Prague - A Czech family that has fallen victim to the Communist regime will be compensated CZK 500,000, the Brno regional court ruled on Friday.

In 1973, Karel Kořínek and his wife Jindřiška were persecuted by the regime over their political views and religious beliefs, having ended up in a psychiatric ward. Their children were taken away from them. Three of them grew up in an institutional care, the fourth was brought up by their relatives.

Hanuš, Renata, Marek and Aleš have sought justice after their parents died since early 1990s. The Brno regional court ruled that each of them will receive CZK 125 thousand and an apology from the Justice Ministry.

The surviving members of the Kořínek family first filed the case in 1992, demanding CZK nine million in compensation.

"It is shameful the family had to wait for 17 years to be compensated," said judge Michal Ryška who took over the case only recently.

Ryška also said that the court decided about the compensation amount based on a precedent case in which a family was compensated CZK 100,000 per person for not being allowed to study at university under the Communist regime.

Members of Charter 77? Lack of evidence

But the story is far from being simple. Some believe the family was troublesome and the parents did not take proper care of their children. Even the closest relatives say the kids went frequently hungry.

The surviving family members, however, defy these accusations, being adamant the family's persecution was linked to their dissident activities. Jindřiška, Karel and their son Marek were allegedly key figures in the anti-communist movement Charter 77 and members of the Adventist church, claim the Kořínek siblings. The Charter 77 was a political manifesto signed in 1977 by Václav Havel and other Czechoslovak dissidents

But some of the Charter 77 members say they had never been part of the movement. Moreover, the Adventist church priest said the Kořínek family was excommunicated from the church.

Following the 1989 revolution, the family continued to have problems with the state apparatus. Jindřiška Kořínková, for example, refused to pay rent.

There was not enough evidence of the political persecution of the family, says judge Ryška, but they did suffer some injustices.

"The political background of this case is somewhat marginal and problematic. But one thing is sure - the parents were deprived of their right to custody illegally by the state authorities just because they were viewed as so called "chronic complainers"," said Ryška.