It has been four weeks since a student at Charles University in Prague shot 14 people. Society is deeply wounded – but is also pulling together. And she has many questions, including about the political consequences.
They wanted to hug and hug each other, but at the same time they also wanted to support their alma mater. The rector of Charles University Milena Kralickova was one of hundreds of employees, students and other affected people or supporters who formed a multiple human chain around the main building of the Faculty of Arts in Prague. Two weeks after the bloody act at this location, at the start of a so-called “Month for the Faculty”.
“We will continue to live and continue to study. Our academic community is hurt, but not broken. And our steps through the streets of Prague to the Faculty of Arts also symbolize our path to healing,” says Rector Kralickova.
“I feel the solidarity of society”
The memorial procession for the 14 victims of the shooting on December 21st started at the venerable Karolinum, the headquarters of Charles University, the oldest in Central Europe. It was founded by the later Emperor Charles IV in the 14th century. The reformer Jan Hus was rector for a time, and the university later played an important role in the national awakening of the Czech Republic.
“We lecturers and students are very close,” says Vice Dean Dana Bittnerova – even though there are no lectures at the moment because it is exam time. “Some people don’t talk about the attack, but many teachers offer discussions. I also feel the solidarity of society.”
A fire was lit in front of the university building, which is guarded day and night. There are mobile containers on the square on the Vltava with a view of Prague Castle as a contact point for those affected. Students actually collected the thousands upon thousands of candles. They should be melted down and become a permanent monument. But new ones keep coming, including last week, when, like every year, the faculty’s most famous student, Jan Palach, was remembered. He burned himself 55 years ago in protest against the Soviet Union’s suppression of the Prague Spring and the lethargy that followed.
The motive of the perpetrator is still unclear
“We wanted to light candles for the victims of the shooting, said student Honza Hartmann. “But also for Jan Palach. His act is one of the most important in our history. That’s why it’s important to come here, even though this place is now also linked to this other tragedy.”
The gunman’s motive is still unclear. The history student had killed his father before the massacre at the university, and two weeks before that he had also killed a walker and his baby. After the crime at Charles University, he killed himself. When the police were warned that he wanted to kill himself, they cleared the university building where he was giving a lecture, but not the main building, where the young man later started the fire opened.
Could the terrible act have been prevented? This is another open question. An internal police check initially found no errors. “The officers acted in accordance with applicable regulations,” says Michal Tikovsky, who is involved in the investigation. “Your deployment can be assessed as quick and professional. However, we recommend better crisis communication with the authorities concerned in the future, in this case with the faculty management.”
Little criticism of police work
The management was not informed that the student was wanted, only the people on site. In a survey, 75 percent still consider the police’s work to be adequate. Since then, she has been rigorously pursuing cases of consent to the bloody crime. The university is in the foreground in the media.
“Thanks also go to most of the journalists and public figures,” said Police Chief Martin Vondrasek. “We greatly appreciate that their contributions did not result in victimization of the victims and families and that we all did not allow the perpetrator to take all the attention.”
The shooter legally owned eight weapons. There are a million firearms in circulation in the Czech Republic – more than in Poland, which is four times larger. Tightening the law has been discussed for a long time. But even after the crime there is no political consensus for a much tougher approach. Many students, on the other hand, have a clear opinion: They are calling on the government in a petition to restrict the possession of weapons.
Marianne Allweiss, ARD Prague, tagesschau, January 20, 2024 4:14 p.m