Trauma of betrayal we should learn from: Political leaders honor victims of 1968 invasion
August 21, 1968, went down in Czechoslovak history as the day that Soviet-led Warsaw Pact troops crushed the Prague Spring reforms and the hopes of millions of people yearning for freedom and democracy. At a solemn ceremony outside the Czech Radio building, political leaders laid wreaths to honor those who lost their lives in the invasion and highlighted the role of free media – then and now.
Twenty years after the Communist Party seized power in Czechoslovakia in February 1948, the Prague Spring emerged after a dark period – a time of hope and belief in a better future that, however, lasted only a very short time. It is primarily associated with Alexander Dubček, who advocated what became known as “socialism with a human face.” The movement was brutally suppressed on August 21, when troops from the Soviet Union and other allied countries invaded Czechoslovakia, 58 years ago.
The Czechoslovak Radio building on Vinohradská Street, now home to Czech Radio, was one of the invaders’ main targets. Citizens confronted the occupying troops in what became known as the “Battle for Czechoslovak Radio,” in which 17 people were killed.
As every year on this day, a solemn commemorative ceremony was held at the entrance to the building on Vinohradská Street with political representatives laying wreaths in the presence of a guard of honor and to the sounds of a brass band. The ceremony was followed by a series of speeches, starting with Czech Radio Director-General René Zavoral.
“Many historians believe that those few months of relative freedom known as the Prague Spring were an experience that helped us endure the following two decades of totalitarian oppression. If we refuse to forget that day of betrayal, shame and national humiliation, it is not merely out of a sense of duty to mourn our fallen and seriously wounded fellow citizens. We remember because this event remains an unhealed wound and offers many lessons that remain relevant even today.”
Above the heads of those gathered outside the Czech Radio building, numerous banners could be seen expressing support for the independence of public-service media. They were a response to the months-long debate over abolishing licence fees and changing the way Czech Radio and Czech Television are funded. Many people view the government’s proposal as an attack on media freedom. The parallel between defending public radio in the past and doing so today therefore also featured in Zavoral’s speech.
“The fact that the largest confrontation between the occupiers and true Czech patriots took place here, in front of the Czech Radio building, was no coincidence. It was an expression of the Czech public’s instinctive determination to defend Czech Radio as an independent source of information. That is why we consider this stretch of pavement in front of our building the most fitting place to commemorate those who lost their lives, while also reminding ourselves of our right to freedom and independence as an essential condition for fulfilling our mission.”
After Zavoral, Czech President Petr Pavel took the stage to loud applause and chants of support. In his speech, he drew a parallel between the Soviet Union’s expansionist ambitions in the past and Russia’s aggressive policies today.
“Although 58 years have now passed since the Warsaw Pact invasion of our country, the trauma of betrayal and the humiliation inflicted by our former allies remains deeply rooted in Czech society. As a result of this trauma, however, we as a nation could and should be more aware of and more sensitive to the aggressive and expansionist tendencies of today’s Russia, and perhaps also more resilient to its propaganda. Unfortunately, there are still many people who seek to understand and justify Vladimir Putin and the Russian regime for their actions.”
President Pavel highlighted Ukraine’s courage in defending not only its own country but Europe as a whole. He ended his speech, much like the Czech Radio director, with an appeal to defend the freedom of public-service media in the Czech Republic.
“Public-service media are once again facing pressure to restrict their freedom and independence, albeit in a more subtle way than the Russian-speaking soldiers with machine guns represented. Independent media are one of the fundamental pillars not only of our democracy, but of any democracy. Let us therefore allow ourselves to lose them as a result of their gradual dismantling.”
Those assembled at the ceremony voiced their support for the public media loud and clear, and the speeches of the representatives of the ruling coalition, Finance Minister Alena Schillerová, and Chamber of Deputies Speaker Tomio Okamura, were almost drowned in whistling and booing.
