The Sudeten German House is the seat of the institutions of the Germans who were transferred from post-war Czechoslovakia, mainly its borderland (Sudetenland).
Belobradek (Christian Democrats, KDU-CSL) laid a wreath there to commemorate the transfer victims, which the daily called “a milestone” in the relations between Czechs and Sudeten Germans, who were compatriots in the past.
Belobradek is a deputy PM responsible for science and research. The main goal of his two-day visit to Bavaria on July 16-17 was to deepen Czech-Bavarian cooperation in the areas of science and research.
He was accompanied by the Bavarian minister for education, culture and arts, Ludwig Spaenle, and Sudeten German Landsmannschaft (SdL) chairman Bernd Posselt.
Oberbayerisches Volksblatt refers to Belobradek´s trip as the hitherto culmination of the process of Czechs and Sudeten Germans again coming close to each other.
Posselt himself reportedly used the expression “historic” and “the greatest step [of mutual approximation] in the past 20 years,” when referring to Belobradek´s visit and his commemoration of the transfer victims.
Posselt said that several weeks ago he considered something like this unfeasible, and praised Belobradek, and Arnost Marks, deputy head of the Czech Council for Research, Development and Innovations, who accompanied Belobradek, as “two anti-populist politicians with great courage.”
According to Oberbayerisches Volksblatt, Belobradek may face attacks at home as a reaction to his gesture.
The paper says Belobradek´s visit was held spontaneously after Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (Social Democrats, CSSD) was forced to cancel his Bavarian trip, scheduled for June, over the Greek crisis.
Posselt then asked Belobradek to come himself, which Belobradek said he would do, the daily writes.
The normalisation of relations between the Czech Republic and Bavaria, which is the patron of Sudeten Germans, was initiated by the present Bavarian Minister-President Horst Seehofer and then Czech prime minister Petr Necas five years ago.
Seehofer visited Prague in December 2010. Necas addressed the Bavarian parliament in February 2013, calling Sudeten Germans compatriots and former fellow citizens.
Last December, Seehofer and Sobotka opened the Bavarian mission in the Czech Republic.
Earlier this year, the SdL deleted from its statutes the demand of the return of the property that was confiscated from the ethnic German deportees after World War Two.
Written by:
ČTK
www.ctk.cz