10:54,360 And at the same time helping people in different situations. 182 00:10:54,360 --> 00:10:56,100 So that was my main job. 183 00:10:56,220 --> 00:10:59,880 A community police officer in Britain is equipped only with a pencil and a notebook. 184 00:10:59,880 --> 00:11:02,170 That's all a community worker has. 185 00:11:02,170 --> 00:11:04,080 Because really, that's all he should have. 186 00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:11,180 And that job de facto gave me the opportunity to improve my communication skills. 187 00:11:11,180 --> 00:11:16,300 Because, of course, if a person has to make do with his mouth and his communication, 188 00:11:16,300 --> 00:11:20,210 then he will learn to deal with people in different situations. 189 00:11:20,210 --> 00:11:25,470 Even in situations that could possibly be classified as very dangerous, 190 00:11:25,470 --> 00:11:29,340 one must learn to rely only on that communication. 191 00:11:29,860 --> 00:11:32,750 After that year, when I transferred to the police, 192 00:11:32,750 --> 00:11:39,560 I actually spent the first two years dealing with the probationary part there. 193 00:11:39,560 --> 00:11:41,850 There I dealt with absolutely everything from A to Z. 194 00:11:41,980 --> 00:11:47,220 Domestic violence, theft, some altercations in the nightclubs. 195 00:11:47,460 --> 00:11:51,140 Practically the whole range, right up to sudden death. 196 00:11:51,140 --> 00:11:58,900 Or even something like the first intervention in an incident, 197 00:11:58,900 --> 00:12:02,860 such as murders or more serious crimes. 198 00:12:03,060 --> 00:12:11,090 But practically from the beginning of my work as a community police officer, 199 00:12:11,140 --> 00:12:14,290 I started to get involved in an area 200 00:12:14,290 --> 00:12:17,050 that was completely unknown to me until then. 201 00:12:17,050 --> 00:12:21,070 And that was modern day slavery. 202 00:12:21,250 --> 00:12:23,520 Or the exploitation of people. 203 00:12:23,630 --> 00:12:25,700 Of course, until that time, like most people, 204 00:12:25,700 --> 00:12:29,230 I thought that this was happening maybe only somewhere in the third world. 205 00:12:29,370 --> 00:12:34,560 But that it cannot after all concern us, the people of Peterboroug, or in Britain. 206 00:12:34,740 --> 00:12:39,900 But I suddenly found out when mainly Czech and Slovak men, 207 00:12:39,900 --> 00:12:42,050 victims of human trafficking, started coming to me. 208 00:12:42,190 --> 00:12:44,180 And since I had their trust, 209 00:12:44,180 --> 00:12:47,660 they started telling me things that completely shocked me. 210 00:12:47,660 --> 00:12:49,660 And not only me, but also the police. 211 00:12:49,660 --> 00:12:52,670 Because the police at that time had no information about the fact 212 00:12:52,680 --> 00:12:57,770 that slavery was also happening between Czech and Slovak, 213 00:12:57,770 --> 00:13:00,510 and possibly other European communities. 214 00:13:00,890 --> 00:13:04,990 So basically we opened a kind of imaginary Pandora's box, 215 00:13:04,990 --> 00:13:09,800 where from one or two people or victims at the beginning 216 00:13:10,210 --> 00:13:13,890 we identified several dozen over the course of a few years. 217 00:13:13,890 --> 00:13:20,690 I think I had about 86 victims of human trafficking in the first two years. 218 00:13:20,890 --> 00:13:26,580 And at least 95% of them were men of Czech and Slovak origin 219 00:13:26,720 --> 00:13:32,130 who were transported by these exploiters to Britain for work purposes. 220 00:13:32,400 --> 00:13:37,580 For me, when I was able to identify and gain the trust of these victims, 221 00:13:37,890 --> 00:13:42,580 of course my great interest was to do something about it. 222 00:13:42,580 --> 00:13:45,070 And above all, of course, that's how trust is built, 223 00:13:45,070 --> 00:13:48,620 when we really show the victim that something is really going on. 224 00:13:49,420 --> 00:13:54,100 So we worked and I got into areas of policing 225 00:13:54,100 --> 00:13:57,310 that normally as a community police officer I might not have gotten into at all. 226 00:13:57,380 --> 00:14:00,460 And subsequently, as a state police officer, neither. 