Charter 77

Charter 77 denotes both published in the January 1977 petition against the human rights abuses of the communist regime in Czechoslovakia and the associated with it civil rights movement, which became the center of opposition in the 1970s and 1980s.

Since 1976, artists and intellectuals, but also workers, priests, ex-communists and former employees of the intelligence - among them about the playwright Václav Havel, Jiří Hájek and Jiří Dienstbier ( politicians of the Prague Spring ) - and other, ordinary Czechs together on human rights violations to draw attention, which were in contradiction to the signed by the Czechoslovak Foreign Minister Helsinki Final Act.

The immediate cause was the repression of the regime against the band Plastic People of the Universe. The band was founded immediately after the invasion of the Warsaw Pact had organized several festivals with alternative music since 1968. The group was a major attraction for a state independent cultural scene and had particular success in younger people. At a concert in February 1976, the members of the group were detained and questioned many of the concert goers extensively. The action caused a national and international protests. Václav Havel himself saw the repression of the Plastic People as an attack of the totalitarian system on life itself, on human freedom and integrity. For Havel, it was necessary to prevent a precedent.

The explanation

On January 1, 1977, the Charter was published with 77 242 signatures and printed on January 7, 1977 leading European newspapers such as The Times, Le Monde and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. In the Czechoslovak mass media, the text was not published. In January and February of 1977 an intensive public campaign against the Charter; their existence was known within a few days throughout the country.

On 1 February 1977, a list of other 208 signatories was published. By the summer of 1977, the number of signatures increased to 600 by the end of 1977, the Charter eventually had 800 signatories, to 1985, about 1200 to 1989 and 2000. Principal author of the Declaration and first speaker of the movement were Václav Havel, the philosopher and Patocka January former Foreign Minister Jiří Hájek. In January 1977, an international committee established to support the Charter 77, which belonged, among others, Heinrich Böll, Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Graham Greene and Arthur Miller.

In substantive terms, the Charter with respect to the rights granted in the CSCE Declaration and partly also in Czechoslovak laws of reality. You mean the right to freedom of expression as completely illusory, hundreds of thousands of citizens the " freedom from fear " (Preamble of the First Covenant ) denied the right to education is denied because hundreds of thousands of young people not because of their views or the views of their parents to studies are admitted to the freedom of religion is systematically restricted from making Opinionated arbitrariness, total is the instrument of limitation, and often the complete suppression of a number of civil rights [ ... ] a system of de facto subordination of all institutions and organizations in the State under the policy directives of the apparatus of ruling party and the decisions makes opinionated influential individuals. If the receivables are collected, these refer only to the fact that the Czechoslovak government contracts signed, especially the Helsinki Final Act in this form.

The movement

At the very heterogeneous group included members of the communist party as well as her remote parties, atheists, Christians and members of other faith communities. Other well-known members were the sociologist Rudolf Battěk or the philosopher and mathematician Vaclav Benda.

The aim of the movement, which was represented by three speakers annually elected to the outside, the dialogue with representatives of politics and the state was. They spoke on various social problems ( discrimination in employment, freedom to travel, environmental issues, the rights of believers, etc. ) and invited several times amnesty for political prisoners. She drew attention to human rights violations carefully documented it and offered solutions. One of the major concerns was further reproduction forbidden books or texts ( samizdat ): eg translations of authors such as Orwell, Koestler, works all emigrated or totgeschwiegener Czech and Slovak writers and other people.

About the desired movement itself and the membership in the founding document also provides information: Charter 77 is not an organization, has no statutes, no permanent organs and no organizational conditional membership. You belong to everyone who agrees with their ideas, participate in their work and support them. Charter 77 is no basis for opposition political activity. You want the public interest are like many similar citizen initiatives in various countries of the West and the East.

Other signatories included, among others: Petr Pithart (President of the Czech Senate ), Vaclav Maly ( Auxiliary Bishop of Prague), the sociologist Jirina Šiklová and the author Josef Hiršal, Zdeněk Mlynář, secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1968, Ludvik Vaculik, author the manifesto of 2000 words and the philosopher Milan Machovec who played an important role in the Prague Spring.

Content did the Chartists make particularly on individual human rights violations attention, stimulate general mechanisms to protect the rights of individuals permanently and act as a mediator in specific conflicts. Later this task was the Czechoslovak Helsinki Committee, founded in 1988.

The Charter came both a positive response in Western Europe ( where many of their documents have been published ) as well as dissidents in Poland, Hungary and the GDR.

In 1978, an independent group of signatories to the publication of the magazine information about Charter 77 Until 1989 published Charter 77 572 documents on human rights violations, the situation of the churches in the CSSR, on topics such as peace, the environment, philosophy and historiography. Also for in Czechoslovakia often complicated relationship with Germany was the Charter made ​​statements.

A real organization that evolved from the Charter was the committee for the defense of unjust persecution ( ch: Výbor na obranu nespravedlivě stíhaných - VONS ) 1978.

From the mid- 1980s, mainly young activists to break with the hitherto pursued means of apolitical politics and adopted by Comenius motto " Omnia sponte fluant, absit violentia rebus ( Everything flowed by itself, the violence was the distant things ) ." You are looking for, among other things, encouraged by glasnost and perestroika, and the physical confrontation with the Czechoslovak state.

