Statement

This year like every year, the ceremonial assembly on the occasion of national holiday, the anniversary of the foundation of the independent Czechoslovak State, is held at Prague Castle.

It has been a long-standing tradition that Czech public and state higher education institutions, the top centres of education, knowledge and creative activity playing a key role in the scientific, cultural, social and economic development of the entire society, were invited to this formal assembly, represented by their rectors.

This tradition was disrupted in the last two years and all indications are that this very unfortunate precedent is happening again.

Regardless of clear statements of many individuals and institutions repeatedly emphasizing that the circle of guests invited to the official, highly representative assemblies cannot be influenced by potential disagreements of the past, representatives of two major higher education institutions – Masaryk University and the University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice – were not invited again.

Czech Rectors Conference fundamentally disagrees with this approach and considers it in the context of the national holiday of the Republic as undignified.

Prague, 16 October 2015