227 00:14:00,770 --> 00:14:02,910 I was able to work with detectives, 228 00:14:05,020 --> 00:14:09,420 with the organized crime unit, with the secret police. 229 00:14:09,820 --> 00:14:14,320 And with other units, with which we gradually uncovered 230 00:14:14,320 --> 00:14:18,330 the structure of these gangs or these large families 231 00:14:18,330 --> 00:14:22,730 that transported their victims to Britain. 232 00:14:22,810 --> 00:14:30,260 And many of them were then arrested and subsequently convicted. 233 00:14:30,610 --> 00:14:36,670 Of course, several of them managed to avoid the punishment. 234 00:14:36,810 --> 00:14:38,980 And that is mostly thanks to the fact 235 00:14:38,980 --> 00:14:43,480 that they knew the victims personally, they knew their families, where they came from. 236 00:14:43,520 --> 00:14:46,430 And most of the time, when it went to court, 237 00:14:46,430 --> 00:14:48,940 the exploiters threatened the families 238 00:14:48,940 --> 00:14:53,620 and the victim often had to withdraw the complaint. 239 00:14:53,930 --> 00:14:58,670 And thus it was not always possible to ensure an adequate punishment. 240 00:14:58,730 --> 00:15:02,460 But we had very good results in Peterborough. 241 00:15:02,460 --> 00:15:08,420 At least those who were not punished left completely. 242 00:15:08,420 --> 00:15:10,650 Either from Peterborough or the UK. 243 00:15:10,650 --> 00:15:15,450 The victims got help and were able to start a whole new life. 244 00:15:15,490 --> 00:15:20,020 These were often men who were homeless in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. 245 00:15:20,020 --> 00:15:22,130 Drug or alcohol addicts. 246 00:15:22,250 --> 00:15:25,850 And actually, with the help we gave them in Britain, 247 00:15:25,850 --> 00:15:30,760 they were able to stand on their own two feet and start living normally. 248 00:15:30,900 --> 00:15:34,940 When I joined as a community police officer, 249 00:15:34,940 --> 00:15:37,480 I didn't experience any incidents. 250 00:15:37,480 --> 00:15:41,410 Or no negative feedback from my colleagues. 251 00:15:42,260 --> 00:15:49,120 But the first time I encountered a hint of racism or prejudice 252 00:15:49,180 --> 00:15:50,960 was when I joined the state police. 253 00:15:50,960 --> 00:15:54,750 Where one of my colleagues, a British woman, 254 00:15:54,840 --> 00:15:59,810 started making stupid insinuations about me and my Pakistani colleague. 255 00:16:00,400 --> 00:16:03,120 And she said, "Because of people like you, 256 00:16:03,120 --> 00:16:06,460 my father has to wait a long time for health care. 257 00:16:07,740 --> 00:16:11,260 You get some preferential benefits. 258 00:16:11,680 --> 00:16:13,880 You got into the police because you're a foreigner." 259 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:19,940 She tried to imitate our accent. 260 00:16:19,960 --> 00:16:22,620 We somehow didn't solve it, because we were new in the police. 261 00:16:22,930 --> 00:16:24,910 We didn't want to confront her in any way. 262 00:16:24,990 --> 00:16:29,610 But our colleague, also British, heard it several times in that office. 263 00:16:30,120 --> 00:16:31,390 He reported it. 264 00:16:31,410 --> 00:16:34,190 And that colleague was out of employment within three months. 265 00:16:34,190 --> 00:16:35,650 Actually, she was fired right away. 266 00:16:36,060 --> 00:16:41,460 She didn't do it only to us, but she had this behavior towards other people as well. 267 00:16:41,460 --> 00:16:45,470 So it piled up and that colleague got fired. 268 00:16:45,630 --> 00:16:48,700 So that's how seriously they take it. 269 00:16:48,700 --> 00:16:53,520 And for us it was a good sign that the police are taking it seriously. 