Olomouc, North Moravia, Feb 20 (CTK) – The Czech police broke the rules in their action against the protesters at a public rally of President Milos Zeman in Lipnik nad Becvou, north Moravia, last November, a report by Ombudsman Anna Sabatova has said.
The report said there was no reason to detain sound engineer Jaroslav Hensl, the action against him was excessive and the police failed to inform him about the reasons for his arrest, according to the report, passed to CTK by organiser of the protest Marie Sulakova.
Hensl switched on the Prayer for Marta song during the rally Zeman held in Lipnik nad Becvou within his three-day tour of the Olomouc Region.
Lhe legendary song “Prayer for Marta” was a symbol of the national resistance after the Soviet-led occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1968 that crushed the Prague Spring reform movement.
Its singer, Marta Kubisova, was a dissident under the Communist regime.
Hensl was detained, he spent 2.5 hours at a police station and faces a fine of up to 15,000 crowns.
The incident stirred up emotions and many politicians condemned it as reminding of the practices pursued by the communist regime. In fact, the song gained fame in 1969 as it protested against the 1968 Soviet invasion.
Zeman then publicly thanked the police for the intervention.
The song playing was initiated by a group of Zeman’s opponents as their protest against his plan to seek re-election in January.
The organisers of the protest turned to the ombudsman’s office last November.
Sabatova said she had informed the police president and director of the regional police command in the Olomouc Region about her conclusions and she asked them to express their attitude to the found violation of police rules within 30 days.
