Czech PM and President reportedly did not discuss Human Rights Commissioner

The name of the next Czech Government Human Rights Commissioner and the timing of the next appointment to that post remains unknown. Even though Czech PM Petr Nečas has already delayed the appointment of a replacement for the last commissioner, Michael Kocáb, several times, activists and nonprofits evidently cannot expect to see a new one appointed any time soon.

Czech President Václav Klaus’s New Year’s luncheon with Nečas brought no news in this area. Even though the media had reported that the Human Rights Commissioner position was to have been one of their topics for discussion, according to Czech Government spokesperson Jan Osúch it allegedly was not. We have been unable to determine anything further; after sending the press department of the Office of the Government a list of questions through proper channels, the answers we received were such that we couldn’t help but laugh, especially since it took an entire day to receive them despite several repeated requests. You can judge them for yourselves below.

One more thing: If the new Human Rights Commissioner is being sought as “diligently” and weirdly as these questions were answered, we can probably expect a new appointment on April Fool’s Day – but of what year?

Q: Did the New Year’s luncheon between President Václav Klaus and Prime Minister Petr Nečas include discussion of the position of the [Human Rights] Commissioner as announced beforehand? If so, in what spirit did that discussion take place and what were its outcomes? If not, why?

A: According to my information that topic was not discussed, or rather, if it was discussed, no information from that discussion is available for publicizing.

Q: Why has the search for and appointment of the [Human Rights] Commissioner been delayed several times?

A: A new concept is being sought for that office.

Q: Do we know when the appointment will take place? Are discussions or negotiations underway with likely candidates?

A: There is no deadline, discussions of the concept and the topic are naturally underway.

Q: Is the position of the [Human Rights] Commissioner important for the Prime Minister and this government? Who is executing the agenda in the meantime?

The question of this issue is naturally very important for the Prime Minister. Another important question is the design of the concept which the Prime Minister is currently having elaborated. The Human Rights Section is being led by Acting Director Czeslaw Walek.

Jan Osúch, Spokesperson for the Czech Government and Director of the Department of Press and Public Relations at the Office of the Czech Government