Presidential election in the Czech Republic: Zeman leaves – his shadow remains

Status: 01/12/2023 2:25 p.m

The Czechs will elect a new president starting tomorrow. Incumbent Zeman cannot stand again. The admirer of Putin, Trump and Xi has shaped the country for decades and brought greater power to the office.

By Masrianne Allweiss, ARD Studio Prague

Hana Strasakova is no ordinary tour guide. Nor is she welcoming tourists to Prague Castle this weekend in January.

Marianne Allweiss
ARD Studio Prague

Strasakova explains that the castle was built in the 9th century as the seat of princes and kings. It has been the seat of the President since 1918. “The first president in the independent Czech Republic, Vaclav Havel, improved their reputation. But things went downhill after that.”

The young woman is the spokeswoman for a democratic protest movement that has rounded up hundreds of people to bid farewell to incumbent President Milos Zeman as he retires. Because the castle would not allow a demonstration, Strasakova and her comrades of all ages are disguised as tourists with cameras and maps. They call for an end to arrogance in the presidency, a return to decency and dignity, and a pro-Western course.

Zeman entrenched himself

President Milos Zeman himself is staying, as is usually the case, in the president’s summer palace outside of Prague. There, the severely ailing 78-year-old has been hiding from his critics for years.

After 32 years in Czech politics, he prefers to say goodbye in individual interviews – or in his tenth and final Christmas message. “I’ve always been a supporter of correct economic relations with the Russian Federation. Mainly through the provision of cheap raw materials. But there are situations in which economic interests have to give way to security interests,” he says.

Zeman defended Russian President Vladimir Putin until the invasion of Ukraine. The founder of Czech social democracy recently spoke on the phone with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Hate speech against migrants, minorities, journalists

As prime minister, Zeman led the Czech Republic into NATO and towards the EU. After his exit from current politics and later as the first directly elected president, he saw his role as the top critic of the EU and the voice of the common people. Zeman agitated against migrants, sexual minorities, the energy transition or journalists.

“This is a model of a Kalashnikov. It says: For journalists. But it would probably throw me backwards because I can’t shoot,” he once said.

Creative handling of the constitution

Zeman also became known for his creative handling of the Czech constitution. Again and again he refused to appoint ministers, judges or rectors who did not suit him personally or politically.

It’s about the designated Minister for the Environment. Zeman said: “Imagine that you are a man who meets a pretty girl and proposes that she become his wife. According to this interpretation of the Constitution, the girl should automatically comply with the proposal.”

Political observers like Petr Honzejk consider Zeman’s foreign policy orientation towards China and Russia to have failed completely. The current conservative-liberal coalition sees itself as one of Ukraine’s most important supporters. Chinese investments in the Czech Republic are negligible.

Zeman made Prague Castle the center of power

Zeman’s legacy is different, says Honzejk. Originally, the president was intended more as a “ceremonial head of state”. “But Milos Zeman, with his ability to spot all the loopholes in the constitution, has turned the castle into an influential center of power – and that’s not going to change.”

That may also be the reason why the ousted Prime Minister Andrei Babis is reaching for the presidency. The billionaire entrepreneur and populist party founder is considered one of three favorites and a favorite of Zeman himself.

Babis could narrowly win against General Petr Pavel or the economist Danuse Nerudova, similar to how Zeman surprisingly succeeded five years ago. The next wave of protests at the castle would be inevitable.

Zeman’s shadow: the Czech President says goodbye to politics

Marianne Allweiss, ARD Prague, 11.1.2023 5:19 p.m

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