Aleksandar Mitic, correspondent

Some two hundred Czechs and Serbs, holding a large banner with the inscription “Kosovo is Serbian”, gathered on Friday at the St. Venceslas square in Prague to mark their opposition to the unilateral declaration of secession of Kosovo from Serbia, proclaimed on February 17, 2008.

Jaroslav Foldina, a deputy of the Czech Social-Democratic Party (CSSD) in the parliament, said the secession of Kosovo was a “flagrant violation of international law” and compared it to the Nazi annexation of Sudetenland in western Czechoslovakia in 1938.

Every year, Czechs opposed to Kosovo’s secession gather in front of the statue of St. Venceslas to express their dissatisfaction. In 2008, the Czech government recognized Kosovo under strong pressure from Washington, despite fierce opposition by the public opinion, Czech president Vaclav Klaus and parliamentary groups. The question was never put in front of the parliament.

“We are here every year, we are here today and we will be here on St. Venceslas every year until stolen Kosovo is given back to Serbia”, Foldina said.

Vaclav Dvorak, author of the documentary “Stolen Kosovo”, also addressed the gathering, reminding about the difficult fate of the Kosovo Serbs.

Despite the recognition of Kosovo, Czechs often manifest their opposition to Kosovo’s secession. In January, supporters of Sparta Prague, painted a graffiti “Kosovo is Serbia” on the stands of their stadium. Czech president Milos Zeman is also a firm opponent of Kosovo’s secession.