Vlastimil Neťuka

* 1938

  • The confiscated property was returned to us, but in what condition. The land was returned to us, that's true, but not all of it. But what was a farm, so it was just like that… Mom and Dad lived there then, but paid rent to the city, because it was confiscated by the state. Then they came to us regarding a wall falling to fix it. I came there and my parents told me: Look, they sent us a piece of paper here that we had to fix the wall. I say: Don't fix anything, what would you fix? After all, it's theirs, they report to it, you pay the rent, so let them fix it. Well, the boys didn't have to. So they gave it back to us, but in the end we sold it then… He then liquidated it, demolished it and built a whole new beautiful house there.

  • At that time we made a trip to the theater in Prague. We arrived there, of course nothing happened here, nothing was known. There was a chaos in Prague. Did we wonder what was going on here? Well, we came to the theater and there was nothing on. The actor Kňažko and other actors performed there at the time, and they said that the actors were fighting against the fact that... (we didn't even know that there were any demonstrations). So we ended up going home in disgust at midnight. And in about 3-4 days there was only the Civic Forum meeting in the square in Janovice. And when I saw the composition of that Civic Forum, I say, boy, get out of here; there were all a former comrade and they were starting a business again.

  • I also remember that when my dad and uncle listened to the Voice of America, my brother and I were each at the door. We had whistles and when someone went past, we whistled because it was a crime to listen to London, so we watched it like that. In 1944 it was already coming to an end. So Dad said we were going to kill a pig in secret. So my brother and I guarded again with whistles at the gate, and when someone walked by, we whistled. Everything went well.

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    Kutná Hora, 29.11.2018

    (audio)
    duration: 49:36
    media recorded in project The Stories of Our Neigbours
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I hate politics

In the army at the end of 1950s
In the army at the end of 1950s
photo: Archive of Vlastimil Neťuka

Vlastimil Neťuka was born on January 22, 1938 in Kutná Hora. He grew up with his parents and two siblings on a farm that was confiscated from his family in 1948. Father Ladislav Neťuka was sentenced in 1952 to six years in prison for anti-state activities, but was released after three and a half years due to an accident at work. After graduating from primary school in 1953, Vlastimil started a one-year agricultural school in Horky nad Jizerou, the next year he transferred to the agricultural master school in Kutná Hora. He gained experience, among other things, as an assistant professor at a farm in Mezholeze and as a farm manager in Sázava. In 1957 he enlisted in the war in Bratislava in the 9th Regiment, after his demise he was transferred to Vyškov. During the war, he met his future wife Drahomíra, with whom he then moved to Zliv near Kácov, where he was placed. They had two daughters, Irena and Vlasta. After less than four years, they went to the farm in Bláta near Uhlířské Janovice. He built a house in Uhlířské Janovice, where he lives to this day. In 1967, he successfully passed the school-leaving examination at the Secondary Agricultural School in Čáslav, which he studied remotely. He worked as a zootechnician until 1975, but then was removed from office because he was not politically involved. Subsequently, he spent nine years as a truck driver, but in 1984 he returned to his field and worked until his retirement as an agronomist. After the revolution, they returned the property to the family, but in very poor condition. Vlastimil Neťuka is a member of the volunteer fire brigade in Uhlířské Janovice.