Battles of Prague Letna Constructions

Approximately fifty skater boys demonstrated on 14th October 2007 against the project of the giant oceanium at the place where huge Stalins’ statue used to stand. They are protesting against the massive commercial building taking away from them one of the few places of Prague, where it is possible to do this sport. And it is probably the only large place, where they can skate for free, and do not brake any law.

Patronage for this action were taken by the Strana Zelených (The Green Party) as this party fights not only against the oceanium building, but against the Sparta stadium changing into the biggest Czech football stadium, against the Blob library and criticizes the construction works of the city beltway. Letna is one of the few places in the city center, where is still some grass and trees. Yet.

Oceanium with eight hundred sea creatures, stadium with 40 thousands places/seats and tunnels with 1300 parking spaces. Ambitious projects are prepared to change our Letna into another commercial zone, but this time at the upper place that is seen from the rest of the city. In other words, the massive oceanium is to stand as a kind of castle, and prove to us all, that communism with all its symbolics (huge Stalin’s statue) have been replaced by aggressive capitalism (enormous oceanium). Is there just a possibility for an open discussion? Vaclav Havel, the ex-president and a symbol of the Velvet Revolution have, with other 1500 people, signed a petition “Save Letna”. They demand Letna question to be open: “It is a matter of wider national, expert and political discussion.”

Development of Letna is nowadays very interesting to watch, and for anybody interested it is indirectly an independent scale of our democracy. If there is not a place for Blob, which was legally chosen and could bring profit of education to all of us, will there be a place for oceanium, which will, at the place, take a significant part of our park away, and bring profit only to few elite persons?