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St. Vitus reverts to state property

14-year battle for Prague Castle icon not nearly over yet

By Jeff White
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
February 21st, 2007 issue

One of the most drawn-out property disputes in the Czech Republic is now, in effect, about to start all over again.

The 14-year-old battle between the state and the Catholic Church over ownership of St. Vitus Cathedral, arguably Prague’s most iconic landmark, took another turn when the Supreme Court ruled Feb. 16 in favor of the state. The Czech Republic had appealed a Prague 1 District Court decision from last summer that named the church the rightful owner.
The Supreme Court’s ruling essentially erased all past decisions on the case, sending it back to the Prague 1 court to begin proceedings anew.
“This means the case is back at the beginning,” Supreme Court spokeswoman Marika Komoňová said in an interview. “It will be reconsidered and judged again, and we cannot foresee how long the case will take.”
The latest developments are a blow to the church, which has been trying for years to wrest the cathedral from the control of Prague Castle.
The castle turned the keys to St. Vitus over to the church last fall, even as it vowed to fight on.
The Supreme Court’s ruling spells good news for tourists, however. Upon taking over the cathedral, the church implemented a 100 Kč ($4.60) general admission fee. Although parts of St. Vitus have always had admission fees, general access had been free.
“The entrance fee will now be abolished,” Prague Castle spokesman Petr Hájek said.
But just when is anybody’s guess. The castle does not know exactly when it will get the cathedral’s keys back, though Hájek has told reporters some time in the next week is likely.
A spokesman for the Prague Archdiocese declined to comment.
The communist regime seized the cathedral, along with other church property, in 1954, saying it belonged to the people, not the church. The state’s been in control of the cathedral, more or less, ever since.
But the Catholic Church maintains that the communists never actually expropriated the cathedral. There wasn’t a law in place that allowed for the state to seize church property, church officials contend. Two past district court rulings over the years have agreed.
But the Supreme Court ruled that the cathedral became state property when the communists seized it.
 
Naďa Černá contributed to this report.

Jeff White can be reached at jwhite@praguepost.com


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