Prague 6 approved that it will look for a new place for Koněv’s statue. Will publish a competition for a new monument | iRADIO
On Thursday, representatives of Prague 6 approved a resolution to replace the monument to Russian Marshal Ivan Koněv with a monument to the liberation of Prague at the end of World War II. At his suggestion, the town hall will announce an open art competition. He wants to find another suitable place for Koněv’s statue. Deputies rejected the announcement of a referendum proposed by the Pirates.
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The representatives instructed the district council to find a dignified use for Koněv’s statue “preferably in some of the memory institutions,” while at the same time ensuring the necessary steps to relocate it. The coalition TOP 09, KDU-ČSL, ODS and STAN submitted the proposal to the representatives. 33 deputies voted for him, one vote was against, six deputies abstained from voting.
Should the monument to Marshal Koněv remain on náměstí Interbrigády in Prague 6, or should it be moved elsewhere? Listen to Adam Bejšovec’s report on what the representatives think about it
The council of the sixth city district discussed the monument to Marshal Koněv for over four hours. Members of parliament, citizens took turns at the lectern, representatives of individual political clubs also had their say on the topic.
The representatives did not allow the communist MP and Prague representative Marta Semelová or the pro-Russian activist Jiří Černohorský, who tore off the tarpaulin that the city hall had installed there, from the statue. Not one of them is a citizen of Prague 6.
At the beginning of the meeting, supporters of the legacy of the Russian marshal demonstrated in front of the town hall. They came to request the dismissal of the mayor of Kolar. Dozens of people arrived at the scene. Because of this, the town hall limited the operation of the office and adjusted the security measures in the building.
The will of the citizens
The mayor of Prague 6 said that most of the locals don’t want statues in Bubenč. At least those who live in the vicinity of náměstí Interbrigády are not clear about this. “I have no need for such a statue to be here.” “I appreciate that he freed us,” the locals replied to the Radio Journal.
Due to differing opinions, the Pirates propose a local referendum. “The decision should be taken primarily by the citizens of Prague 6 and they can be linked to the next national elections,” Ondřej Chrást, the chairman of the representative club of the Pirates in Prague 6, told Radiožurnál.
According to club chairman Martin Polách, the referendum is a viable solution for the ANO movement as well. “We will support the referendum only on the condition that it is connected with some elections. We will certainly not support the moving of the statue, we will not support the upcoming move to launch an architectural competition for a new monument, explained Polách.
It is the possibility of building a new monument that is proposed by the city district management. “I will respect the decision no matter what. As a coalition, we have tentatively agreed that we will propose a new monument dedicated to the liberators. The statue should find a new dignified place. If, for example, it were moved to Olšanské hřbitovy or somewhere else, it would actually be a victory for the Russian side, because it would become the war grave that they desire so much,” explained the mayor of Prague 6, Ondřej Kolář (TOP 09).
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The Olšan cemetery, where Soviet soldiers are buried, would also be considered an acceptable place by Marshal Koněv’s daughter Natalja. She said this in the server interview Currently.cz.
The chairman of the Green club, Petr Píša, agrees with this. “That’s where the statue really wouldn’t just be cleared. You will probably want a clear opinion on whether the Green Party supports the statue staying or not. Unfortunately, I can’t give it to you at this time, because we will make a decision based on the discussion. In general, the Green Party supports the principle of local referendums,” Píša described.
Due to security reasons, traffic is limited at the Prague 6 Town Hall due to the meeting. Two demonstrations of supporters of leaving the monument in place have been called.
The meeting of the council started at ten o’clock. The discussion about the statue of Marshal Koněv was included as a fixed point for 11 o’clock.
Dispute about Koněv
The dispute over the statue of Marshal Ivan Stěpanovič Koněv in Prague 6 flared up again at the end of August this year, when an unknown perpetrator poured red paint over the monument. And an inscription also appeared: “Not to the bloody marshal! We will not forget!’
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And the city hall later announced on Facebook that it would leave the statue painted until the Russian embassy began to act constructively about the possible move of the statue to its garden. The monument has been a target of vandals for a long time, for example, last May someone poured pink paint over it.
Several people voluntarily cleaned the monument a few days later. The municipality then had the statue covered with scaffolding with a tarp, justifying it as protection against vandals. But the activist Jiří Černohorský decided to tear it down. And Prague 6 finally decided to remove the entire scaffolding and provided the monument with a new protective coating against paint.
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Russian Minister of Culture Medinskij later called Prague 6 Mayor Ondřej Kolář (TOP 09) a Nazi. Czech Minister of Culture and former Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek from the ČSSD reacted to this: “I would like the Russian Minister of Culture to try to know something more about European history.”
According to the Minister of the Interior and head of the ČSSD, Jan Hamáček, Medinski’s comment was unnecessary and offensive. “I clearly said that he missed the opportunity to remain silent, and that is true,” Hamáček wrote from Serbia, where he is accompanying President Miloš Zeman.
At the same time, Koněv’s daughter announced in the Russian media that she wants to transport the monument to the Soviet marshal to Russia.
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