Fiala is willing to negotiate with Hřib on refugees, but he defended the Austrian
Updates: 01.06.2022 21:24
Released: 01.06.2022, 21:23
Prague – Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) is willing to meet in the presence of Deputy Prime Minister, Interior Minister and Crisis Staff Chief Vít Rakušan (STAN) with the Mayor of the Capital Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) and discuss the situation of refugees from Ukraine in Prague. According to him, however, it is necessary to distinguish between real problems and choices. At a conference after today’s government meeting, Fiala said that this was a press matter that the Austrian was in charge of and was dealing with well. The date of the meeting has not yet been determined.
Fiala added that, according to his information, during the regular Tuesday meetings of government representatives with the governors, Hřib did not object that the situation was calming down and that the crisis staff could reduce the frequency of meetings with the governors every Tuesday every two weeks. At the same time, he is now creating the impression that action is needed, the prime minister added.
Prague will close the center for Ukrainian refugees, other regions are criticizing it
The Prague City Hall will close the center for Ukrainian refugees in Vysočany on June 15, Mayor Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) announced today. The reason is the burden on the capital and the lack of a system of relocating those fleeing the war to less busy regions. Some governors criticize the plan, the chairman of the Association of Regions of the Czech Republic and South Bohemian governor Martin Kuba (ODS) described the plan as a non-illegal step and political gesture. The Pardubice region wants to close its refugee center if Prague does so. The Czech Republic will also be able to take care of refugees from Ukraine invaded Russia when the Prague center is closed, said Interior Minister Vít Rakušan (STAN).
“Capacities in Prague have long been exceeded. The only management tool we have left is to close KACPU (Regional Assistance Center for Ukraine) and redirect refugees to other regions where that capacity still exists,” Hřib said after the meeting of the municipal crisis staff. According to the mayor, the government has not created a system for redistributing refugees. The mayor will remain closed until the cabinet introduces it or the burden equalizes between the region, the mayor added.
According to Hřiby, there are up to four times more Ukrainian refugees in Prague than in some other regions. KACPU, which serves Prague and Central Bohemia, has so far handled over 90,000 people. Due to the large number of mostly Roman refugees from Ukraine residing at Prague’s main railway station, tent towns had to be built in Troja and Malešice.
Today, however, they also began to build a tent town for Ukrainian refugees near the Brno Motor Show. According to the South Moravian Governor Jan Grolich (KDU-ČSL), it will serve for a maximum of several days of accommodation before people can find long-term facilities for them, or before it is verified that they do not have Hungarian citizenship, which applies to some Roma as in Prague.
Prague suffers from the fact that, unlike some, it cannot solve the shortage of accommodation by moving refugees to its immediate surroundings, as they are also absent in the Central Bohemian Region. According to Hřiby, the government’s analysis and the analysis of People in Need confirmed this. The capital will inform the refugees about the closure of the center and about traveling to regions other than Prague. It will also analyze the current accommodation locations, whether operators will be willing to continue to accommodate refugees even after the government expires the three-month period during which the regions are obliged to take care of refugees.
The Austrian Minister of the Interior regrets the decision of Prague. Together with Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS), he is ready to meet Hřib and look for other ways, he said. “But if the Prague center closes, we will manage the situation, we will not leave any refugees on the street,” he said. If Prague fulfills its threat, it is ready to offer assistance to refugees in other assistance centers in the remaining 13 regions, he added. The Central Bohemian Region announced that, if necessary, the capacity for handling Ukrainian refugees is ready.
According to the chairman of the Association of Regions of the Czech Republic, the situation with accommodation of Ukrainian refugees in Prague is similar to that in other regions. Cuba believes that the capacity of individual regions and the capital for these purposes is still sufficient. “(Hřibovo) I consider the statement to be relatively uncolegal towards other regions and governors. This is mainly because yesterday (Tuesday) a meeting of all governors and the mayor of Prague took place with the Ministry of the Interior, where such information was not provided,” Kuba said. He described Hřiby’s announcement as a political game. “It occurs to me that he wants to exaggerate the problem, not solve it professionally,” he added.
Governor Martin Netolický (CSSD) threatened to close the center for Ukrainian refugees in the Pardubice region. “The reception of refugees from Ukraine and their registration at regional centers is not an isolated matter of one or the other region, but a question of a comprehensive solution,” he said, adding that Cuba described Prague’s intention as a non-illegal step. According to the Governor of the Hradec Králové Region, Martin Červíček (ODS), Prague’s announcement of the closure of the refugee center is irresponsible and undermines confidence in the systemic management of the refugee crisis in the Czech Republic.
This week, the Austrian told the daily Právo that an average of a thousand Ukrainians come to the Czech Republic every day, but the same number also leave. For example, on Sunday, May 29, according to him, 1,768 Ukrainian refugees arrived, while 1,783 people left the country by train. Immediately after the Russian army invaded Ukraine at the end of February, thousands of people came to the Czech Republic every day.
According to the Minister, about 300,000 refugees remain in the Czech Republic, and the Czech Republic granted temporary protection to 361,400 people due to the war in Ukraine. Approximately 50,000 Ukrainians left the Czech Republic. According to the Austrian, about half of them returned to their homeland and the other went to other countries. The state could find out more precise data on how many refugees remain in the Czech Republic when enrolling in schools. The government today approved a bill that, in connection with the influx of refugees from Ukraine will allow for the rapid construction of temporary buildings for housing and education.