Mr. Bohuslav Sobotka
Prime Minister of the Czech Republic
Nabrezi Edvarda Benese 4/128
Prague 1 – Mala Strana
Radio Free Europe Violates Human Rights
and Hospitality of the Czech Republic
Prague, 28th March 2014
Dear Prime Minister,
we appeal to you concerning the matter, which Czech Helsinki Committee follows for several years, and in
which former Head of CHC Anna Sabatova wrote to Washington. It is labor discrimination of Radio Free
Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) foreign employees.
As you know, in 1995, at the invitation of Vaclav Havel, RFE/RL that operates on the basis of U.S.
International Broadcasting Act was transferred from Munich to Prague and settled in the building of former
Federal assembly of Czechoslovakia. The Radio is subordinate to Federal Broadcasting Board of Governors
(BBG) in Washington. Members of BBG are nominated by the President of the United States and confirmed
by Senate. The Secretary of State (presently John Kerry) serves on BBG ex officio. Simultaneously, BBG,
including the Secretary of State, acts as RFE/RL Board of Directors. RFE/RL broadcasts in 28 languages to
21 so called target countries and employs in Prague hundreds of foreign citizens. According to International
Broadcasting Act, BBG controls and directs all American non-military broadcasters abroad and “makes all
major policy determinations governing the operations of RFE/RL.”
RFE/RL, the largest institution of
American public diplomacy overseas, is financed by U.S. Congress. On January 26, 2010, Norman Eisen,
then newly assigned American ambassador to Prague, visited RFE/RL president even before he handed his
diplomatic credentials to the President of Czech Republic.
Czech Republic extended to RFE/RL an extraordinary hospitality corresponding to the glorious humanrights-oriented history and present official mission of that Radio: “to promote democratic values and
institutions,” “strengthen civil societies by projecting democratic values,” “provide a model for local media…”
The building at Wenceslas Square was leased to RFE/RL for symbolic rent of 1 Czech Crown per month.
The Ministry of Finance relieved all RFE/RL American employees, as performing duties of governmental
nature, of Czech income taxes. In April 2006, Cyril Svoboda, the then Czech Minister of Foreign Affaires,
personally handed to BBG in Washington a check of 27 million Czech Crowns to co-finance the resettlement
of RFE/RL into its own building in Prague. In June 2012, Dennis Mulhaupt who headed BBG’s delegation to
Prague, stated with satisfaction after reception by former Czech President Vaclav Klaus: “We could not
imagine more hospitable, dedicated and supportive host.”
American banner is hoisted at RFE/RL’s building. The problem is that hundreds of foreigners working in that
building are intentionally deprived of any real -- defendable by the Czech and/or American laws – labor
rights, for they are hired on uniform employment agreements stating: “Conditions of employment are
governed by the applicable laws of the United States, the laws of the District of Columbia or the policies of
the Company.” In fact, however, to them as to foreigners working for American employer outside the United
States, American labor laws are not applicable at all. (Czech personnel are employed on different
agreements governed by Czech Labor Code).
Czech Helsinki Committee
Štefánikova 21
150 00 Praha 5
IN: 00539708
T: +420 220 515 188 / 777 220 503
E: info@helcom.cz
W: www.helcom.cz
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Thus, American management is placing RFE/RL employees from countries other than Czech Republic and
USA into legal vacuum without informing them at the time of hire of their actual legal status. In reality, they
are subjected to the “policies of the Company “only. Those internal regulations contain a specific rule absent
in their employment agreements (section 5.18.1, RFE/RL Policies&Procedures): “Employment at RFE/RL is
considered to be “at will”, which means that either the employee or RFE/RL can terminate the employment
agreement at any time and for any reason, with or without notice or cause.” It means also without any
reason – as is the RFE/RL’s practice.
Legal claim against RFE/RL by Armenian citizen Anna Karapetian, mother of three minor children, is
presently in the Czech Constitutional Court. The case of Croatian citizen Snjezana Pelivan vs. Czech
Republic is in the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Czech Republic, as the country hosting
on its territory the American RFE/RL, is accused of failing to safeguard Mrs. Pelivan’s rights to nondiscrimination and fair trial guarantied by European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and
Fundamental Freedoms. After years of impeccable service prized by regular performance reviews, both
women were fired without any stated reason, without advance notices, without any disciplinary measures (if
deserved), and even without severance compensations because they refused to give up in writing the right of
appeal to court – an inalienable human and civil right in any democratic state including the Czech Republic.
In its Statement of June 4, 2012, Employment of Foreigners in Radio Free Europe, Czech Helsinki
Committee criticized the RFE/RL’s practice as being “immoral.” In its further pronouncement of August 30,
2012, CHC defined that practice as “an act of fraud.” On October 8, 2012, CHC appealed to Representative
Christopher H. Smith and Senator Benjamin L. Cardin, leaders of U.S. Helsinki Commission, with an Open
letter, Violations of Human Rights and Disregard of Moral Principles by American Radio Free Europe/Radio
Liberty (RFE/RL) in Prague Should Not Go On. March 5, 2013, CHC wrote to RFE/RL president Kevin Klose
asking him for “changing of discriminatory labor policies” and “ending of the court cases with Mrs. Karapetian
and Mrs. Pelivan with the amicable settlement.” On November 23, 2013, CHC published and forwarded to
Mr. Jeffrey Shell, BBG Chairman, a letter, “Radio Free Europe: Labor Policies Shall be Changed, Lawsuits
Peacefully Stopped.”
