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We Should Take . . . the Fate Of theCountry in Our Hands';Civic ForumMessage Spreads to Hinterland

Article from:The Washington Post Article date:December 11, 1989Author: Dan Morgan

The three-week-old Czechoslovak democracy movement reachedthe grass roots Saturday when about 500 working men and women jammed into a hall here 80 miles south of Prague to learn aboutfreedom and to vent their anger at the first free-wheeling "townmeeting" in this country in more than four decades."We must not be afraid; we must learn democracy," exhorted avisiting speaker, Prague actor Ottakar Brousek. "It is not just `We'and `They' now. We have the responsibility. When we go hometonight, we should take our fate and the fate of our country in our hands.""We still hear a clock inside us that ticks with fear," an older manfrom Rozmital confided during a break in the discussion. But he saidthat the meeting, sponsored by the town's small but growing CivicForum chapter, was dispelling it.Meetings like this one all over Czechoslovakia will be as importantas the heady developments in Prague, according to representativesof the Civic Forum democracy coalition formed in the aftermath of the bloody Nov. 17 police assault on student demonstrators inPrague.If Civic Forum's campaign for political freedom is to last after theeuphoria has ebbed, it must have structured, locally based supportuntil elections are held and a democratic system is firmlyestablished, organizers say. That is why intellectuals, artists andstudents who form the core of the movement in Prague have

launched a vigorous program to draw in working people, women andfarmers all over the country.The Communist Party's "leading role," or monopoly on government,has been abolished by law, but Civic Forum members say thatmessage has not gotten through to village-level party officials, manyof whom are little dictators in their areas. Civic Forum charged lastweek that "Stalinists" were still in control of eastern Slovakia andthat breaking their local power will be like fighting "a mafia."It was clear Saturday that the democratic enthusiasm that hasreached a fever pitch in Prague is only beginning to reach theagricultural, textile and uranium mining country around Rozmital. Itwas a cold, windy day with gusts of snow blowing across roads, buta standing-room-only crowd braved the elements to come to themeeting hall. A blue banner announcing the forum had been pinned up at thefront of the room, next to the red, white and blue Czechoslovak flag.The overflow crowd lined the walls and stairs as a half-dozenstudents, all seemingly too young to have been born when Soviettanks snuffed out Czechoslovakia's "Prague Spring" reformmovement of 1968, gave the hushed audience detailed accounts of police attacks on them.By the time the meeting was thrown open for discussion, the ice hadbeen broken."I work as a dispatcher at the farm-machinery plant," began oneyoung man. "Will the factory be privatized?" Brousek, the Pragueactor, took a stab at answering. "I'm not an economist, but Dr.{Walter} Komarek {an economist named deputy prime minister today} says private property will exist to some extent. Shares mightbe owned by workers in the factories."

"Could I get a share?" the dispatcher asked."Of course.""How would I afford it? I only make 3,000 {crowns}, and I supportfive.""So you see how bad off we are!" shouted someone near the frontof the hall.It was announced that one of the town's most powerful Communists,the chief magistrate, was in the crowd, but it appeared to have littleeffect on the discussion. A man describing himself as a toolmaker won round after round of applause with a long diatribe about conditions locally-and inCzechoslovakia in general. "There is good arable land that the armyis using for military exercises. Why can't we use it to farm?" heshouted into a hand-held microphone."Do we want to be led by the people who were always telling uswhat a beautiful future was in store for us? I was in Austria a whileago. They were the same as us 70 years ago. Now our standard of living doesn't compare."During an intermission, a white-haired man said he had beenvictimized his whole life because "in my military book it was writtenthat I was the son of a private craftsman. I had to live in the shadowof that for 40 years."He said the local party had prevented him from getting letters from arelative in the United States and that mail had to be routed throughanother relative in Czechoslovakia. "Many of us were humiliated,harassed and investigated by the police," he said. "I'd be glad if theydid something against those {expletives}." He said no doubt there