Pavla Kocourková from the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen received the highest order of Belgium for commemorating the liberators of Pilsen

On Thursday evening, November 13, Pavla Kocourková, a lecturer at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen, was awarded the highest honor by the King of Belgium. She works at the Institute of Language Training and has been working for 20 years to raise awareness of the Belgian liberators of western Bohemia. The Order of Leopold was presented to her in Prague by the Belgian ambassador.

 Pavla Kocourková, a French teacher and head of the Romance Languages and Latin Department at the Institute of Language Preparation at the University of West Bohemia, has twenty years of patient work behind her, which began when she was interpreting for the city of Pilsen. "I met Belgian veterans at the Liberation Festival in Pilsen and listened to their memories. I was sorry that almost no one talked about them. They were part of the American army, so they remained in the shadows. I decided to try to change that," explained Kocourková.  This was followed by years of contact with the embassy, interviews with eyewitnesses, preparation of the book, and annual work to make Belgian veterans an integral part of the celebrations of Pilsen's liberation.

The invitation to this year's festive reception at the Belgian Embassy in Prague on the occasion of King's Day on November 13 was not unusual for the linguist, who attends it every year thanks to her activities. This time, however, a surprise awaited her. Ambassador J. E. Jürgen van Meirvenne presented her with a thank-you note directly from King Philippe of Belgium. "She tirelessly devotes herself to Belgian veterans and their families and makes sure they feel welcome and at home in Pilsen. It is also thanks to her that the King's visit in May was such a great success. In recognition of her merits, the king decided to appoint her a Knight of the Order of Leopold, the highest Belgian knighthood," said Ambassador Jürgen van Meirvenne.

 Belgium thus honored Kocourková's many years of work, thanks to which the story of Belgian veterans of World War II and the liberation of western Bohemia returned to public awareness in Czechia and Belgium. King Philippe had already decorated Kocourková in 2017, at that time with the Order of Leopold II, the third highest Belgian award. Now she has received the highest order. "It's a huge honor. I was so surprised that, apart from saying thank you and promising that I would continue, of course, I couldn't say anything else," said Pavla Kocourková. This is an extraordinary event for the Czech Republic.