CHC did not get an answer to any of those letters.
Without any reaction and answer remained also the letters by Czech Senator Jaromir Stetina to the
president of RFE/RL, U.S. Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, leaders of U.S. Senate
Committee on Foreign Relations. On July 15, 2013, Senator Stetina wrote to John Kerry:
“As a member of Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense and Security, I dare to inquire if such a
mode of operations – to ignore, disregard, not to react – is appropriate for American officials and institutions
in relation to the friendly and allied Czech Republic.”
“Unnoticed” remained also three interpellations (inquiries) in Czech parliament addressed to the
governments of PMs Mirek Topolanek and Petr Necas concerning the discrimination of RFE/RL’s employees
by nationality principle -- discrimination inadmissible at the territory of sovereign Czech Republic…
Equally, the American side never paid any attention to angry reaction by Czech mass media – TV, radio,
print media.
Foreign media reaction to court cases of Anna Karapetian and Snjezana Pelivan, titles like “Radio Free
Europe – Guantanamo in Prague” or “Free Europe with Its Own Law in Colonial Czech Republic” are not
contributing to positive international image of the Czech Republic. Critical comments in English, Russian,
Slovak, Armenian, Croatian and other languages regularly appear in print, electronic and voice media. The
list of such publications is virtually endless.
To try to explain that silence in response to appeals and requests coming from the Czech Republic and
concerning RFE/RL only by by bad manners of American officials, would be just as absurd as to call RFE/RL
simply a private organization having private arguments with its employees in Czech Republic. However,
exactly in that spirit sounded humiliating answers of PMs Mirek Topolanek and Petr Necas to parliamentary
interpellations.
Czech Helsinki Committee
Štefánikova 21
150 00 Praha 5
IN: 00539708
T: +420 220 515 188 / 777 220 503
E: info@helcom.cz
W: www.helcom.cz
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Czech Helsinki Committee finds that the silence of American institutions has nothing to do whatsoever with
court disputes if it is permissible or not to apply American labor laws to foreigners at the territory of sovereign
Czech Republic. In opinion of CHC, it is inadmissible. It is excluded itself by American laws. In Munich, even
when it was in American zone of occupation, German labor laws covered all RFE/RL employees including
Americans, while in Prague BBG and RFE/RL assume that they can be above the laws.
It is difficult to understand American silence other than as a display of contempt for the Czech Republic as a
partner and ally. Last year, when Mrs. Lyudmila Alexeyeva, Head of the Moscow Helsinki Group, protested
the violation of labor rights in RFE/RL Moscow bureau (Radio Svoboda), not only the RFE/RL president
Kevin Klose, the chairman and members of BBG came to Moscow to talk to her, but also the Secretary of
State John Kerry met her there. Moreover, she was invited and traveled to Washington. Anna Sabatova,
former Head of Czech Helsinki Committee, winner of the United Nations Human Rights Prize presently
elected to a position of Ombudsman of the Czech Republic, did not even get an answer.
On June 11, 2013 to PM Petr Necas appealed with written interpellation the Parliament deputy
Vladimira Lesenska – member of your party (CSDP), which at that time was in opposition to the government
of Petr Necas. On June 17, his government has resigned and the interpellation -- reported already by Czech
and foreign media -- could not be considered. Deputy Lesenska inquired, in particular:“Snjezana Pelivan,
referring to the Croatian Constitution, officially requested the government in Zagreb to support her claim
against the Czech Republic submitted to Strasbourg. Czech and foreign media also quoted her words:
‘Americans spit on this country openly and smile nicely. And Prague wipes itself dry and keeps smiling, too.
Our next complaint, mine and Anna’s, will be to Geneva, to the UN Human Rights Council.’
How the Czech government , Mr. Prime Minister, assesses such a consequence of its inactivity, how
much longer it intends to stay silent, not addressing American institutions with relevant questions
regarding RFE/RL’s labor policies and actions at the territory of sovereign Czech Republic?” As the
head of CSDP, you are definitely familiar with that interpellation.
Therefore, we ask the new, headed by you government of the Czech Republic to address the government of
the United States of America with request to solve the problems stemming from immoral double-standard
policies of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Discrimination of hundreds of its foreign employees shall be
stopped, protracted lawsuits ended by peaceful resolutions. Czech Republic is the state treating the defense
of human rights seriously and that should be made clear. It is one of our main slogans.
We hope that the burning political and moral problem concerning the defense of human rights, which your
government inherited from previous Czech governments, will be solved by diplomatic means at
intergovernmental level Prague – Washington.
In conclusion, we quote Governmental Declaration: “The government will pursue the high standard in
defense of human rights.”
Thank you and warm wishes,
Tana Fischerova
Head of Czech Helsinki Committee
Czech Helsinki Committee
Štefánikova 21
150 00 Praha 5
IN: 00539708
T: +420 220 515 188 / 777 220 503
E: info@helcom.cz
W: www.helcom.cz
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