An unusual case occurred in the Czech Republic, where a German tourist was detained during breakfast at a hotel, 40 years after he attempted to escape from the GDR.
In 1984, he tried to cross Czechoslovakia to reach West Germany. At the end of last week, while vacationing with his family in the Liberec region, he was arrested and taken to Liberec for questioning. His wife was left at the hotel without means of support, and she traveled to Liberec to join him. After the interrogation, the man was ordered to leave the country within 48 hours. His name was added to the list of undesirable persons.
A representative of the Liberec police confirmed the detention but did not specify the reasons. Meanwhile, the Prague Foreigners Police stated that the decision to include someone in the list of undesirable persons is made solely on the basis of a court ruling.
Lawyer Lubomir Müller, working at the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes, noted that such cases occur from time to time, and each situation requires an individual approach. He also reminded of a recent case where a man, who was arrested in 1983 during an attempt to flee from the GDR, later obtained compensation for injuries sustained.
