Speech of the Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek on the Occasion of the Meeting with Honorary Consuls 2. 6. 2008

Dear honorary consuls, welcome to this first meeting of honorary consuls in our history. Everybody will tell you about our priorities, of course, about our ambitions, and our scope of activity. Allow me rather more personal or more general view. I should say that a good honorary consul is a dream of every Prime Minister, every Minister of Finance and every Minister of Foreign Affairs. He carries out his mission as a carrier diplomat, but free of charge without the right for immunity. At present days, when everything must be paid for, and when immunity is a source of occasional scandals, it seems to be like a reminiscence of good old days.

For that matter, Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963 has a sentence in the preamble: "consular relations have been established between peoples since ancient times". But the description of activity of the first honorary consuls who lived more than the 2500 years ago, is surprisingly topical. A classical term "Proxenos" meant a citizen of a city state (usually rich), who felt friendship towards another city state and therefore he voluntarily took up some of roles which are fulfilled by you, honorary consuls, in the modern era. In particular, he helped citizens of the other city with communication with authorities. He sometimes even accommodated these citizens in his own houses at his own expenses, and acted as a host. We do not require the second matter of you now, (I do not anything about it, at least), but helping somebody in communication with authorities is always helpful if it is rendered by somebody who knows everything and who has necessary contacts. Proxenos also used all his contacts and influence to support friendship or alliance with a town which he voluntary represented – like for example Cimon, a Proxenos of Sparta in Athens who operated there even before the outbreak of the First Peloponnesian War. Today's roles of honorary consuls do not differ from those of Proxenoses a lot. You take care of interests of Czech citizens abroad, of good relations, and of commercial interests, of representation of the Czech Republic. And it is still true that you are people with excellent reputation, who enjoy respect in a host country.

That two-and-a-half old tradition has really left marks. And thanks to voluntary character of your positions, the corps of honorary consuls is far more stable than the corps of carrier diplomats. Number of you has been carrying out your activities for a long time; some of you even inherited the function of an honorary consul in the framework of your families. That is what I call an example of faithfulness to the Czech Republic. I wish it were like this in case of home politics... Unfortunately, I cannot greet each of you. Taking into consideration the total number - 133 honorary consuls – this number would be nearly as large as in case of the Pope's blessing Urbi et Orbi. Particularly, I greet the first honorary consul of the independent Czech Republic, Mr. Oldřich Uttendorffský from Amsterdam, at least. In conclusion, allow me to say that I very appreciate your work which is far from easy. I often had an opportunity to familiarize myself with your work in person. It is unpaid work which you do in your free time, without background which is common in embassies; nevertheless, I hope they help you everywhere. For a large part of the public, the position of an honorary consul may be something like a literary character, which makes the story more exotic. It is not like this, definitely. In spite of this fact, I allow myself to use a literary simile. The main protagonist of the novel Honorary Consul by famous writer Graham Green said the following words: "caring is the only one dangerous thing". In spite of the fact it was used in a different context, it gives a true picture of your work. Yes, you undertook caring voluntary - the care for the Czech Republic, their interests, and interests of its citizens. Thus, you also took up certain danger which is a result of that care. I am glad I can thank you, as the first Prime Minister, for that care of yours. Thank you for coming.