Prague 5 was fined for the statue of the Ukrainian poet Shevchenko

Prague - Prague 5 has been fined 9,000 crowns for placing a monument to the Ukrainian poet and national revival figure Taras Shevchenko in Kinsky Square. This arises from a decision by the municipal department of culture and heritage protection, which ČTK has access to. The heritage experts were unhappy that the city hall did not notify the authorities about the placement of the statue's pedestal nor did it inform the archaeologists. The fifth district must also pay a grand for the costs of the administrative proceedings.
    "A fine has indeed been imposed, but we have the proper permits. It was not related to the sculpture, but merely to the pedestal," commented the mayor Milan Jančík (ODS) at the last council meeting.
    According to the law on state heritage protection, the owner of a property that is not itself a monument but is located in a heritage zone must first request an opinion from the authorities. If planning construction in an area with archaeological finds, they are obliged to announce their intention to archaeologists already in the preparatory phase.
    Prague 5 did not comply with either of these requirements. It built a concrete base measuring two by two meters and 0.8 meters deep without permission because it wanted to unveil the statue while Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko was visiting the Czech Republic.
    Therefore, heritage officials initiated administrative proceedings against the fifth district regarding the imposition of the fine. In a statement sent to the municipality, Jančík requested the suspension of the administrative proceedings and the waiver of the fine. He argued that the city hall only carried out land modifications and that the monument has a small scope. However, this did not convince the heritage experts.
    The municipal department of culture and heritage protection ultimately concluded that the memorial does not disrupt the character of the Smíchov heritage zone, and therefore issued the city hall a fine at the lower limit. The penalty is meant to caution the district about the obligations it must abide by.
    Shevchenko's statue was unveiled this March in Kinsky Square. Originally, it was supposed to stand in a park on Latvian Street in Prague 6, but local residents opposed this, arguing that the poet had no connection to the selected location. The monument also began to be constructed without the authorities' permission and had to be removed.
    Shevchenko, who lived from 1814 to 1861, had no connection to Kinsky Square either, as he never visited Czech territory. However, President Yushchenko stated during the unveiling that Shevchenko admired Jan Hus and was friends with Czech revivalists.
    About three months later, Prague 5 dealt with a similar situation in Kinsky Square involving a fragment of a pink tank placed there by sculptor David Černý. According to the city hall, the tank was placed on the lawn without permission, while Černý argued that he had submitted permits and had been negotiating with the city hall for several months. The sculptor ultimately had to remove the piece. "This is completely different. Černý placed the tank without our knowledge. We offered him another spot in the same square with the stipulation that he must have a pedestal under the tank," said Prague 5 spokesperson Radovan Myslík to ČTK. However, he indicated that the sculptor did not take advantage of this opportunity.
    Shevchenko was one of the leading figures of the Ukrainian national revival and is considered the founder of modern Ukrainian literature and literary language. Ukrainians living abroad have advocated for the construction of his monuments in several cities around the world, including Washington, Buenos Aires, and Moscow.