Prague’s mayor, Hřib, announced that the center, where refugees from Ukraine were accepted, was closed due to the overload.

PRAGUE, 14 June – RIA Novosti. Prague Mayor Zdeněk Hřib said the mayor of Prague has decided to close the refugee center from Wednesday, as the largest number of Ukrainian refugees arriving in the Czech Republic are sent to the city and the city no longer has the capacity to accommodate them. He said Tuesday.

“From Wednesday, this center stops its work. We hope that the government can redistribute the refugee flows so that they are sent more evenly to all parts of the republic,” Grzhib said. said.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, of the approximately 370,000 Ukrainian refugees who arrived in the republic after February 24, 53.6 thousand received Prague and the neighboring Central Bohemia region. The other 11 districts received between 10,000 and 21,000 people. Two regions, Pilsen and South Moravia, received 27,000 and 36,000 people, respectively.

According to Hřib, Prague no longer has the capacity to receive and accommodate the new refugees, which he has repeatedly warned Cabinet members to. On Friday, Hřib plans to raise the issue of more equal distribution of refugees once again during his meeting with Prime Minister Petr Fiala. At the same time, the prime minister had previously stated that he did not consider the decision of the Prague mayor to close the center unreasonable, and the interior minister, Vit Rakusan, expressed a similar view.

Heads of parts of the Czech Republic described the Prague mayor’s decision as “out of college”. However, Grzhib rejects the criticism, citing certain figures about the resettlement of refugees in certain areas as an argument. In addition, Hřib adds that a new tourist season has begun, and city authorities must vacate these hotels and hostels where refugees are temporarily housed and urgently seek new facilities for them.

Refugees from Ukraine after registration in Prague and regional centers receive the right to reside in the republic for one year, as well as the right to social and medical support, education and work. According to the Ministry of Labour, more than 70,000 Ukrainian refugees have found employment in various firms and enterprises, as well as in the service sector.