In an interview with Sputnik Marek Obrtel dismissed the accusation as a “label they usually pin on anyone they don’t like, while we are talking the state’s inability to ensure the security of its citizens inside the country.”
“I don’t know why they call us “a people’s militia.” We see ourselves as a National Guard, like in Switzerland, to ensure our country’s security. We could help deal with national disasters like floods, earthquakes, stave off the wave of incoming migrants and, if necessary, to take up arms to ensure the territorial integrity of our country,” Marek Obrtel said.
When asked whether it was the job of the armed forces and police, he said that the Czech Army had recently been busy discharging its duty far away from the country, including on Russia’s western borders, rather that caring for the defense of its own country.
He complained about the government’s inability to stand up to the EU’s attempts to infringe upon the Czech Republic’s sovereign rights and to hamper its efforts to solve the migrant problem.
Responding to accusations of extremism and kowtowing to Russia, Marek Obrtel said that “we can’t afford having a specific ideology because this will immediately bury the idea of a people’s initiative. We are above any party affiliations, we are open to anyone who sticks to common sense.”
He said that his organization now has 90 branches across the nation whose members are ready to defend people against possible threats.
When asked if he felt like a pariah after sending back his NATO awards, Marek Obrtel said that despite everything he was happy about what he did.
“I have no regrets. Judging by the feedback I’ve been getting from people, I see that many are on my side and would like to raise their voice against NATO’s policy, including towards Russia. Many are afraid to speak out, but, believe me, there are hundreds of thousands of them out there,” Marek Obrtel said.
Marek Obrtel is a former military doctor who participated in missions in Kosovo and Afghanistan. In an open letter sent to the Czech Defense Ministry and the Czech government he asked them to take back his NATO medals, calling the North Atlantic alliance a "criminal organization."
Obrtel said he was giving back four NATO medals he received for his role in international peacekeeping missions as
