Center-right MP tells the "Freedom and Direct Democracy" party they are "Czech Nazis"
On 22 January 2019 the Czech Chamber of Deputies rejected a motion from the chair of the “Freedom and Direct Democracy” (SPD) party, Tomio Okamura, about negotiating with Germany for further reparations related to the Second World War. Only the Communists supported Okamura’s bill.
MP Miroslav Kalousek of the center-right TOP 09 party told Okamura that since the SPD represents “the Czech Nazis”, they should settle the issue with “the German Nazis” and not involve democratic parties in the idea. “I have a big request. Couldn’t you, the Czech Nazis, settle this with the Germany Nazis and not drag us, the Czech democrats, into this along with the German democrats? We can reach agreement just fine without you,” Kalousek said.
The TOP 09 MP also reproached Okamura for calling the fascist war crimes “German” war crimes and not “Nazi” ones. The SPD chair did not publicly respond right away.
Okamura had explained the SPD bill by saying that according to experts, the damage caused to Czechoslovakia during the Second World War was worth CZK 360 billion [EUR 1.4 billion]. Czechoslovakia received just a fraction of that amount in reparations.
“The claim actually exists, but the Government does not consider it appropriate to pursue it. The question arises as to who really lost the war, therefore. Germany must begin paying reparations again,” Okamura believes.
The lower house, in Okamura’s view, should ask the Government to call on Germany to pay the actual amount of reparations owed. He referenced a similar attempt last year by Polish President Andrzej Duda.
The German Government has previously rejected such demands, referencing the fact that Poland repeatedly agreed to give up its claims to reparations in previous treaties. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) said last year that any eventual decision to pursue war reparations from Germany would be an unfortunate one, because it could lead to significant disruption of the climate of mutual trust in Europe.
The PM also recalled that in 1997 the Czech-German Declaration saw both parties agree that the injustices committed in the past on both sides belong in the past. The Czechoslovak reparations claims were 306 billion crowns in the currency of that time.
Just 4 % of that amount was eventually paid. Such a difference between the claims and the amount paid exists for other countries as well, including ones in Western Europe.
