The study recommended a museum and a court for the former prison in Uh. Hradiště

Uherské Hradiště - A study on the use of the former prison area in Uherské Hradiště has recommended placing a Museum of Totalitarianism, the district court, the district public prosecutor's office, and the probation and mediation service there. Radek Ležatka, spokesman for the Office for State Representation in Property Affairs (ÚZSVM), said this to ČTK today, which announced the public contract for the study preparation.

It was already clear earlier that part of the prison area, known mainly for the brutal methods of the communist State Security interrogators against political prisoners in the 1950s, would be allocated to the Museum of Totalitarianism. The study was to propose the use of the building also for other state institutions. The transfer of the former prison area to ÚZSVM was approved by the court at the end of last year.

The recommended option "appears to be a suitable solution that addresses the urgently operationally inadequate condition of the existing district court premises, fills the building with a meaningful combination of cooperating institutions, uses the space dignifiedly, and creates the promise of a 'living monument.' However, it requires an extension.

The study assessed ten options for the use of the area and the placement of state institutions in the city, and detailed three options that rated the best. The processing company Ateliér Velehradský identified the option in which, besides the museum, the State Land Office, the cadastral office, and ÚZSVM would be located in the building as the most efficient. The third option considered placing the museum and the Moravian Provincial Archive. The authors do not consider it very suitable, especially due to the usage of the historic building with public potential in the city center for archival purposes.

According to ÚZSVM, Uherské Hradiště and the Zlín Region should now express how much they will contribute to the establishment of the Museum of Totalitarianism. "Subsequently, the Ministry of Culture will communicate the method of covering any difference. Then, the Regional Relocation Commission will discuss the individual options and recommend the optimal placement of state institutions in Uherské Hradiště," stated the general director of ÚZSVM, Kateřina Arajmu.

The mayor of Uherské Hradiště, Stanislav Blaha (ODS), told ČTK today that he welcomed the progress in this matter. "It is also a result of long-term pressure on the state," he noted. The city is leaning toward the option in which the court would also be located in the prison. According to Blaha, the city will soon address the issue of financing together with the region and the Ministry of Culture. The city will likely have to deal with adjustments to public spaces around the prison. The Zlín Region is also considering the study. "We received the study on Tuesday, and we are currently working on a statement," said regional spokeswoman Renata Janečková to ČTK.

The Museum of Totalitarianism will occupy about a quarter of the space in the former prison. It will take up around 2,000 square meters over three floors. This concerns parts of the building where the chapel, solitary confinement cells, and adjacent corridors with rooms are located. Two permanent exhibitions will be created in the building: a Museum of Totalitarian Regimes dedicated to the history of the prison and an Iron Curtain displaying communist propaganda. The exhibitions in the prison will be prepared by the Moravian Museum and the Slovácké Museum in Uherské Hradiště.

The agreement on the extent of the space for the Museum of Totalitarianism was approved by the city, Zlín Region, the Ministry of Culture, and the district court. Last year's memorandum on cooperation regarding the future use of the prison was also signed by the Ministries of Finance and Justice and ÚZSVM.