Radka Denemarková is a Czech writer who gave a speech on 6 October 2026 at the opening of the Frankfurt Book Fair.
Radka Denemarková is a Czech writer.[1] On Tuesday, 6 October 2026, she spoke at the ceremony that opened the 78th Frankfurt Book Fair in Frankfurt am Main.[1][3] Czechia was the guest of honour at the fair.[2][3]
Speech at the opening of the fair
Denemarková spoke shortly after the appearance of the Czech Minister of Culture Oto Klempíř and the German Minister of State for Culture and the Media Wolfram Weimer.[1] Klempíř's speech was interrupted by shouts from the audience; people shouted “fuj” (shame) or “hanba” (disgrace) and mentioned his earlier cooperation with the communist State Security, and his speech was followed by whistling and booing.[1][2]
Denemarková then spoke in German and, according to Hospodářské noviny, received a stormy applause for her speech; at the end the audience applauded her standing.[1] In her appearance she said that ministers of culture who “destroy culture and literature” come and go, while culture and literature remain.[1] She also criticised the fact that “two former collaborators of the communist State Security” sit in the Czech government.[1]
Content of the speech
In her speech Denemarková said: “Today's question is quite simple: an open democracy or a closed society. Literature knows the answer, which is why it is so dangerous.”[1][2] She added: “How am I to separate politics and literature at a time when Europe is turning brown.”[1][2] In her words, democracy is at present being reduced to “business and economic pragmatism”.[1][2]
According to Deník N, the full text of the speech was published on 6 October 2026 in French under the title Fascination with the Devil.[3] In its text Denemarková spoke, among other things, of the nation being a construct based on language, territory or political propaganda, and recalled that Czechoslovakia had to rehabilitate Franz Kafka in 1989.[3] She described as part of Czech literature also the German-language and Jewish authors of Prague, such as Kafka, Rainer Maria Rilke, Franz Werfel or Egon Erwin Kisch.[3]
Chronology
- — During the appearance of Minister of Culture Oto Klempíř at the opening of the Frankfurt Book Fair, of which Czechia is guest of honour, shouts of disapproval and whistling came from the audience; the writer Radka Denemarková then criticised ministers of culture in her speech and received applause. → Hospodářské noviny iDNES.cz
- — Minister of Culture Oto Klempíř criticised the appearance of the writer Radka Denemarková at the opening ceremony of the Frankfurt Book Fair, where she recalled his cooperation with the communist State Security in the 1980s. → ČTK / České noviny Seznam Zprávy
Pages that link here
Sources
- Hospodářské noviny — 6 October 2026
- iDNES.cz — 6 October 2026
- Deník N — 6 October 2026