Havel recalls days of revolution

By Tom Clifford and Klára Jiřičná

STAFF WRITERS

Václav Havel returned to the stage to give a command performance and deliver a damning line on the Lisbon policy of President Václav Klaus as "dangerous and irresponsible."

Sharing the press conference stage with Havel at Na zábradlí theater Oct. 15 were leading men of the Velvet Revolution: Alexander Vondra (ODS politician), Jiří Křižan (along with Vondra, a co-founder of Civic Forum) and Havel's spokesperson when he was president, Michael Žantovský.

"This meeting is symbolic, in a sense, that it is a return to where I started my career: to the theater," Havel said, before adding with characteristic humor, "We will speak freely, cheekily and irrespective of the fact that our statements might be mixed up."

The mood was set even before the first question was asked, when Vondra claimed he had asked the former revolutionaries to wear the same trousers they had donned during the tumultuous days of 1989.

Without saying a word, Havel, looking relaxed and robust, pointed to his pants, suggesting they were of revolutionary material. The others admitted the intervening years had seen a retreat in their battle of the bulge; consequently, their former attire no longer fit.

But the humor did not last long, as Havel accused old rival Klaus of being "dangerous and irresponsible" in his Lisbon stance and dismissed fears over the Beneš Decrees, saying Klaus should have been open far earlier about his concerns.

"The threat with the Beneš Decrees - that is not a valid argument, but it can influence the public fed with prejudices of the past," Havel said. "President Klaus should have been clear about his intentions so the people who voted for him would have known what they would be dealing with later on. It is dangerous and irresponsible. He harms our republic; his behavior shows a complete lack of understanding of the character of our Constitution, and he damages the name of the Czech Republic in Europe. However, I strongly believe that the Lisbon Treaty will be ratified."

Both Vondra and Křižan also criticized Klaus.

"I do not agree with Václav Klaus and his argument," Vondra said. "It is important that Klaus guarantees signing Lisbon when his conditions are fulfilled. If not, the government should appeal to the Constitutional Court and appoint someone to sign it."

Křižan added, "We can only hope the current president will come round and act as we need him to, as it is necessary."

The press conference, one month before the anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, came out of immense international interest in events of November 1989, Havel said. He then revealed that, on the pivotal date of Friday, November 17, 1989, when students took to the streets, he was not even in Prague.

"I was being followed," he said, "By both the security forces and the international media. There was a student rally that night, but I decided to go to my house in the country. The reason for this was that I felt the students might think the older generation was trying to muscle in on their action. So, instead of being in Prague, I was in the country. But, as I listened to the radio coverage of the rally, I realized this was the turning point. So, the next day, I returned to Prague."

Mistakes in the aftermath of the revolution had been made, the panel agreed; then again, an "awful lot of mistakes had been avoided."

Chief among the mistakes was the breakup of Czechoslovakia and the lack of accountability demanded from former communist rulers.

Žantovský was adamant that more could have been done to reach out to the Slovaks.

"I do think we could have tried to accommodate them more, to reach out more," he said. "It may not have saved Czechoslovakia, but I think we could have done more to show understanding of their concerns."

When asked by a Romanian journalist why the Velvet Revolution had been bloodless in comparison to that of Romania, Havel took a deep breath and replied, "The Czechs have a tendency to try to resolve matters in pubs rather than on battlefields. It is sometimes good, but sometimes not. Maybe this time it was good."

Havel had little time for those who continue to say life was better under communism.

"I know people who say this; some of my friends even say this. It is wrong," he said. "Under communism, you had no decisions to make; your life was governed for you. Now, you have to make so many decisions about what clothes to wear and work to do, where to live, how to budget. Living under communism was like living in a prison."

Vondra recalled the "exciting and fearful" days of 1989.

"We were optimistic, hopeful and, yes, excited. But there was, for a time, fear," he said. "There had been rumors a particular general would send his tanks onto the streets of Prague. But, then, the fear lessened. The atmosphere of Nov. 17, 1989 was special because the fear was suddenly gone. [Our country] was in our hands, and we knew we would not get messed about anymore. The fate of our country was at stake."

Ironically, it was shortly after Havel's brief arrest that he knew change was going to come.

"At the time of the fall of Berlin Wall," he said, "I remember being arrested and the StB [secret police] officer asking me, 'Sir, when do you think it is going to happen?' This was proof the fear of the regime was gone."

The writers can be reached at news@praguepost.com