270 00:16:53,520 --> 00:16:55,800 And that one can trust the police. 271 00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:59,620 That we can report it and not be afraid that nothing will happen. 272 00:16:59,780 --> 00:17:04,180 Of course in the following years, I would say 273 00:17:04,180 --> 00:17:07,780 until the Brexit referendum, I didn't encounter 274 00:17:07,780 --> 00:17:11,360 any hints or any comments. 275 00:17:11,360 --> 00:17:16,750 But after that referendum, it was as if the imaginary Pandora's box was opened again, 276 00:17:16,750 --> 00:17:21,530 and people, colleagues in the police, began to feel that they could say things 277 00:17:21,530 --> 00:17:23,540 that they might have only thought until then. 278 00:17:25,120 --> 00:17:28,650 So one began to feel the hidden racism. 279 00:17:28,650 --> 00:17:29,860 I can give an example. 280 00:17:29,860 --> 00:17:35,800 I came with the arrested person to the pre-trial detention cell 281 00:17:35,980 --> 00:17:41,470 and the sergeant who is sitting behind the desk and taking the data, 282 00:17:41,520 --> 00:17:46,410 instead of talking to him about why he is there, he looked at me and said: 283 00:17:46,410 --> 00:17:48,290 "What about you, Peter? do you have your passport ready 284 00:17:48,290 --> 00:17:49,970 and your baggage packed for when we deport you?" 285 00:17:50,060 --> 00:17:53,640 Really such stupid and inappropriate comments. 286 00:17:54,010 --> 00:17:58,240 So it started to accumulate and accumulate. 287 00:17:58,410 --> 00:18:01,080 Ja počas toho, čo som robil policajta, 288 00:18:01,080 --> 00:18:05,870 During my time as a police officer, already in 2010, actually it started already in 2009, 289 00:18:05,870 --> 00:18:09,200 I started thinking about what I could do after the work. 290 00:18:09,200 --> 00:18:11,950 Of course, I helped people during work, 291 00:18:11,950 --> 00:18:13,740 but I couldn't handle everything. 292 00:18:13,740 --> 00:18:15,890 And I couldn't do everything during working hours. 293 00:18:15,960 --> 00:18:19,580 People often asked me to call somewhere for them or to fill a document. 294 00:18:19,580 --> 00:18:24,520 And I began to perceive that there really is a need for some community work. 295 00:18:24,600 --> 00:18:27,410 So in 2009, I and a few of my friends 296 00:18:27,410 --> 00:18:30,800 founded an organization called ČESLO, 297 00:18:30,800 --> 00:18:34,170 which was made up of the words Če and Slovakia. 298 00:18:34,330 --> 00:18:37,740 And we functioned as a community association. 299 00:18:37,740 --> 00:18:40,700 We helped people, we did various activities. 300 00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:44,200 But after a few months I started to perceive, 301 00:18:44,200 --> 00:18:48,500 it was indicated to me but not directly to me, 302 00:18:48,500 --> 00:18:50,720 but I began to perceive those prejudices. 303 00:18:50,720 --> 00:18:52,970 I was the only Roma in that management. 304 00:18:53,200 --> 00:18:56,210 And my colleagues, when we were planning an event, said: 305 00:18:56,210 --> 00:18:57,880 "We can't tell the gypsies, 306 00:18:57,880 --> 00:19:01,760 because then we would have to worry about our wallets and purses." 307 00:19:02,940 --> 00:19:04,730 Which of course got me completely. 308 00:19:04,730 --> 00:19:09,310 I saw it as we are on the same boat, we are all in a foreign country. 309 00:19:09,400 --> 00:19:11,620 We should stand and help each other. 310 00:19:11,810 --> 00:19:13,410 But they didn't see it that way. 311 00:19:13,410 --> 00:19:15,690 So I decided to leave. 312 00:19:15,810 --> 00:19:19,870 Also my friend Jozef Kopečný, "Pepa", left with me, 313 00:19:20,370 --> 00:19:25,120 with whom we founded a new organization called COMPAS. 