The minister criticizes the display of Palestinian flags. The university administration is distancing itself

The management of the University of Applied Arts in Prague had to deal with a situation where someone hung Palestinian flags in the windows of the school. When the university found out about it, it ordered the flags to be taken down.

In a statement to Seznam Zpravy, the management of UMPRUM stated that the hanging of Palestinian flags in the building on Jan Palach Square took place without the consent of the school management and the academic community.

In the opinion of the school management, it is written that individual students, as well as graduates of UMPRUM, who reported the act, explained the hanging of the flags in the opinion sent to the school management.

“Its signatories express their solidarity with the civilian population in the Gaza Strip and point to the seriousness of the humanitarian crisis there. This statement significantly helped the discussion inside the school and allows to disprove fears of support for terrorism, but it does not solve the one-sided nature of the raising of flags,” the UMPRUM management said in a statement.

The Gaza Strip is under fire from Israel in response to a terrorist attack by the Hamas movement.

On Sunday, someone hung Palestinian flags in the windows of UMPRUM:

“From the negotiations with the academic community, there is a split of opinion within the school, which is also visible in the studios, on the windows of which the flags were placed. The use of the facade of the school building, which does not differentiate between the attitudes of individuals and the entire institution, also remains problematic. The significant engagement of graduates who are no longer part of the academic community of UMPRUM, and yet speak on its behalf, is also questionable,” reads the statement, which was mediated by the university’s spokeswoman Kamila Stehlíková.

The statement also states that there will be a meeting with students next week. “Nevertheless, the school management welcomes the upcoming meeting with students, which will take place early next week. In particular, he hopes to clarify the internal procedures regarding the use of the school’s facade to express the opinions of the academic community.

Minister of Education Mikuláš Bek (STAN) does not agree with the action where someone hung Palestinian flags without the consent of the school management.

“I personally disagree with neither the content nor the form of the political gesture. But I rely on the university administration to deal with such things wisely,” he wrote in an SMS message.

List News asked experts how they felt about the display of Palestinian flags. According to Miroslav Mareš, an expert on extremism from Brno’s Masaryk University, this is certainly not an illegal act.

“No law of the Czech Republic was violated. If it is the flag of an entity that is recognized by the Czech Republic as a specific entity of international law with which the Czech Republic has diplomatic relations, then the hanging itself does not violate any law,” explains the expert.

It is an expression of a certain opinion, although of course controversial in Czech society, because it is obvious that the official government policy is more on the side of Israel.

Mareš adds that this topic evokes emotions in Czech society.

“At the moment I would of course see it as a kind of protest against official government policy. It is the expression of a certain opinion, although of course controversial in Czech society, because it is obvious that the official government policy is more on the side of Israel and that a large part of the public is also on the side of Israel in the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

The signatory of Charter 77, former member of parliament and senator Daniel Kroupa, commented on the situation. In the past, he also participated in the preparation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms, as a member of the government commission on the Constitution of the Czech Republic, and is a co-author of the University Act and a number of other laws.

“I welcome when students are politically active, but not directly on campus. As for the Palestinian flags, at the moment it is pure support for Palestinian terrorism,” he said in his opinion.

List The News found out from other universities what rules they have for displaying flags.

“Charles University only hangs flags related to the mission and activities of the CU, as well as important anniversaries related to the university and events organized by the CU, on its central building, Karolina, on the Fruit Market. It is, for example, the flag of the Czech Republic or the EU, black mourning banners and the like. In general, the university follows the basic rules for displaying flags on the territory of the Czech Republic,” Václav Hájek, spokesman for Charles University, said in a statement.

He also added that the flags are always flown at Karolina with the knowledge and consent of the university management. As for buildings other than Karolina, the hanging of flags is the responsibility of the management of the respective faculties, according to the spokesperson.

The Technical University of Liberec also adds its position. According to its spokesperson, Radek Pirkl, there are no rules for hanging flags on buildings, apart from the designated mast that is on campus, but rather customs.

“Last year or the year before, for example, students of the Faculty of Arts and Architecture hung several rainbow flags on the building to demonstrate their support for the LGBT+ community. They announced the intention to the dean at the time, who in turn informed the school management led by the rector about the intention. This is probably how the procedure for hanging other flags on buildings should look,” Pirkl described a specific example.

The position of the UMPRUM management regarding the hanging of Palestinian flags on the building on Jan Palach Square