The Czech Bishops Conference is negotiating with the Prague Government to be refunded three billion euros to be paid in instalments for about 60 to 70 years. The news was relayed on 25th October by the president of the Bishops Conference, mgr. Jan Graubner, in an interview with the Czech Catholic journal “Katolicky tydenik”. This amount is a refund for the expropriations made by the Communist government since February 1948 for lands ad buildings owned by the Czech Church, now used otherwise and not returnable. Mgr. Graubner reported about the state of the negotiations for regulating the relations between the State and the Church in the Czech Republic. The solution was put forward during a meeting between mgr. Graubner, Pavel Cerny, president of the Ecumenical Council of the Churches, Vaclav Jehlicka, Minister of Culture, and the deputy minister Jaromir Talir. Jehlicka gave mgr. Graubner a bill of law which was drawn up by Jehlicka and by the Minister of foreign affairs, Karel Schwarzenberg. The bill of law given by Jehlicka sets forth the terms and conditions of the refund agreement. The Minister was given a similar document drawn up by the Church Committee.
