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Photo: EPA/BGNES
Thousands of Czechs have protested against Czech President Milos Zeman on the 25th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, which ended communist rule.
Demonstrators in Prague carried football-style red cards as a warning to Zeman, while others threw eggs. One accidentally hit the German president Joachim Gauck was in Prague for the celebrations, along with the presidents of Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.
The demonstrators carried banners reading "down with Zeman" and "we do not want to be a Russian colony".
As the president unveiled a plaque to the students involved in the 1989 protest, he was booed, jeered and pelted with eggs, tomatoes and sandwiches.
Security guards used black umbrellas to shield Zeman and other presidents from thrown objects. According to the German embassy in Prague Gauck was hit in the head by an egg.
The crowd repeatedly shouted “Shame, shame” and “Resign, resign”, at Zeman, while the other presidents were applauded.
“I’m not afraid of you!” Zeman retorted to the crowd, while security guards shielded him. “Twenty-five years ago it was dangerous to go out on the streets. It required courage. I was among the demonstrators then. It is cowardly of you to come here and pelt us with eggs.”
Many worry that Zeman, a former communist, is too close to both Russia and China.
The Velvet Revolution began on 17 November 1989 when police attacked a student protest.
A wave of demonstrations followed across the now Czech Republic, toppling the communist government and replacing it with one led by dissident playwright Vaclav Havel.
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