Memorandum on the restoration of the Hradec prison has not yet been signed by the court

Uherské Hradiště - The Uherskohradišťský district court is currently the only one of the seven participants that has not signed the Memorandum of Cooperation regarding the future use of the former prison complex in Uherské Hradiště. The court has reservations about the text of the memorandum, which, according to spokesperson Michal Tománek, should not prevent court chairwoman Hana Kurfiřtová from signing it soon. The memorandum is intended to be the first step towards the restoration of the monument.

It has already been signed by representatives of the ministries of finance, culture, and justice, the Office for the Representation of the State in Property Matters (ÚZSVM), Zlín region, and the Uherské Hradiště city council. "So far, the memorandum has not been officially presented to the chairwoman for signature. Under no circumstances do we rule out that, should it be presented, we will also agree to sign it. We do not want to be the ones to delay the whole matter," Tománek said to ČTK today. The spokesperson for ÚZSVM, Radek Ležatka, told ČTK that the draft memorandum was submitted to the court this afternoon. "We believe there will be a signature as soon as possible," he stated.

The court, which manages the prison, will, according to Tománek, demand guarantees in further negotiations to ensure that it will not be neglected after the prison is restored and that it will not ultimately become its headquarters. The court currently operates in rented, but inadequate premises. There is only vague wording in the memorandum, according to Tománek, which speaks of using part of the complex for the Uherskohradišťský district court merely as one of the possible options.

The representatives of Uherské Hradiště have agreed to the memorandum. According to Mayor Stanislav Blaha (ODS), the city is ready to participate in the establishment of a totalitarianism museum in the prison with the Zlín region. According to Blaha, the city council has prepared six million crowns in next year's budget for this purpose. "We are prepared to adjust this amount," Blaha said to reporters today. After the memorandum is signed, further negotiations will follow. A specific study on the use of the extensive complex, which will also house other state offices, is to be created.

The memorandum was drafted by ÚZSVM after the May visit of Finance Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) and Culture Minister Daniel Herman (KDU-ČSL) to Uherské Hradiště. During a tour of the prison, Babiš promised that he would find the funds for the reconstruction of the prison. The Ministry of Justice recently deemed the facility unnecessary. The district court has a contrary opinion. Its consent is necessary for the transfer of the complex to ÚZSVM for the repairs. The renovation costs are estimated at hundreds of millions of crowns.

The correctional facility in the city center accepted its first delinquents shortly after its establishment at the end of the 19th century. It became well-known mainly due to the cruel methods of the communist State Security investigators against political prisoners in the 1950s. The prison served its purpose until 1960. Subsequently, the building housed offices and storage, and then it was left empty and fell into disrepair.

Other plans for its use did not materialize, including an idea from the 1990s when there were considerations to restore the prison and create a judicial complex. The city council then attempted to recover the building from the ministry, but unsuccessfully. The property is now managed by the district court, which uses part of it for storing case files.