Far-right Czech parties want Sudeten German event cancelled

Plans for a meeting in the Czech Republic of Sudeten Germans who were expelled from what was then Czechoslovakia after Nazi Germany's defeat in World War II are facing pushback from the Czech government.

The Czech far-right governing party Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) has introduced a resolution in parliament in Prague opposing the so-called Sudeten German Day. 

The Sudeten German Association's annual Pentecost meeting is to take place from May 22 to 25 in Brno and is due to be held in the Czech Republic for the first time.

Supporters and opponents of the event clashed in a heated exchange in the lower house of the Czech parliament. 

Some described it as an important step towards reconciliation, while others warned it could call into question the outcome of World War II.  It is not yet clear when the motion will be put to a vote.

The draft resolution calls on the organizers to abandon the plan and condemns "any relativization of National Socialist crimes and any questioning of legal and property relations" in the Czech Republic.

Around 3 million Germans were expelled from what was then Czechoslovakia after World War II and the horrors of Germany's Nazi occupation. Many found a new home in Germany. 

Relations between Sudeten Germans and Czechs have been heavily strained for decades.

Right-wing populist Prime Minister Andrej Babiš has so far refrained from making clear statements on the planned meeting. He spoke of a civic initiative, as the Sudeten Germans were invited by the cultural festival Meeting Brno. Brno Mayor Markéta Vaňková has publicly supported the plan.