Charter 77, a petition by writers and intellectuals demanding basic human rights played a big part in the anti-communist movement in what erstwhile country?
"generated in modern European politics. The government's reaction to the appearance of Charter 77 was harsh. The official press described the manifesto as ""an anti-state, anti-socialist, and demagogic, abusive piece of writing,"" and individual signatories were variously described as ""traitors and renegades,"" ""a loyal servant and agent of imperialism,"" ""a bankrupt politician,"" and ""an international adventurer."" As it was considered to be an illegal document, the full text of Charter 77 was never published in the official press. However an official group of artists and writers was mobilized into an ""anti-charter"" movement which included Czechoslovakia's foremost singer Karel Gott as"
"first organized opposition emerged under the umbrella of Charter 77. On 6 January 1977, a manifesto called Charter 77 appeared in West German newspapers. The document was immediately translated and reprinted throughout the world. The original manifesto reportedly was signed by 243 people; among them were artists, former public officials, and other prominent figures, such as Zdeněk Mlynář, secretary of the KSČ Central Committee in 1968; Václav Slavík, a Central Committee member in 1968; and Ludvík Vaculík, author of ""Two Thousand Words."" Charter 77 defined itself as ""a loose, informal, and open community of people"" concerned with the protection of"
"reportedly was signed by 243 persons; among them were artists, former public officials, and other prominent figures. The Charter had over 800 signatures by the end of 1977, including workers and youth. It criticized the government for failing to implement human rights provisions of documents it had signed, including the state's own constitution; international covenants on political, civil, economic, social, and cultural rights; and the Final Act of the Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Although not organized in any real sense, the signatories of Charter 77 constituted a citizens' initiative aimed at inducing the Czechoslovak Government to observe"
"intellectuals he gave lectures at the so-called ""Underground University"", which was an informal institution that tried to offer a free, uncensored cultural education. In January 1977 he became one of the original signatories and main spokespersons for the Charter 77 (Charta 77) human rights movement in Czechoslovakia. For the three months after the Charter was released he was intensely active writing and speaking about the meaning of the Charter, in spite of his deteriorating health. He was also interrogated by the police regarding his involvement with the Charter movement, and on March 3, 1977 he was held by the police"
"the 1980s. It closely followed the methodology that had been employed by Charter 77 in Czechoslovakia during 1977. Charter 77 originally appeared as a manifesto published in a West German newspaper that was signed by Czechoslovak citizens representing various occupations, political viewpoints, and religions. The manifesto was reprinted and circulated as a document inviting other signatures and by the mid-1980s it had been signed by 1,200 people. The Original Charter of Charter 88 was explicitly concerned with institutional change: Since 1988, approximately 85,000 people have signed the Charter, over which time the aim of the movement has changed considerably. Among"
"Milan Kohout Milan Kohout (born 1955 in Plzeň, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech–American performance artist, writer, and university lecturer. He was a signatory of the Charter 77 human rights declaration against the communist government of Czechoslovakia. Kohout studied electrical engineering at the College of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Plzen (now the University of West Bohemia). He was active in the Czech underground, as part of a movement known as the Second Culture. As a result of his political activities, he was forced to work in blue-collar occupations, such as several years working as a coal stoker at the Ethnographic Museum in"
"well as prominent comedic writer Jan Werich who later claimed he had no idea of what he was doing whilst signing the anti-charter. Several means of retaliation were used against the signatories, including dismissal from work, denial of educational opportunities for their children, suspension of drivers' licenses, forced exile, loss of citizenship, and detention, trial, and imprisonment. Many members were forced to collaborate with the communist secret service (the StB, Czech: Státní bezpečnost). The treatment of Charter 77 signatories prompted the creation in April 1978 of a support group, the Committee for the Defense of the Unjustly Prosecuted (""Výbor na"
"reaction from the public and in the media. In September 2016 Kohout announced his candidacy for the 2018 Czech presidential elections, though in the event he did not start campaigning and was not a candidate in the election. Milan Kohout Milan Kohout (born 1955 in Plzeň, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech–American performance artist, writer, and university lecturer. He was a signatory of the Charter 77 human rights declaration against the communist government of Czechoslovakia. Kohout studied electrical engineering at the College of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Plzen (now the University of West Bohemia). He was active in the Czech underground, as"
