Fatal shooting raises more questions about politicians’ associates

A number of Czech politicians, from both sides of the political spectrum, have come under scrutiny past and present for questionable ties to behind-the-scenes lobbyists, controversial businessmen, and shadowy figures with ties to organised crime. Now the issue of the company politicians keep has been raised again, following last week’s murder of entrepreneur Václav Kočka by Bohumír Ďuričko, a businessman with a shady past. The killing happened at a restaurant where they both attended opposition leader Jiri Paroubek’s book-launch.

Jiří Paroubek, photo: CTK

On the one hand, a life destroyed and a family tragedy; on the other, bad political news for Social Democrat leader Jiří Paroubek. Since last Thursday the Václav Kočka, jr murder has sent shockwaves through political circles. It came just hours after Mr Paroubek and his wife as well as close associates and organisers launched his new book at a Prague restaurant. The scene was a very different one after the leader and most of the guests had left.

Václav Kočka, jr

According to witnesses the two men – Václav Kočka, jr, the son of a controversial Paroubek associate, and his killer, businessman Bohumír Ďuričko (a former agent for the communist-era StB), were involved in an argument at the bar – an argument involving grandstanding over who had more money in their wallet. Events quickly escalated into tragedy: Mr Ďuričko drew a firearm and killed the other man with three shots. He was then caught trying to escape.

Just who, many are wondering, are the figures surrounding Czech politicians? And how deeply-rooted is the problem of shady characters close to the political scene? To find out I spoke to political analyst Jiří Pehe:

“I think that unfortunately all top Czech politicians are surrounded by very dubious figures, people who needed politicians especially during the privatisation period in the early 1990s. In my opinion it is a real problem of Czech politics: often various so-called entrepreneurs and businessmen possible connections to the mafia have information about politicians which could compromise them, therefore the politicians are effectively hostages. It is then very difficult for some politicians to disassociate themselves because they can be so easily compromised.”

Expressing grief over the death of his friend’s son, Jiří Paroubek has tried to distance himself from the murderer Bohumír Ďuričko, a hotel owner who daily Mladá fronta Dnes writes Mr Paroubek once qualified as a “friend”. Now the broader question is over how the incident will affect upcoming regional and senate elections, less than a week away. Many think it could harm the Social Democrats, but others say it will hurt the entire vote, which traditionally sees far lower turnout than the national election. Jiří Pehe again:

“We recently witnessed similar problems with the ruling Civic Democrats and now we see them with the Social Democratic Party. So I think that the public will be even more sceptical about politics. For most of the public the latest incident will provide just more evidence that Czech politics are corrupt and that all leading politicians have such ties. On the other hand, we should be looking for some kind of solution, and I think the solution in the long run is the new generation, less likely to be compromised by the underworld.”