Sudeten German leaders publicly state they do not seek to overturn the Beneš decrees, yet internal documents suggest otherwise, according to an investigation by ParlamentníListy.cz.
Bernd Posselt, head of the Sudeten German Landsmannschaft, has repeatedly assured Czech officials that the organization does not pursue the revision or abolition of the postwar decrees that expelled ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia. In a letter to Brno and South Moravian regional representatives in late March, Posselt acknowledged wartime crimes committed by Sudeten Germans and stated the issue would not be a focus of their activities.
“We do not intend to make this topic the center of attention in our work or at the upcoming Sudeten German Day,” Posselt wrote, emphasizing a preference to avoid interfering in Czech domestic political debates on the matter.
However, ParlamentníListy.cz reported discovering contradictory evidence within the Landsmannschaft’s own statutes, indicating a different stance than the one presented publicly. The outlet did not specify the exact nature of the conflicting documentation.
Representatives from Brno and the South Moravian Region said they were not alarmed by the findings.
The Beneš decrees, issued after World War II, remain a sensitive topic in Czech-German relations, particularly concerning property rights and historical accountability.
