Prague court rehabilitates 19 former dissidents persecuted under communism

A Prague district court has rehabilitated 19 Czech dissidents, including underground figure Ivan Martin Jirous, Charter 77 spokesperson Radim Palouš and co-founder of the Committee for the Defence of the Unjustly Prosecuted (VONS) Dana Němcová, who were repeatedly imprisoned under the communist regime.

The Prague 1 District Court ruled on Monday that the "preventive" detentions—often carried out before public holidays, anniversaries of the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia or religious celebrations—were groundless. The ruling, issued 37 to 46 years after the events, also condemned the authorities' treatment of dissidents' families, lawyer Lubomír Müller told the Czech News Agency (ČTK).