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Wednesday, October 4, 2000
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Interior minister strengthened in wake of city riots By Brian Hannon Gross, the 30-year-old heir apparent to Prime Minister Milos Zeman's spot atop the Social Democratic Party (CSSD), faced a crucial test during the violence-marred meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Battles between police and fringe protesters left more than 600 injured, over 123 of them police, and led to more than 800 arrests. It was Gross' ministry that called up 11,000 police to prepare for the summit and closed state schools, warning the population of potential traffic disruptions and violence. The preemptive moves, motivated by reports from previous anti-globalization troubles, were received angrily by protest groups, who insisted that officials were attempting to demonize their activities and detract attention from their positions. But the events of late September vindicated the youthful minister, who stood by police in the immediate aftermath of the street warfare. Gross called accusations by a legal observers group that undercover agents infiltrated the crowds to provoke violence "shameless." "I am currently considering whether making these allegations could be regarded as a criminal offense," he said. The daily Mlada fronta Dnes -- a conservative publication often critical of the leftist CSSD, which heads the government -- said public opinion was largely behind Gross and the police, who took a defensive stance even as rioters hurled Molotov cocktails. By contrast, police at World Trade Organization meetings in Seattle last year fired tear and pepper gas when crowds refused to disperse. Civic Democratic Alliance (ODA) Chairman Daniel Kroupa complimented Gross. "I think that this particular event is more likely to influence his political future in a positive way," he said. Press criticism Pavel Sobisek, a Bank Austria Creditanstalt analyst who was at the meetings, complimented the police intervention. "On the one hand they were organized so as not to disrupt the duration of the meetings, and on the other hand they were not unnecessarily harsh on the demonstrators." Sobisek said the riots would not have a "direct influence" on Gross' political future. "Even if there appears some criticism of Minister Gross, it will be very few voices and the criticism will not be well founded." But Lidove noviny, another conservative daily, criticized Gross for failing to obtain enough riot shields to protect officers. This failure, the newspaper said, permitted demonstrations to collapse into "uncontrollable rioting." "Attempts to protect Prague were a total failure," the paper wrote. "But this is not at all a fault of rank-and-file policemen. The minister of the interior is to blame for this." Communist Party Deputy Chairman Miloslav Ransdorf believes Gross played a "minimal part" in police conduct, which he credited to police administrators. "I am against any glorification of Minister Gross," Ransdorf said. Ivan Langer, a deputy chairman of the conservative opposition Civic Democratic Party (ODS), said, "The police managed well, no thanks to the interior minister." Miroslav Macek, another ODS deputy, said Gross was far too meek. He said police should have used live ammunition against rioters. They used tear gas and hurled concussion grenades. "I'm siding with the Czech police who were certainly ready to be tough, but they evidently obtained a Gross-style order saying that they should never offer any cause for complaints about the police," Macek said on his Web site. Gross -- who rejected Macek's contention but noted he favors legalizing use of rubber bullets -- said the Czech Republic should be "proud" of the riot squads. "I am convinced that they did perfect work," said Gross, who took over the Interior Ministry in April. Gross admitted the demonstrations were more brutal than he expected. He did not deny that some officers may have been "excessive" in their retaliation, but said categorically that he would not "reproach the police." Gross was anything but inaccessible. On Sept. 27, after rioting subsided but tension still ran high, Gross trekked to the Namesti Miru area to negotiate with 200 protesters hemmed in by police in body armor. They booed him off Anglicka Street. Gross deplored anonymous phone threats made against a member of the Initiative Against Economic Globalization (INPEG), an activist umbrella group, saying that the government rejected all threats "pointed against those who provoked [the] demonstration." Government Office spokesman Libor Roucek said both government officials and conference delegates were pleased with Gross' behavior. "He managed his role very well," Roucek said. -- With wire reports Brian Hannon's e-mail address is bhannon@praguepost.cz
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The Prague Post, a weekly newspaper published in the Czech Republic.
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