New Paris library to be named after late Czech president Václav Havel

A library set to open in Paris’s northern Pajol district next year will be named after the late Czech president Václav Havel, the Czech embassy in Paris writes on its website. The embassy cites the French capital’s mayor, Bertrand Delanoë, who said that he wants to pay respect to one of the greatest artists, statesmen and fighters for freedom. The new library should contain some 30,000 volumes. Mr. Delanoë had already expressed his wish to name either a cultural institution or a street after Mr. Havel three weeks ago, when he signed a book of condolences at the Czech embassy in Paris.

In a similar effort, a street in the Polish city of Gdánsk was named after the late Czech president. According to a Czech member of the European Parliament, it is also likely that one of the parliament’s buildings will be named after Mr. Havel. A petition to rename Prague’s international Ruzyně airport after the late president has received over 80,000 signatures to date.

Author: Sarah Borufka