Criminal law protection of state symbols in the countries of Central Europe: Common features and differences

The paper deals with criminal law protection of state and national symbols in five Central European countries. It aims at reviewing the regulation of these symbols concerning the penal law level, and compare the characteristics of the legal systems analyzed. The paper concludes that there is no significant difference in the protection of state or national symbols at the level of legal regulation between the geographically eastern and western countries of Europe. The state and national symbols (flags, coats of arms or anthems) are symbols of state identity and of the unity of citizens, whose ideological role in forming identity justifies even their protection under criminal law.