Jan Palach remembered

Dignitaries from Prague’s Charles University, headed by rector Václav Hampl, laid flowers at Jan Palach’s plaque at the Philosophy Faculty, 44 years after Palach set himself on fire in protest of the 1968 Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia. He died on January 19 1969. Dozens in attendance on Wednesday lit candles in the student’s memory and held a minute of silence. Traffic at the square bearing Palach’s name was also temporarily halted. A new website dedicated to him has also been launched by the university, in cooperation with Czech TV, Czech Radio, the National Film Archives and other institutions.