Berlin (bpb) The new critical statements of theCzech Prime Minister Milos Zeman against the Sudeten Germans andexpellees has brought about a storm of indignation in Germany, bothin the CDU/CSU coalition and among the victims. The coalition partiesdemand from the SPD-Chancellor Gerhard Schröder a clearstatement with respect to the Czechs. What is involved are theso-called "Benes-Decrees", the expulsion of the Sudeten Germans after1945 and the confiscation of their properties in their ancestralhomeland, and about the reconciliation.
The political spokesman on this area of theCDU/CSU coalition, Hartmut Koschyk, has in the present controversycriticised Zeman as a political drunk driver. Koschyk, also thePresident of the Society for German Cultural Relations Abroad (VdA)has been engaged for years for the reconciliation between Poland andCzechs. Koschyk has roots in Silesia (between Moravia and Germany),and he is one of the leading coalition politicians in the GermanParliament. He warns the politicians of both states about radicalpolitical statements, which endanger the admission of Poland andCzech Republic into the European Union.
Member of the German Parliament Koschyk commentedas follows on the controversial statements of the Czech PrimeMinister Zeman:
The scandalous statements of the Czech PrimeMinister Zeman to the Israeli newspaper „Haaretz" reveal him asa political drunk driver. It is well and good, that the SpanishForeign Minister Pique repudiated these statements in the name of theEuropean Union as unacceptable. The German Foreign Minister JoschkaFischer is called upon to make clear to the Czech side that such amental attitude of the Czech Prime Minister cannot represent a basisfor a trustful German-Czech cooperation between the two governments,and also that it most seriously damages the Czech aspirations foradmission into the European Union. Now it is coming to haunt us, thatthe German government has not expressed a clear position on therecent attacks by Zeman in the Austrian news magazine „Profil".The Czech Prime Minister seems to be encouraged by the tame reactionof the German government on those statements to continue with hisunbelievable provocations and defamation.
The German government may not longer be silentabout compatibility of the Czech legal system with the laws of theEuropean Union
On the professed readiness of the Czech Republicto submit to a review of its legal system, as conveyed to theEuropean Union Commissioner Günter Verheugen, comments thepolitical speaker for the expellees of the CDU/CSU coalition, theMember of the Parliament Hartmut Koschyk:
The readiness of the Czech Republic to examine thelegal structure of its country and its compatibility with the„acquis communautaire" of the European Union, shows that theCzech government has realised the gravity of the situation into whichit was brought by the unacceptable statements of the Prime MinisterZeman and the President of the Partiament Vaclav Klaus.
And now it will happen that also the EuropeanUnion itself will precisely examine whether the Czech legal system,to which also belong the so-called "Benes Decrees" at the presenttime, result in discrimination not only against Czech citizens ofother than Czech nationality, but also against citizens of theEuropean Union, which the Czech Republic aspires to join.
The German government may no longer be silentabout this discussion. It cannot simply continue to stick its head inthe sand as before. It must take seriously its duty to protect theupset German citizens who are affected by the possible discriminationby the continued validity of the "Benes Decrees", so that they do nothave to feel as second-rate citizens in a future member state of theEuropean Union. But it also concerns Czech citizens of Germannationality. The Czech Republic is obliged to act for theirprotection as a minority and prevent their discrimination not only bythe German-Czech Neighbor-Treaty of 1992, but also by its membershipin the European Council and its agreements and regulations on theprotection of minorities, as well as by the signing and ratificationof the corresponding United Nations agreements.
Copyright 2002 Prometheus 82/2002
How to overcome thecruelties of the past betweenGermans and Czechs, by BerndCastell