Like what you've read?

On Line Opinion is the only Australian site where you get all sides of the story. We don't
charge, but we need your support. Here�s how you can help.

  • Advertise

    We have a monthly audience of 70,000 and advertising packages from $200 a month.

  • Volunteer

    We always need commissioning editors and sub-editors.

  • Contribute

    Got something to say? Submit an essay.


 The National Forum   Donate   Your Account   On Line Opinion   Forum   Blogs   Polling   About   
On Line Opinion logo ON LINE OPINION - Australia's e-journal of social and political debate

Subscribe!
Subscribe





On Line Opinion is a not-for-profit publication and relies on the generosity of its sponsors, editors and contributors. If you would like to help, contact us.
___________

Syndicate
RSS/XML


RSS 2.0

Vaclav Havel: a true democrat

By Allison Orr - posted Friday, 23 December 2011


"People, your government has returned to you!"

With these words, Vaclav Havel closed his inauguration speech as President of Czechoslovakia on New Year's Day 1990.

This statement was a culmination of decades of struggle against a totalitarian regime, and the promise a new kind of government for the Czechoslovak people.

Advertisement

It is unfortunate that the name of Vaclav Havel is not widely known outside Europe and America. And, having the misfortune to die in the same week as Kim Jong Il, his passing will be overshadowed by larger geopolitical concerns.

But the passing of Havel is noteworthy. While the 20th century is most commonly remembered as a violent, dehumanising time, in which we seemed determined to perfect the art of killing, Havel's life reminds us that that century also saw great struggles for freedom and democracy, the rise of human rights as a global issue, and a growing role for civil society. A life like Havel's reminds us that for every oppressor the world produces, it also produces a liberator.

These may seem like strong words, but in a time when the world has grown cynical about our politicians, it is good to be reminded that, occasionally, the system throws up some true heroes.

Havel's life was remarkable. Since its beginnings in Prague 1936, his life has been caught up in the events of 20th Europe and the rise and fall of Czechoslovakia. So much so that it is almost impossible to separate Havel's experiences from the times in which he lived.

Havel's first years were spent under the Nazi occupation, when the fledgling Czechoslovakian democratic parliament was crushed. After this disaster, the short-lived relief of the Soviet liberation turned to despair as it become clear the Soviets had no plans to leave. Czechoslovakia's decline from flourishing, open democracy to oppressive totalitarian state would continue.

Havel's family had been part of the hated bourgeois, and so suffered under the new Stalinist regime. His father had been imprisoned and the family had been banished from Prague. The class discrimination of the Communist regime also prohibited Vaclav from attending formal education beyond the required schooling.

Advertisement

After military service he gained employment as a stagehand in Prague, and studied drama by correspondence.

He soon gained prominence as a playwright, using theatre as a way to expose the limits and hypocrisies of the regime. At a time when state sanctioned plays generally depicted virtuous working class heroes triumphing over class enemies, Havel's plays gained fame all over Europe for their comical assault on the absurdities and the dehumanising effects of totalitarianism. Havel's plays explored the self-delusions and moral compromises people make living under tyrannical regimes.

In 1968 the Soviets brutally cracked down on the Prague Spring, after which Czechoslovakia became the most repressive of the communist satellites. Havel's plays were banned and his passport confiscated. At this point Havel became more politically active.

He was a founder of Charter 77, and informal civil group dedicated to the pursuit of human and civil rights, and the Committee for the Defence of the Unjustly Prosecuted. For the next fifteen years Havel was under constant government surveillance, was regularly arrested for dissident activities, and was imprisoned for four years. By the late 1980s he was the de facto leader of the resistance against the communist regime.

For a long time, Havel had been convinced that the power structure in Czechoslovakia was built on sand and this proved to be true in 1989 when communism came abruptly to an end. The street had protests began slowly - first a few thousand, then tens of thousands and ultimately hundreds of thousands of people went to the streets of Prague to demand democracy and independence for Czechoslovakia. Crucially, neither the riot police nor the Czech armed forces attempted to stop this.

Within two months, Havel achieved what would have once been a wild dream - he was elected to the presidency of Czechoslovakia.

The Czechoslovakian "velvet revolution" was remarkable for its speed and peacefulness. Unlike some other post-communist states, Czechoslovakia did not self-destruct into a violent country seeking retribution. He urged people not to blame previous rulers for everything, describing the communist regime as "as sin we committed against ourselves". He urged people to see the rebuilding process as a duty shared by all.

Havel's philosophical views heavily influenced how the revolution played out. Once in power, he was able to combine his thinking about democracy with years of political activism. Unlike so many other political dissidents, Havel did not leave democratic philosophy in the realm ideals when he came to power, but set about trying to make it a reality. He encouraged citizens to become involved in politics, to consider informed citizenry as a duty, and encouraged the creation of a strong civil society. He believed these were the elements of a flourishing democracy.

In his speeches and in his policy-making, he guided his country's path down the dangerous road from dictatorship to democracy by urging people to participate and take responsibility for their government.

Havel's views on democracy and civil society have been admired and assessed by European and American political scientists, so much so that the story of democracy in the late 20th century cannot be told without reference to Havel's contribution.

While the revolution took this activist from the streets to the castle, Havel never succumbed to the privileges and arrogance of power. In his first speech in government, he promised to be a president who would speak less and work more, and would always be a man of the people. This is a promise he kept through thirteen years in office – three as president of Czechoslovakia and ten as the first president of the Czech Republic.

Political careers as brilliant as Havel's often fade as politicians face the realities of governing and succumb to political hubris. But Havel's background as a satirical playwright served him well. He never really took the job too seriously, perhaps afraid he would start to resemble one of his own dramatically absurd characters. As president, Havel would often break off political tours to hang in a café or bar for a chat – to the dismay of anxious bodyguards.

When Havel died at the weekend, he had been retired from the presidency for seven years. But he remained active in anti-communist politics until his death.

Havel's life is an inspiring story, and a reminder that ideals are worth fighting for. We have a tendency to be bored and cynical about democracy, but Havel, who knew the very real consequences of losing political freedoms, reminds us why they are important.

  1. Pages:
  2. 1
  3. 2
  4. All


Discuss in our Forums

See what other readers are saying about this article!

Click here to read & post comments.

6 posts so far.

Share this:
reddit this reddit thisbookmark with del.icio.us Del.icio.usdigg thisseed newsvineSeed NewsvineStumbleUpon StumbleUponsubmit to propellerkwoff it

About the Author

Allison Orr is Operations Manager and researcher at Per Capita, an independent, progressive think tank. Allison has a PhD in political science.

Other articles by this Author

All articles by Allison Orr

Creative Commons LicenseThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

Article Tools
Comment 6 comments
Print Printable version
Subscribe Subscribe
Email Email a friend
Advertisement

About Us Search Discuss Feedback Legals Privacy