Promises of 1968: Crisis, Illusion and Utopia

The Prague Spring 1968: Post-Communist Reflections

Jiři PeHe The Prague Spring 1968 Post-Communist reflections Various interpretations of the period of political and economic liberalization in communist Czechoslovakia in 1968, known as the Prague spring, often tell us more about the difficulties of today’s Czech republic in dealing with its complicated past than about the Prague spring itself. When the fortieth anniversary of the soviet-led invasion that ended the Prague spring was commemorated in the Czech republic on August 21, 2008, politicians, analysts, and historians all struggled with explaining not only what actually happened in 1968, but what the legacy of the Prague spring should be today. The main reason for such difficulties lies in the fact that the past— the communist past, in particular—is still approached in a highly ideological fashion. As a result, rather than attempting to explain the meaning of the reform process itself, it was easier for politicians, journalists, and historians to focus on the invasion. This particular event leaves much less room than the reform process itself for unambiguous interpretations , as it was an act of military aggression that violated international law. The invasion can be discussed and critically examined, regardless of what one may think about the reforms that prompted the soviets to invade Czechoslovakia in the first place. The reluctance to examine the Prague spring reforms was obvious during the first half of 2008. There were only a few conferences and very little discussion in the media about various developments, documents, and movements that transformed the first half of 1968 in Czechoslovakia into one of the most important events in the history of the Czechs and the slovaks, as well as the history of the communist movement. on the day of the anniversary, an official commemoration of the invasion was organized at Prague Castle. Vaclav Klaus, the president of i4 Promises.indb 167 2010.10.18. 14:31 168 Promises of 1968 the Czech republic, gave a speech. A soviet T-54 tank and homemade posters protesting the invasion were on display in Wenceslas square, where soviet troops had clashed with the citizens of Prague in 1968. But most leading politicians limited themselves to brief statements.1 many leading thinkers in the Czech republic regarded the anniversary as unremarkable because they believe the Prague spring was primarily a communist affair—an attempt by reformers to prevail over hardliners within the party. As such, it is of little interest to today’s “authentic ” democrats. Articles in the Czech news media argued that leaders of the Czechoslovak Communist Party in 1968, including first secretary Alexander Dubček, were naïve to think that they could sustain “socialism with a human face.” When they abolished censorship, tolerated artistic freedom, eased travel restrictions, and allowed new civic movements to come into existence, they merely created a virus that threatened the communist system.2 more than anything else, such evaluations are a sign that the trauma of communism is still very much alive today, despite the last nineteen years that democracy has had to take root. in fact, the political thaw that culminated in 1968 started in the early 1960s, when the communist regime eased restrictions on culture. This, in turn, encouraged intellectuals and artists to demand further liberalization. in June 1967, the Congress of the Czechoslovak Writers ’ Union became a major political event, where writers like milan Kundera, Ludvik Vaculik, Pavel Kohout, ivan Klima, and Václav Havel issued calls for greater freedom. The election of Dubček to the highest party post was partly a reaction to this pressure. equally important was the awakening of civil society. A generation of older people who grew up in a democratic Czechoslovakia before and just after World War ii joined forces with younger people who were disappointed by stalinist communism to create a social movement . This widespread renewal of active citizenship, which showed that a majority of people wanted to be free and would pursue their dream, even with the knowledge that the Kremlin would do its best to stop the movement, was the Prague spring’s most important legacy. 1 for a more detailed analysis of the commemoration, see Jiri Pehe, “spring Awakening for Human rights,” New York Times, August 24, 2008. Also, see various reports by the Czech Press Agency, August 21, 2008. 2 see, for example, Bohumil Dolezal in Respekt, July 28, 2008. i4 Promises.indb 168 2010.10.18. 14:31 169 The Prague Spring...