VietNamNet Bridge – Speaking on television on Sunday, Ladislav Jakl, assistant to Czech President Vaclav Klaus, said the president was unsatisfied about the raid of Sapa, a market of Vietnamese people in Prague.

Police blocked the gate of Sapa market on November 22 (photo Novinky)

“He (the President) said such show-off intervention couldn’t replace suitable daily checks and it is not welcomed by the public,” Jakl said.

According to the local media, the raid at Sapa market on November 22 mobilised up to 800 police and customs officers. Policemen were equipped with machine-guns, armoured cars, military helicopters and dogs.

A local news agency TN reported that police found only four Asians without resident licences while customs officers seized 15 tonnes of counterfeit goods. Police dogs smelled drugs but police didn’t find anything.

According to Jakl, President Vaclav Klaus was also unsatisfied about the temporary halt to granting long-term visas to Vietnamese citizens till the end of 2008.

“The president talked about this with the Minister of Home Affairs and the Foreign Minister,” Jakl said. However, government officials defended their decisions. “I believe that the president clearly understands all analysis that led to the government’s actions towards the Vietnamese community,” said Minister of Home Affairs Ivan Langer.

According to another local news agency CTK, the management board of Sapa market and Vietnamese traders there cooperated with police. The market’s management board also wants to reject vendors who deal in counterfeit goods, reported CTK.

However, many people protested the inspection. Chairman of the Czech-Vietnam Friendship Association, Marcel Winter, as quoted by the CTK, said that this was not an inspection but a show of police power. The spokesman of the Vietnamese Association in the Czech Republic, Tran Hoan Thanh, also protested the way the police conducted the raid, saying many people felt like they were being bullied.

According to local newspapers, the Vietnamese Student and Youth Association in the Czech Republic submitted a petition to the Czech Lower House’s committee which specialises in dealing with petitions. The petition was signed by 160 students, and said that the raid by the Prague police and customs agency is abuse of power and a violation of human rights and freedom. However, police rejected the association’s accusation.

(Source: TP)