314 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:28,610 It was actually a combination of the words Community Partnership Group 315 00:19:28,610 --> 00:19:32,140 and from that, from those first letters, COMPAS was born. 316 00:19:32,300 --> 00:19:36,510 The aim and idea of COMPAS has always been 317 00:19:36,510 --> 00:19:38,700 precisely the community partnership. 318 00:19:38,700 --> 00:19:44,040 So that there really isn't any segregation, so that we don't exclude anyone. 319 00:19:44,090 --> 00:19:45,610 So that it really is for everyone. 320 00:19:45,610 --> 00:19:51,420 So we started working in communities, we did various activities, projects. 321 00:19:51,420 --> 00:19:54,270 We have established a community library. 322 00:19:54,640 --> 00:19:58,060 We started English lessons. 323 00:19:58,160 --> 00:20:01,070 We had Czech language lessons there. 324 00:20:01,070 --> 00:20:03,850 We invited the Czech and Slovak consulates to Peterborough, 325 00:20:03,850 --> 00:20:06,190 where we provided premises and volunteers 326 00:20:06,190 --> 00:20:10,050 so that they could help people with passports and various other things. 327 00:20:10,050 --> 00:20:15,400 So that people don't have to travel to London and spend money and time on the journey. 328 00:20:15,400 --> 00:20:17,860 So we did various activities like that there. 329 00:20:18,240 --> 00:20:23,530 It was sometime in the spring or summer of 2015 330 00:20:24,130 --> 00:20:28,220 when I was in a meeting about exploitation. 331 00:20:28,220 --> 00:20:30,720 My boss was there, my colleagues were there too. 332 00:20:30,810 --> 00:20:34,450 And during that meeting, I watched as my phone kept ringing. 333 00:20:34,450 --> 00:20:35,420 But I couldn't talk. 334 00:20:35,420 --> 00:20:38,510 So I picked it up right during the break. 335 00:20:38,510 --> 00:20:43,690 It was my wife and she told me such a strange sentence: 336 00:20:43,710 --> 00:20:45,470 "You'll probably need a new suit." 337 00:20:45,470 --> 00:20:46,700 And I said: - What do you mean? 338 00:20:46,700 --> 00:20:47,660 And she said: 339 00:20:47,660 --> 00:20:51,080 You received a letter saying that you have been nominated 340 00:20:51,080 --> 00:20:54,810 for the Queen of England's highest award." 341 00:20:54,940 --> 00:20:57,810 Until then, I had no idea what an MBE meant. 342 00:20:57,810 --> 00:21:00,330 The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire 343 00:21:00,650 --> 00:21:02,530 So I asked my boss and she said: 344 00:21:02,610 --> 00:21:07,650 "That's amazing, that's the highest civilian award from the Queen." 345 00:21:07,940 --> 00:21:12,610 And at that time I thought that maybe someone was playing pranks on me or something like that. 346 00:21:12,750 --> 00:21:13,900 Why me? 347 00:21:14,900 --> 00:21:17,090 So when I got home, I finally read it. 348 00:21:17,090 --> 00:21:19,090 And it was written there that I was really nominated, 349 00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:21,380 that the prime minister had already signed it. 350 00:21:21,440 --> 00:21:23,770 And that now we are just waiting for the queen to sign it 351 00:21:23,770 --> 00:21:27,480 and that only then I will be informed when this order will be handed over to me. 352 00:21:28,170 --> 00:21:30,320 I waited for about two months 353 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:33,360 and I already began to doubt whether it was really true. 354 00:21:33,420 --> 00:21:35,870 I was already getting quite nervous about it. 355 00:21:36,000 --> 00:21:37,570 And then I got another letter 356 00:21:37,570 --> 00:21:39,860 where it was written that the Queen had already signed it. 357 00:21:39,960 --> 00:21:44,920 And I think it was in November that I will be granted this order. 358 00:21:45,500 --> 00:21:50,320 But there was one minus, one small problem. 359 00:21:50,320 --> 00:21:54,800 And that was in the fact that the Queen can only give the order to British citizens. 