At the opening of the 78th Frankfurt Book Fair, where the Czech Republic was guest of honour, the audience interrupted the speech of Culture Minister Ota Klempíř with shouts and whistling, while the speech that followed by the writer Radka Denemarková received a standing ovation.
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The opening of the 78th Frankfurt Book Fair took place on 6 October 2026 in Frankfurt. The Czech Republic was the fair's guest of honour, and 75 Czech writers travelled to Frankfurt to present Czech literature and culture to a world audience at readings and debates until Sunday.[1][2]
The culture minister's speech
Czech Culture Minister Ota Klempíř spoke at the opening ceremony. Members of the audience interrupted his speech several times with shouts of "fuj" ("shame") or "hanba" ("disgrace"), and mentioned his cooperation with the communist State Security (StB). The speech was followed by lukewarm applause as well as whistling and booing.[1][2] In his address, Klempíř recalled the role of Germany in supporting Czechoslovak writers at home and in exile under the communist dictatorship.[1][2] Klempíř had earlier admitted to the magazine Reflex that in 1984–1985 he signed a cooperation agreement with the StB, where he was registered under the code name Olda, and that he managed to end the cooperation after a year and a half.[1][2]
Radka Denemarková's speech
After Klempíř, the writer Radka Denemarková spoke in German. She said that "culture ministers who destroy culture and literature come and go, but culture and literature remain".[1] She criticised the fact that "two former collaborators of the communist State Security" sit in the Czech government.[1] She also 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 supposed to separate politics and literature at a time when Europe is turning brown."[1][2] In her view, democracy is currently being reduced to "business and economic pragmatism".[1][2] The audience gave her a standing ovation after the speech.[1]
In connection with the mention of StB collaborators in the government, the sources recall that, according to documents of the Slovak Nation's Memory Institute, Prime Minister Andrej Babiš was an StB agent from 1982, which Babiš denies. In October 2024 the Slovak Interior Ministry announced that it had reached a settlement with Babiš in the matter, which a court subsequently approved.[1][2]
Other speakers
The Czech poet Marie Iljašenko also spoke at the ceremony and called for support for Ukrainian writers. She said that "Russian attacks during the summer alone destroyed 13 million books in Ukraine and caused damage of 25 million euros to the book industry".[1][2] She added that "culture can be inconvenient and must remain free".[1][2] The musician Iva Bittová also performed at the ceremony.[1][2] The German Minister of State for Culture and the Media, Wolfram Weimer, also faced criticism over cuts to funding for culture and education; criticism of him was voiced in his speech by Sebastian Guggolz, chairman of the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels.[1][2]
Connection with cultural policy
A week before the fair opened, the Czech government approved a draft of the state cultural policy of the Czech Republic for 2026–2029, which, according to the sources, was criticised by the opposition and by part of the cultural community. The objections concerned mainly the way the document was prepared, in which, according to critics, the professional public did not take part, unlike the cultural policy approved in 2025 by the previous government. In response, the Ministry of Culture said that, following a proposal from the Association of Czech Booksellers and Publishers, it had strengthened in the new cultural policy the theme of reading literacy and the role of libraries, literature, authors and publishers.[1][2]
Related articles: Frankfurt Book Fair, Oto Klempíř, Radka Denemarková
Chronology
- — Minister of Culture Oto Klempíř criticised Czech writer Radka Denemarková's speech at the opening ceremony of the Frankfurt Book Fair, where she referred to his collaboration with the communist State Security in the 1980s. ČTK / České noviny Seznam Zprávy
- — During the speech by Culture Minister Oto Klempíř at the opening of the Frankfurt Book Fair, where Czechia is the guest of honour, the audience called out in disapproval and whistled; writer Radka Denemarková then criticised culture ministers in her address and received applause. Hospodářské noviny iDNES.cz
Pages linking here
Sources
- Hospodářské noviny — 6 October 2026
- iDNES.cz — 6 October 2026