MKČR rejected the appeal of Prostějov to declare the cemetery as a monument

Prostějov - The Ministry of Culture has rejected the appeal of the Prostějov town hall regarding the declaration of the former Jewish cemetery located near the city center as a cultural monument. The ministry's decision is final, said Tomáš Jelínek, spokesman for the American charity foundation Kolel Damesek Eliezer, to ČTK today. The former Jewish cemetery, which was destroyed during the German occupation and the gravestones with Jewish inscriptions were subsequently taken apart by local people, was included on the list of cultural monuments by the Ministry of Culture despite the town hall's disagreement in mid-July. The foundation is seeking the rehabilitation of the cemetery.

"I would like to believe that a sad chapter of misunderstanding historical and religious contexts by part of the Prostějov citizens and the city's political representation has thus closed, as the resolution directly confirms the memorial significance of this place," commented Jelínek on the ministry's decision. He reminded that the remains of 1,924 Jewish citizens of Prostějov still lie under the parking lot and park.

Minister of Culture Daniel Herman (KDU-ČSL) justified the rejection of the appeal by stating that the area of the former cemetery meets the requirements for declaration as a cultural monument. "I therefore believe that the site in question was rightly and justifiably declared a cultural monument. I had no choice but to reject the appeal and confirm the decision challenged by the appeal," Herman stated.

The old Jewish cemetery in Prostějov was established in 1801 and was abolished in 1943 at the behest of the German mayor. Most gravestones were removed at that time, serving as building material or were repurposed. A significant Jewish community lived in Prostějov until the 19th century. Notable figures buried in the abolished cemetery include the ancestors of philosopher Edmund Husserl and writer Stefan Zweig.

The city leadership justified the appeal by the legal certainty that the interest in declaring the location a cultural monument outweighs the interests of the landowner and infrastructure owners. "We want to avoid a situation in the future where someone among the owners might demand reimbursement of such costs from us due to increased expenses for infrastructure reconstruction," previously stated Mayor Alena Rašková (ČSSD). She added that declaring the site a cultural monument could complicate the reconstruction of utility networks. According to Minister Herman, however, only part of the former cemetery is affected by the utility networks.

The city informed representatives of the Federation of Jewish Communities in the Czech Republic about the submission of the appeal last summer and intends to continue discussions with its representatives about proposed alterations to the area of the former cemetery, where a park and a school are currently located. The former cemetery is now only commemorated by a monument. A memorial gathering was held on Sunday to mark the 200th anniversary of the death of the chief rabbi of Prostějov, Cvi Jehošua Ha Levi Horowitz. The ceremonial religious gathering was also attended by Mayor Rašková and her deputy Pavel Smetana (ČSSD).