Marriage Trouble: Prague Urges Czechs to Show EU Some Love

A recent survey conducted by public opinion research center CVVM shows that relations between the Czechs and Brussels are in deep trouble. The pair is not teetering on the brink of a divorce just yet but all the worrying signs that make couples undergo therapy are there.

Approximately 60 percent of respondents doubt that the EU’s decisions are in the interests of the republic or benefit ordinary people. The majority of those polled are against switching to the euro, a move which has been seen as a prerequisite to an ever closer union. Only 18.2 percent of the Czech population took part in the 2014 European Parliament elections. This was the second lowest voter turnout of all bloc members. 

The underlying logic, according to the daily, is simple: the more ordinary Czechs know about the EU and the better they understand how it functions, the more they will love the union. This assessment is based on another opinion poll, which revealed a correlation between mistrust of the EU and the lack of information on the pan-European institutions. According to the survey, those, who know more about the EU, tend to look at it in a positive light.

This is what inspired the authorities to set about on a tour across all of the regions of the Czech Republic.

"We want the communication to be a two way street. We want citizens to share their point of view. We must understand that we all are the European Union and all our efforts determine how successful we will be," the Prague-based broadsheet quoted Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka as saying.

The authorities want people to understand how the EU functions, then feel that they are part of the union and afterwards become actively involved in pan-European events. But information is key to these aspirations.

"Polls show that 95 percent of Czechs want the government to share more information on how the EU operates," Sobotka said.