"human rights became important for dissidents in the Eastern Bloc (Soviet human rights movement, Charter 77, Workers' Defence Committee), this period also saw a growing reframing of the struggle between the West and USSR from the economic terms (""communism versus free market"") into a struggle for human rights (""totalitarianism versus liberty""). Since the end of the Cold War, the issues of human rights have been present in a number of major political and military conflicts, debated by global public opinion, from Kosovo to Iraq, Afghanistan, Congo and Darfur. Originally, most international human rights organizations came from France and the UK;"
"project. Jaroslav Hutka Jaroslav Hutka (born 21 April 1947 in Olomouc) is a Czech musician, composer, songwriter, and democracy and human rights activist. He was a signatory of Charter 77 and the 2008 Prague Declaration on European Conscience and Communism. Hutka left Czechoslovakia in October 1978 due to persecution from the Communist authorities, and lived in exile in the Netherlands. After the fall of communism in Czechoslovakia on 26 November 1989, he returned to his native country. Hutka was born on 21 April 1947 in Olomouc, Czechoslovakia. His family was forced into exile in 1952 due to their opposition to"
"Charter 97 Charter 97 (; ) is a declaration calling for democracy in Belarus and a pro-human rights news site taking its inspiration from the declaration. The document – the title of which deliberately echoes the Czechoslovak human rights declaration Charter 77 20 years earlier – was created on the anniversary of a referendum held in 1996, and which, in the words of the organisation of the same name, declares: ""devotion to the principles of independence, freedom and democracy, respect to the human rights, solidarity with everybody, who stands for elimination of dictatorial regime and restoration of democracy in Belarus""."
"Rudolf Bereza Rudolf Bereza(1942-2014) was a famous dissident from the Czech Republic. Bereza was best known for letters he wrote to President Husák and holding a banner in support of Charter 77. Rudolf Bereza was born in 1942 in Tovačov, in what is today the Czech Republic. Growing up, he didn’t resist the Communist Regime. But in 1968, the armies of the Warsaw Pact invaded. This is the event that sparked him into dissident activities. He signed Charter 77 and began to deliver Samizdat documents for the Resistance. He was close with Tomáš Hradilek with whom Bereza participated in many"
"published Charter 77 in 1977, and the first of a new wave of protests were seen in 1988. Between 1948 and 1989 about 250,000 Czechs and Slovaks were sent to prison for political reasons, and over 400,000 emigrated. In November 1989, Czechoslovakia returned to a liberal democracy through the peaceful ""Velvet Revolution"" (led by Václav Havel and his Civic Forum). However, Slovak national aspirations strengthened (see Hyphen War) and on 1 January 1993, the country peacefully split into the independent Czech Republic and Slovakia. Both countries went through economic reforms and privatisations, with the intention of creating a market economy."
"Jaroslav Hutka Jaroslav Hutka (born 21 April 1947 in Olomouc) is a Czech musician, composer, songwriter, and democracy and human rights activist. He was a signatory of Charter 77 and the 2008 Prague Declaration on European Conscience and Communism. Hutka left Czechoslovakia in October 1978 due to persecution from the Communist authorities, and lived in exile in the Netherlands. After the fall of communism in Czechoslovakia on 26 November 1989, he returned to his native country. Hutka was born on 21 April 1947 in Olomouc, Czechoslovakia. His family was forced into exile in 1952 due to their opposition to the"
"VII of the Decalogue, began documenting cases of humanitarian violations against USSR citizens and distributing the documents to the Supreme Soviet Presidium of the USSR, and the governments and media of the thirty-five signatories of the Helsinki Accords. Similar, Helsinki groups were established in Ukraine, Lithuania, Georgia, and Armenia respectively. As the Helsinki groups were forming inside the USSR, the Worker's Defense Committee was founded in Poland in September 1976. Quickly following, on 1 January 1977, Charter 77 was established in Czechoslovakia. Although not labeled “Helsinki”, these groups focused on human rights issues and the accountability of their respective State"
"civil and human rights. It denied oppositional intent and based its defense of rights on legally binding international documents signed by the Czechoslovak government and on guarantees of civil rights contained in the Czechoslovak Constitution. The Charter 77 group declared its objectives to be the following: to draw attention to individual cases of human rights infringements; to suggest remedies; to make general proposals to strengthen rights and freedoms and the mechanisms designed to protect them; and to act as intermediary in situations of conflict. The Charter had over 800 signatures by the end of 1977, including workers and youth; by"
