The company relocated the soldier's monument in Litoměřice to the grounds of the former barracks

statue

Litoměřice - A specialized company today moved the controversial monument titled Honor and Glory to the Soviet Army from Jiráskovy sady to the depot of the former barracks in Litoměřice. Workers gradually dismantled it into several parts and one by one loaded it onto a truck using a crane. Several complications arose, but the company managed them, as reported by ČTK on site. The move was approved by the councilors, although some were against it. Several opponents also appeared this morning. Police assisted in the verbal dispute.

Workers had to deal with a hook that connected two otherwise separate parts of the statue. It was necessary to disassemble scaffolding due to one part. Time had taken its toll on the statue, making manipulation dangerous.

The Litoměřice depot was chosen for the reason that it is a closed area. "There cannot be any further vandalism," said Deputy Mayor Petr Panaš (Our Litoměřice) to ČTK. He reminded that the monument had previously been targeted in an attack. In October 2022, someone altered the front of the monument's base in Litoměřice to resemble a washing machine and painted a red stripe on the body of the statue.

What will happen to the monument next is yet to be decided. "It can be sold. It can be placed in some other less frequented location," Panaš outlined the possibilities for the statue's future. Although the workers divided the statue into several parts today, they did not destroy it in doing so. "It is not a monolith, but originally, when it was installed, it was also assembled from multiple pieces," added Panaš. The move will cost the city a maximum of 100,000 crowns, as the company Cargonet handled the manipulation and transport at its own expense.

In Jiráskovy sady, only the pedestal of the monument remains, which the city will have removed in the coming days. After that, a survey of the ground will be conducted. "It is not clear how deep the foundations go, as we have not located any documentation," said Panaš. In September, the city will announce an architectural competition to propose what should be built in place of the monument.

Several supporters and opponents of the monument's transfer arrived as early as this morning. "We believe that history should not be removed. On the contrary, people should know that something happened here," said Dominik Hanko (SPD), an opposition councilor who opposed the removal of the monument, to ČTK. Police and guards assisted in the transfer. A conflict resolution team assisted in the verbal dispute between the two sides. Supporters of the transfer believe that the monument celebrates the occupation of Czechoslovakia after 1968, and therefore does not belong in public space.

Similar statues have already been removed in places like Jaroměř in the Náchod region or in Přibyslav in the Havlíčkův Brod region.