The Charter made ​​until 1989 a major role in it, even to inform the West, but also the Czechoslovaks on the actual situation in the country and to create a space for free discussion. Their commitment and reputation, it is also due to that the Velvet Revolution of 1989 was peaceful, many of its protagonists reached after high political levels in the state.

1992 ended the Charter 77 officially their activities.

State responses

Although the Charter itself is not defined as an opposition and calling for dialogue, the Czechoslovak government responded with repression and hardship. The first reaction of the state took place on January 12, 1977 in the newspaper Rudé právo. Under the heading shipwrecked and self- elect, the signatories were called botched existence of the Czechoslovak reactionary bourgeoisie and from which the organizers of the counter-revolution of 1968, which negotiated some Western agencies to order anti-Communist and Zionist centers. The document itself is an anti-state, anti-socialist, opposed to the people, demagogic diatribe that slandered the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic and the revolutionary achievements of the people in a rough and mendacious manner. In January and February, followed an intensive campaign in all media, in which many regime -conforming artists and intellectuals vehemently distanced themselves from the Charter. The singer Karel Gott, for example, asserted: There are times and situations where it is not enough just to sing. That's why my voice joins in the great river of the artists who are committed to socialism and peace: for an even more beautiful song and an even more beautiful melody, for an even happier and more joyful life to the people of this country.

Signatories were repeatedly arrested, interrogated, apparently under surveillance, were banned from working or were isolated from society. Václav Havel spent several months in custody. One of the three first speaker Jan Patocka, broke on 13 March 1977, together after hours of interrogation by the police and died. At his funeral, each mourner was photographed and filmed while constantly circling a helicopter over the cemetery. In October 1977 eventually led to the first official process. The defendants were alleged to have smuggled forbidden writings abroad in Czechoslovakia. The highest fine was 3 1/2 years in prison.

Several hundred of the signatories of the Charter were expatriated. The writer Pavel Kohout was denied re-entry into Czechoslovakia in 1979 after a trip and citizenship revoked. Others have left their home for fear of repression. A total of about 300 signatories have emigrated, mainly to Austria, where they unceremoniously was granted political asylum at the time. From there, most of them are more emigrated to the USA, Canada and Australia.

In 1977, the Communist Party initiated a counter-action, the so-called anti- Charter, the fast little over 2000 artists joined esp. actor etc.. On 28 January 1977, the initial signing of the Anti Charter by many prominent artists was broadcast live on television. Today, there are almost no Czech actor of that time, who has not signed there. Actors, however, who did not sign the Charter were, for years barred from conducting business.

Aftermath

In contrast to the Prague Spring the Charter in the Czech Republic and Slovakia is largely uncontroversial. As far as is known, the Charter is today unanimously welcomed. This goes so far that Václav Havel at the anniversary celebrations in 2002 said: As a chartist bothers me the tabloidisation this topic. From the Charter a sacred thing is almost done. Whereas those who were forced by the hard modern history to sign a document against the Charter, today suddenly found on the dock after 25 years. I like totally not. I think that both the Charter and the anti- Charter are part of our recent history and you have to deal with it calmly and rationally. That is, they should not give rise to any offer separation, but rather an impulse for mutual study.

However, a representative survey of the Agency FNS Factum on the occasion of the 25th Charter anniversary in 2002 also showed that the Charter under 19 years was unknown quarter of Czechs under the age of 24 and even 40 % of Czechs.

Signatory (selection)

  • Petr Chudozilov (* 1943)
  • Gábor Demszky ( b. 1952 )
  • Jiří Dienstbier (1937-2011)
  • Anna Fárová (1928-2010)
  • Jiří Gruša (1938-2011)
  • Jiří Hájek (1913-1993)
  • Jiří Hanzelka (1920-2003)
  • Václav Havel (1936-2011)
  • Zbynek Hejda (1930-2013)
  • Josef Hiršal (1920-2003)
  • Jaroslav Hutka ( b. 1947 )
  • Vladimír Kadlec (1912-1998)
  • Eva Kantůrková (* 1930)
  • Svatopluk Karásek ( b. 1942 )
  • Alexandr Kliment (* 1929)
  • Vladimír Klokočka (1929-2009)
  • Pavel Kohout ( b. 1928 )
  • Jiří Kolář (1914-2002)
  • Marta Kubišová ( b. 1942 )
  • Rudolf Kučera ( b. 1947 )
  • Vaclav Lamser
  • Miroslav Lehký ( b. 1947 )
  • Milan Machovec (1925-2003)
  • Vaclav Maly (* 1950)
  • Zdeněk Mlynář (1930-1997)
  • January Patocka (1907-1977)
  • Petr Pithart ( b. 1941 )
  • Jaroslav Šabata (1927-2012)
  • Anna Šabatová (* 1951)
  • Jaroslav Seifert (1901-1986)
  • Jirina Šiklová (* 1935)
  • Dominik Tatarka (1913-1989)
  • Milan Uhde ( b. 1936 )
  • Petr Uhl ( b. 1941 )
  • Ludvik Vaculik (* 1926)
  • Marta Fiedlerová ( b. 1960 )
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