Czech artists urge government to weigh in for cease-fire in Gaza

By Ebad Ahmed

PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AA) - At least 400 artists in the Czech Republic signed a letter urging the government to play a role in reaching a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.

Hundreds of artists, including singer Tomas Klus, actor Vojtech Dyk, and actress Tatiana Dyková, signed the open letter addressed to the government and President Petr Pavel that urged authorities to support calls for a humanitarian cease-fire.

The Czech artists also announced they would extend support for the Artist4Ceasefire initiative launched by artists and activists from the US that demands an immediate and permanent cease-fire in Gaza.

The Czech Republic, considered to be a strong ally of Israel, voted against draft resolutions for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza in two sessions at the UN General Assembly in October and December.

The letter to Pavel comes in the context of an unprecedented protest by Czech artists at an award ceremony last month.

Artists at the Angel Awards ceremony held a banner with the inscription: “Artists for Ceasefire” and wore a red badge with a palm sign symbolizing the call to stop violence.

Separately, a group of pro-Palestine demonstrators, the Prague Art Collective, intervened in late March at an event at the National Gallery to raise their voices against the ongoing genocide in Gaza and express reservations about the Czech Republic’s blatant support to Israel.

A statement released by the collective said the protest was an expression of frustration against the “silence of art institutions and the non-objectivity of the Czech media.”​​​​​​​