"on 19 October 2009 at the age of 80. Vladimír Klokočka Vladimír Klokočka (23 April 1929 – 19 October 2009) was a Czech lawyer, legal expert and politician. Klokocka was a signatory to the Charter 77 manifesto, which criticized the Czechoslovakian Communist government for not implementing basic human rights provisions. Born in Prague in 1929, Klokocka graduated from the Faculty of Law at Charles University in Prague. He worked as a lecturer following his graduation from Charles University. In the spring of 1968, Klokocka became a deputy in the Czech National Council, the Czech lower house within Czechoslovakia during the"
"protest publicly, with Edward Gierek calling the signatories ""furious anticommunists, politically blind"". Eventually, although the constitution was changed, the above fragments were redrafted to sound more neutral: The government could not officially persecute the signatories for their letter, although various semi-official persecutions were implemented, for example, some authors had the government agencies refuse to print or distribute their books for several years thereafter. Italics refer to the additional signatories from early 1976 In addition in January 1976, 78 emigrants and exiled Polish intellectuals also signed the letter, including: Letter of 59 The Letter of 59 (also known as the ""Memorial"""
"Charter 88 Charter 88 was a British pressure group that advocated constitutional and electoral reform and owes its origins to the lack of a written constitution. It began as a special edition of the ""New Statesman"" magazine in 1988 and it took its name from Charter 77 – the Czechoslovak dissident movement co-founded by Václav Havel. It also has a faint echo of the far more popular mid-19th century Chartist Movement of England that resulted in an unsuccessful campaign for a People's Charter and also Magna Carta or 'Great Charter' of 1215. In November 2007 Charter 88 merged with the"
"Eva Kantůrková Eva Kantůrková (born 1930) is a Czech author and screenwriter. A communist in her early years, she joined the Czech dissident movement after the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia and was one of the signatories of Charter 77. In her novels, short stories, historical essays, and diaries, she has chronicled the repression of Czech dissidents and explored themes of political and personal disillusionment. Kantůrková was born in Prague in 1930. Influenced by her communist father, she became involved in the communist youth movement, but the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 caused her to reject the communist agenda. In"
"had also conducted insect research for over a decade. Mlynář may have been the only intellectual in the world who is known both for his socio-political accomplishments as well as for his research into insect life. In the beginning of 1977, Mlynář became a signatory to Charter 77, a document signed by over a thousand Czechs and Slovaks as well as by many foreign intellectuals that called for all those concerned with human rights to do all they could to spur its development. As a result of this action, Mlynář was expelled from the regime and had to leave Czechoslovakia."
"the protest resulting in the Letter of 59 asking for inclusion of human rights as stated in the Helsinki Accords. The government backed off somewhat, and the final amendment deleted the phrase ""citizens' right depend upon fulfillment of civic duties"", changed ""unshakable fraternal bonds"" to ""strengthen friendship"" and made other conciliatory changes, but after the revised amendment passed there were still protests from the Catholic church and intellectuals. The constitution was heavily amended in the years after the Revolutions of 1989. The amendments purged the document of its Communist character. Among the more important changes: As in most other communist"
"Alexandr Kliment Alexandr Kliment (January 30, 1929 – March 22, 2017) was a Czech writer, poet and playwright. He was a signatory of Charter 77 in 1977. In 1967, Kliment participated in a congress of the writers' union, which included Václav Havel, Ivan Klíma, Ludvík Vaculík, and photographer Oldřich Škácha. The writers' congress, which took place during a period of liberalism in Czechoslovakia, is considered to be a predecessor of the Prague Spring in 1968. He later joined with Havel and other Czechoslovak dissidents to sign the Charter 77. Kliment died on March 21, 2017, at the age of 88."
"Alexandr Kliment Alexandr Kliment (January 30, 1929 – March 22, 2017) was a Czech writer, poet and playwright. He was a signatory of Charter 77 in 1977. In 1967, Kliment participated in a congress of the writers' union, which included Václav Havel, Ivan Klíma, Ludvík Vaculík, and photographer Oldřich Škácha. The writers' congress, which took place during a period of liberalism in Czechoslovakia, is considered to be a predecessor of the Prague Spring in 1968. He later joined with Havel and other Czechoslovak dissidents to sign the Charter 77. Kliment died on March 21, 2017, at the age of 88."
