The head of the Czech Department of Culture, Oto Klempíř, invited the artists who performed at Sunday’s demonstration in support of President Petr Pavel to meet him at the ministry and “clarify their disagreements face to face.” The artists accepted his challenge, but they demand that the debate be public. TASR informs about this based on Monday’s reports from iDnes and Novinky.cz servers.
- The minister invited the artists to a meeting after the demonstration in support of President Pavel.
- The artists insist on the openness and moderation of the discussion by an independent moderator.
- The debate should be available online to experts and the general public.
- The proposed meeting place is Prague’s Palace Theater on a specific day.
- The artists request a public debate with the Minister of Culture Oto Klempíř.
“We consider dialogue important and necessary. However, we believe that the environment and form of such a meeting are of fundamental importance for its openness and credibility,” reads the statement signed by the artists Hynek Čermák, Jitka Čvančarová, Michal Jagelka, Aleš Cibulka and Sarah Haváčová.
The actor Hynek Čermák spoke against Klempíř at the demonstration, which was estimated to be attended by approximately 80,000 to 90,000 people. “Filip Turek and Petr Macinka are only the tip of the iceberg of those who are trying to set new moral, political and cultural standards in the Czech Republic. The election of Oto Klempíř as Minister of Culture is proof for me,” stated.
After the weekend demonstration, the plumber invited the artists to the ministry to “clarify it face to face”. They responded to the call by inviting the minister to a public debate in Prague’s Palace Theater on Monday, February 9 “between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.”. according to Klempíř’s possibilities.
According to the artists, the debate should be moderated by an independent moderator and streamed online to “be accessible to experts and the general public”. Artists consider the theater a natural environment both for them and for representatives of the department of culture.