360 00:21:55,010 --> 00:21:56,840 And I wasn't British at the time. 361 00:21:56,970 --> 00:22:00,330 Which of course gave my father another reason 362 00:22:00,490 --> 00:22:03,090 or an opportunity to blame me. 363 00:22:03,090 --> 00:22:05,310 Because he told me years before 364 00:22:05,310 --> 00:22:07,090 to get that British passport. 365 00:22:07,090 --> 00:22:08,640 I kept putting it off. 366 00:22:08,640 --> 00:22:12,690 As a result, I could not receive the order from the queen. 367 00:22:12,690 --> 00:22:18,030 And it was given to me by Mike Penning, 368 00:22:18,030 --> 00:22:20,370 who was the minister for policing. 369 00:22:20,510 --> 00:22:22,910 But I saw a huge advantage in that too. 370 00:22:22,910 --> 00:22:25,940 Because if I went to the queen, I could only take one person 371 00:22:25,940 --> 00:22:27,290 to go there with me. 372 00:22:27,470 --> 00:22:30,970 And for me to choose between my wife, who has supported me all these years, 373 00:22:30,970 --> 00:22:34,020 or my friend Pepa, or Kamila, 374 00:22:34,020 --> 00:22:37,560 or my parents, or my children, that would be terribly difficult. 375 00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:41,570 I would be terribly sorry if I had to take only one of them. 376 00:22:41,570 --> 00:22:43,630 Because everyone played their part 377 00:22:43,630 --> 00:22:45,860 in helping me succeed. 378 00:22:46,010 --> 00:22:49,020 And by going to Mike Penning, 379 00:22:49,130 --> 00:22:52,430 it was directly at the Home Office, 380 00:22:52,430 --> 00:22:54,820 it was at the Department of Interior. 381 00:22:54,960 --> 00:22:56,980 And I could bring as many people as I wanted there. 382 00:22:56,980 --> 00:22:59,070 So I took full advantage of it 383 00:22:59,260 --> 00:23:02,010 and I really took the whole family there. 384 00:23:02,650 --> 00:23:07,020 Both of my parents, I had my children, my wife, my friends there. 385 00:23:07,140 --> 00:23:08,410 So it was really amazing. 386 00:23:08,410 --> 00:23:12,560 It was very significant and special for me in that regard. 387 00:23:13,150 --> 00:23:15,240 I still had the opportunity to see the Queen 388 00:23:15,240 --> 00:23:18,460 in the following years at various other events. 389 00:23:18,970 --> 00:23:23,130 So it can be said that I didn't miss out on anything. 390 00:23:23,880 --> 00:23:26,250 And this was a huge advantage for me. 391 00:23:26,820 --> 00:23:29,320 That award, as I found out later, 392 00:23:29,320 --> 00:23:33,250 was given to me for the community work 393 00:23:33,250 --> 00:23:35,340 I did after I finished my job. 394 00:23:35,340 --> 00:23:41,530 Because the award is given for something a person does in addition 395 00:23:41,530 --> 00:23:45,240 to what is expected of him. 396 00:23:45,390 --> 00:23:47,390 I couldn't get that for the police work, 397 00:23:47,390 --> 00:23:49,390 because that would practically be part of my job. 398 00:23:49,390 --> 00:23:53,300 This was extra work and effort, in my spare time, often at my own expense. 399 00:23:53,450 --> 00:23:58,770 And my community work was noticed by several people. 400 00:23:58,770 --> 00:24:02,080 First, they were officials at the city office. 401 00:24:02,080 --> 00:24:04,810 Of course, it was also some of my superiors 402 00:24:04,880 --> 00:24:08,240 who then nominated me for the award. 403 00:24:08,320 --> 00:24:12,930 And subsequently, I was then selected for this award. 404 00:24:13,230 --> 00:24:18,060 It changed my life quite fundamentally, you could say. 405 00:24:18,270 --> 00:24:22,490 But it had two different levels. 406 00:24:22,490 --> 00:24:25,060 One level of course was that it opened a lot of doors 407 00:24:25,060 --> 00:24:28,740 and of course huge popularity. 408 00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:31,770 The year I was awarded, I was 409 00:24:31,770 --> 00:24:34,300 on about twenty different TV stations. 