"obranu nespravedlivě stíhaných"" – VONS), to publicize the fate of those associated with the charter. In October 1979 six leaders of this support group, including Václav Havel, were tried for subversion and sentenced to prison terms of up to five years. Repression of Charter 77 and VONS members continued during the 1980s. Despite unrelenting harassment and arrests, however, the groups continued to issue reports on the government's violations of human rights. Until the Velvet Revolution, Charter 77 had approximately 1,900 signatories. Under the dictatorship, the influence of Charter 77 remained limited and only 1,065 people ever signed the document. It"
"Miloš Hájek Miloš Hájek (May 12, 1921 – February 25, 2016) was a Czech historian, politician and Czechoslovak resistance fighter during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–1945). Hájek, who signed the Charter 77 human rights manifesto in 1977, became the spokesman for the Charter 77 movement in 1988. Hájek was born in Dětenice, Czechoslovakia, in 1921. In 1938, Nazi Germany began its occupation of Czechoslovakia. Together with his later wife Alena Hájková, Hájek became involved with the Czech resistance and other anti-Nazi groups to help Jews obtain hideouts and false identity papers during World War II. He was arrested by"
"the summer of 1976 Professor Jan Patočka asked him to become his political advisor. In December 1976 Bergmann took part in the founding of the Charter 77 movement. Together with Rudolf Battěk he founded the Independent Socialistic Movement in Czechoslovakia. The main reason for the establishment of this movement was to link the movement for human rights in Czechoslovakia with political structures of the democratic West. In the period 1979 to 1980 he was a co-editor of ""Dialogue: a Cultural and Political Review"", published in a samizdat. In winter 1980, Bergmann and his co-workes formed the Committee of Charter 77."
"wiretapped his house. After the Velvet Revolution, Bereza was involved in the countries move from communism to democracy. He was involved in the Czech National Council for the Civic Forum and worked as a police chief and bus driver. Even though he is not that well known, a few Czech organizations have interviewed him to document his story, like Post Bellum. Rudolf Bereza Rudolf Bereza(1942-2014) was a famous dissident from the Czech Republic. Bereza was best known for letters he wrote to President Husák and holding a banner in support of Charter 77. Rudolf Bereza was born in 1942 in"
"Communism, signed Charter 77. Years later, she said that she wanted to sign as well, but Mlynář (who had divorced her in 1967) told her they didn't want her signature. During the 1970s and 1980s, she became one of the more prominent Czechoslovak dissidents, and one of the main contacts between the dissidents and the Western media. She frequently hosted meetings of dissident economists in her apartment. One of the attendees was future Czech prime minister and president Vaclav Klaus. By this time, she had become convinced of the need to adopt a market economy; she wrote many samizdat articles"
"the founders of the Charta 77 Foundation František Janouch and Ada Kolman from Stockholm, Sweden. The main goal was to show the history of the foundation and how disidents in Czechoslovakia were supported from Sweden between 1978 and 1990. The 2015 Freedom Lecture took place on the 70th anniversary of the end of the World War II, in connection with the Year of Reconciliation initiative organized by the City of Brno. The debate between the German activist Rainer Höss, the grandson of Rudolf Höss, the commandant of the concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau and the Israeli journalist Tal Bashan, the daughter of"
"Vladimír Klokočka Vladimír Klokočka (23 April 1929 – 19 October 2009) was a Czech lawyer, legal expert and politician. Klokocka was a signatory to the Charter 77 manifesto, which criticized the Czechoslovakian Communist government for not implementing basic human rights provisions. Born in Prague in 1929, Klokocka graduated from the Faculty of Law at Charles University in Prague. He worked as a lecturer following his graduation from Charles University. In the spring of 1968, Klokocka became a deputy in the Czech National Council, the Czech lower house within Czechoslovakia during the height of the Prague Spring reform period. He also"
"restricted any rights of citizens to private property. The regime maintained itself in political power by means of the secret police, propaganda disseminated through the state-controlled mass media, personality cultism, restriction of free discussion and criticism, the use of mass surveillance, political purges and persecution of specific groups of people. In the new 1977 Constitution the Party was, for the first time, openly and formally declared the leading force in the country. According to Universal Declaration of Human Rights, human rights are the ""basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled."", including the right to life and liberty,"
"state, current ministers and representatives from the European Union and Latin America, leaders from international and regional organizations, intellectuals, academics, human rights activists, members of non governmental organizations, and representatives of the Cuban opposition. The group is based in Prague and headed by Czech playwright, writer and ex-President Václav Havel was a member of Charter 77. International Committee for Democracy in Cuba The International Committee for Democracy in Cuba (ICDC) was created in September 2003 as ""a response to the latest brutal crackdown by the Cuban government in the spring of that year against those pushing for democratic reforms, freedom"