For staunch opponents of communism in the Czech Republic, this is the end of a very long road: more than 30 years after the democratic "axamite revolution" in November 1989, they demanded that the communists be aligned with the Nazis and followers of akin authoritarian ideologies and thus banned.
From 1 January 2026
That is what happened: In the second half of July president Petr Pavel signed an amendment to the penal code, which clearly equates Nazism and communism in the Czech Republic. The legislative process has ended by signing the text of this amendment. The fresh bill will enter into force on 1 January 2026.
The amendment of the bill was initiated by the citizens' movement "November is not yet over". It is headed by a student leader from the time of the velvet revolution, who later became Senator – Martin Mejstrik. Historians from the Czech Institute for Studying Totalitarian Regimes (USR) besides joined this initiative. In the spring of that year, it was pushed in the Chamber of Members and legislature by a group of pro-European government coalition Prime Minister Petra Fiala.
"Who assumes, supports or promotes the national socialist, communist or another movement, which in proven manner aims to abolish human rights and freedoms or promotes racial, ethnic, national, spiritual or class hostility towards another group of persons, is subject to imprisonment from 1 year to 5 years" — that is the fresh text of paragraph 403 of the Czech Criminal Code.
Protection of a democratic regulation of law
– The intent of this amendment was to abolish the manifestly unfair discrimination between the 2 criminal totalitarian ideologies of the 20th century," explained Kamil Nedvedicky, the first deputy manager of the USTR, at the end of May following the passing of the bill by the Parliament of the Czech Republic.
– Both ideologies, Nazism and communism, have proven their efforts to suppress fundamental rights and freedoms, and it is logical and just that the Czech criminal law clearly reflects this," Nedvedicky added. "This is not about ideology, but about the protection of the democratic regulation of law," he explained.
Paradoxically, the 10 million inhabitants of the Czech Republic are present 1 of the fewer European Union countries in which the Communist organization – the Communist organization of Bohemia and Moravia (KSCM) has been successfully operating for over 3 decades. Until the last parliamentary elections held little than 4 years ago, the KSCM had not only its representatives in Parliament, but besides respective vice-presidents of the advanced home of Parliament.
You say, "To me, they're not communists."
This party, being the successor of the Marxist-Leninian Communist organization of Czechoslovakia (KSC), which ruled the country in a dictatorial way until 1989, present has respective tens of thousands of members and as the main force of the "Stacilo!" election coalition (Enough!) after the election in 2024 entered the European Parliament.
Also today, most polls indicate that "Stacilo!" will exceed the 5% threshold in the Czech Parliamentary elections to be held in October of this year.
But that's not all. The favourite of these elections, president of the populist ANO movement, erstwhile Prime Minister and oligarch Andrej Babisz, does not regulation out that with "Stacilo!" he could form a fresh government. "For me, these are not communists," he explained in an interview with the news service. The leading candidate of the ANO election coalition is the president of the KSCM and the Euro MP Katerina Konecna.
An effort to silence the opposition?
The fresh law can indeed lead to a ban on KSCM activities, as was the case of the Czech Workers' Party, which was banned and dissolved in 2010 due to the proof of its Nazi ideology. The head of KSCM Katerina Konecna declared to the DW that the current amendment of the law, which was then applied, is simply a "political attack by the government coalition on her party".
– It is about systematic attempts to silence the loudest critics by the antisocial corrupt government of Petra Fiala. There is no area for that in democratic society," said Katerina Konecna. "It is besides comic that Petr Pavel signed this bill, "who himself was a associate of the Communist organization of Czechoslovakia, and even its prominent member," she added.
The President's past
The current Czech president was a professional soldier and associate of the Communist organization of Czechoslovakia until the end of communist regulation in it in 1989. "It was a decision from which, from the position of time and cognition I have today, I am definitely not proud," he commented before the presidential election more than 2 years ago.
– I think the last 30 years I have devoted to building a safer Czech Republic are my symbolic apologies to society – he added 5 years ago in an interview with the paper "Blesk". From 2012 to 2015, Pavel was head of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces, and since 2015 for more than 3 years head of the NATO Military Committee.
The KSCM president besides stated that the government should address the problems of Czech citizens, "such as advanced energy prices or advanced rental costs." But instead, the government took time to pass a bill to silence critics. “But we will not be intimidated, even if they endanger us a 100 times and put us in jail!” said Katerina Konecna.
Against the ban on communism in the Czech Republic, the president of the State Duma, or parliament of the Russian Federation, Wiaczesław Wołodin, besides said: "If the state, the strategy of the time, is compared to the fascist ideology and fascist regime, it is clear that this is intended to undermine, accuse and condemn our country." His message was cited by the Russian state agency TASS on July 25, 2025.
