To obtain the right to Czech nationality, I had to take the government to court Letter

Vicky Unwin’s Arduous Journey to Czech Citizenship

Vicky Unwin recently shared her five-year-long, Kafkaesque ordeal to obtain Czech citizenship. This revelation came in the wake of a report highlighting the rights of Jewish children born between 1949 and 1969 to Czech parents who had escaped the Nazis, allowing them to claim citizenship. As Unwin received her Czech documents, she reflected on the bureaucratic hurdles she faced.

To secure her Czech nationality, Unwin had to resort to legal action against the government in Prague. She emerged victorious, becoming the first individual to successfully challenge the prevailing law. The irony lies in the fact that her lineage is deeply rooted in the Czech Republic. Her grandfather, Hermann Ungar, a renowned Czech Jewish writer and diplomat, had significant ties to the nation. Yet, the authorities initially denied Unwin’s claim, citing her grandmother’s declaration of speaking German as her primary language in the 1930 census.

Unwin’s father had fled the country in 1939 and later served as an intelligence officer in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve during World War II. Despite her family’s deep connections to the Czech Republic, Unwin faced years of bureaucratic red tape, reminiscent of the absurdities in Franz Kafka’s works.

For the detailed account of her journey, visit The Guardian.