Vaclav Havel: a true democrat

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 20^th 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.