410 00:24:34,300 --> 00:24:37,960 Not only in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, but also in Brazil and other countries. 411 00:24:39,160 --> 00:24:42,090 There were articles about it many more weeks. 412 00:24:42,090 --> 00:24:45,460 I got calls from different shows. 413 00:24:45,470 --> 00:24:47,330 I've been on live and stuff. 414 00:24:47,330 --> 00:24:49,840 So one really enjoyed it 415 00:24:49,840 --> 00:24:54,240 and it was a wonderful opportunity for me to show that positive role model. 416 00:24:54,240 --> 00:24:57,010 Because it was something I really wanted. 417 00:24:57,140 --> 00:24:59,970 So that the majority society can see the positive role models. 418 00:24:59,970 --> 00:25:02,850 So that they don´t always perceive only the negative things that are written in the media, 419 00:25:02,920 --> 00:25:06,940 but to see that it works when people are given the opportunity. 420 00:25:07,140 --> 00:25:11,290 So that was the one sphere of it. 421 00:25:11,390 --> 00:25:16,050 Of course, with everything that happened after the award, 422 00:25:16,490 --> 00:25:19,720 my colleagues at work also began to perceive it some way, 423 00:25:19,720 --> 00:25:21,720 and it can be said that in quite negative way. 424 00:25:21,720 --> 00:25:25,440 And then I started to feel a kind of distance. 425 00:25:25,440 --> 00:25:28,690 Because as I say, I was invited to various conferences. 426 00:25:28,820 --> 00:25:33,570 I was invited and taken from my daily job to various lectures. 427 00:25:33,570 --> 00:25:35,400 And often it was my superiors 428 00:25:35,400 --> 00:25:38,120 who told me to go there, go there, go there. 429 00:25:38,520 --> 00:25:42,340 And my colleagues then felt that they had to do extra work instead of me 430 00:25:42,340 --> 00:25:43,970 and that I was a so-called jolly boy, 431 00:25:43,970 --> 00:25:48,410 that I went on some trips and that I enjoyed myself there. 432 00:25:48,410 --> 00:25:49,650 Of course I felt very sorry, 433 00:25:49,650 --> 00:25:52,210 because I really liked the police work. 434 00:25:52,210 --> 00:25:54,420 And my colleagues and I were a very good team. 435 00:25:54,420 --> 00:26:00,370 But at the same time, I saw a huge potential in that work 436 00:26:00,540 --> 00:26:04,360 and in the fact that we can show the Roma community in this light. 437 00:26:04,360 --> 00:26:06,620 So it was kind of a balancing act. 438 00:26:06,620 --> 00:26:08,960 And at the same time, of course, balancing family life. 439 00:26:08,960 --> 00:26:13,160 One has lost some intimacy. 440 00:26:13,160 --> 00:26:19,100 Or, for example, the possibility of going on vacation and not being around all the time... 441 00:26:20,290 --> 00:26:23,680 For example, people kept coming up to me even at the airport, on the plane. 442 00:26:24,530 --> 00:26:26,260 Can we take a picture with you? and so. 443 00:26:26,260 --> 00:26:29,100 So, on the one hand, I really enjoyed it, 444 00:26:29,100 --> 00:26:34,140 and on the other hand, it was enough for my children and my wife. 445 00:26:34,180 --> 00:26:35,970 I kept running off all the time. 446 00:26:36,000 --> 00:26:37,790 Or I was always at some conferences. 447 00:26:37,790 --> 00:26:41,120 So it had more such elements. 448 00:26:41,120 --> 00:26:45,180 But overall I have to say that I really enjoyed it. 449 00:26:45,180 --> 00:26:47,700 And it was something tremendous... 450 00:26:47,700 --> 00:26:49,730 When one realizes that I came to Britain 451 00:26:49,730 --> 00:26:53,640 as an ordinary refugee who worked in a factory at the time 452 00:26:53,640 --> 00:26:55,740 and I had practically no vision. 453 00:26:55,780 --> 00:26:58,120 And I thought to myself, what am I going to do here, in this country. 454 00:26:58,170 --> 00:27:01,120 And suddenly, some fifteen years later, 455 00:27:01,120 --> 00:27:06,170 I was awarded the Queen's highest civilian award. 456 00:27:06,170 --> 00:27:08,170 So I think that was a huge thing.