Ondřej Stavinoha

“Well, I took a kilo twenty, kilo forty of explosives with me in a nice packet, a twelve-second delay fuse, and a four-and-a-half-volt battery. I came to Gottwald, looked up, and said: ‘Blimey, you’re big.’ I stuck it up between his legs and set it ticking. I heard it click, and I had twelve seconds to leg it. I set the blast timer really short. I ran up to the fountain, which was about a hundred metres from Gottwald, then came the detonation, the shock wave lifted me up... and [I heard] the shattering of glass. And when I turned round, I saw how Gottwald slowly... Christ, I said, I ran to the underpass, Polák [his colleague František Polák - ed.] wasn’t there any more, he’d gone. So I rushed off to the lodging house, and he was already home and said: ‘Blimey, that was a whopper.’ So we chatted for a while, had a smoke, went to bed, and then went to work as normal next morning.”

“Mum, at times perhaps unwittingly, always berated the Communists. When the Russians had liberated us, she had been living in the Beskids, and she told us that the way the Russians behaved was despicable, that even the Germans had behaved better. She had some criticism of the Communists at every moment. And that stayed with me. I was thirteen in the sixty-eighth. At the time I was interested in gamekeeping, and I’d go with my stepfather, who was a Nimrod, to the deer stand. On the twenty-third or twenty-fourth we were in the stand, and on our way back home from the forest, we saw three or four Russian helicopters fly overhead, and he shot at them from his rifle. I’ll never forget that my whole life. Nothing happened. Then we hid in the forest for a while. That’s still stuck in my memory to this day.”

“I have no idea what they were investigating for 9 months – if they wanted to arouse a farce or a comedy – I don't know why it lasted for 9 months before I stood upon the trial, I simply don't know. When the trial came after the 9 months, the whole court room was jam-packed with people. There was also my foreman from work there and such. So they read there first that the people's committee in Příbram was asking for an exemplary punishment. Then, for example my foreman stood up and asked for letting off, that the group of guys went bail for me. There were compromises. But they all wanted mostly exemplary punishment no matter who it was, both the people's committee and those organizations. Well, and after the judgment when I was sentenced, I immediately appealed against it, right after the judgment. Exactly on the same day, I immediately appealed at the Supreme Court. I had the highest one in about a month or how long, it was some Dojčárová, the chairperson of the Senate, she also stuck in my mind. She was blond but very strict, she was a real dragon! So she didn't let my punishment off, about one third only, not even that much. Polák had to pay something, a small amount of the damage that there was. When we heard the judgment we kind of stood up and she started reading the judgments. She started from the minimum one, she started with Týslo. He was sentenced to one year. I say: He was sentenced to one year, well, I'll get at least three years. Well, I can live with it. Oh, well. I was given, when I'm thinking about it, the paragraph 95 – it was sabotage, dishonoring the head of the state and illegal equipment with arms. And I also had general danger there but they probably cancelled that. They left me with the highest punishment because there were paragraphs there: the first one was from 3 to 6, the second one from 7 years... Simply the paragraph 95, the sabotage, it was simply even for the death penalty. And, being still in custody, I said to myself – well, they might even hang me up. They told me, those who were with me, that what they...with me. That I did something for what they hang you up! I buckled hearing it and I said: Bloody hell, I didn't... But then I said that I wouldn't be hanged up. As a human I had time to think for those 9 months. I expected an exemplary punishment, alright, an exemplary punishment. Well, those 9 years were a lot but the death penalty was still at the back of my mind and when you know nothing about it...”

“It is impossible. After two years outside when you don't know what it looks like out there or... At my time I could never get jeans, for example. Maybe for vouchers somewhere under the counter in 78. And then, when I was released, my sister wrote to me that she bought a pair of jeans for me, that they were sold, anything... The change in Příbram was enormous. There was no housing estate in Ryneček in 78 but there it was in 87. It was something unbelievable. It was hard to compare. And simply life in general, you couldn't compare it. You had certain stereotypes. If you think about it, you were taught to obey screws as a stereotype. Breakfast, supper, work, simply this and that over and over again. But then freedom all of a sudden. I went out through the gates, there was my sister with her car waiting and I could go. It was something... I did one more thing, I don't know if it was the right thing to do... I turned around, spat in front of the screw and I said: Bloody hell – and I went. It was terribly long those nine years. Simply never ending, it was... As time went by I say to myself today – it just happened. I have done that. But I said to myself many times in jail: Was it really worth it? Well, after those five, six years, when you had your stereotypes, one as the same as the other, you say to yourself: Was it worth it? But it has happened, you can't erase it, it's just impossible.”

“I say: Fanda, let's go at it, today. He says: 'No way, I'm scared.' I say: You'll wait in the underpass in the square in Příbram and I'll go there. You'll simply guard so that nobody came out of the underpass and didn't catch me red handed. And I'll see the rest there. So off we went, well, what the time was – one, two o'clock in the morning already. It was at the turn of the twenty-second and the twenty-third of August. It was larger-than-life size, I can see it like today. I know this from the judgment. It was two meter sixty tall and it was made from bronze. Well, when I came to it I looked up and it was such a colossus. I say: Wow, is this going to be enough for you? Then I say: Probably yes. So I placed it between his legs, I put a twelve-second detonator there, a delayed-action mechanism and I set it off with a four-and-a-half-volt battery. And I ran. I got as far as the – there is a kind of fountain in Příbram – I ran towards the underpass, away from the statue. I got as far as the fountain – detonation. It pushed me forwards, crashing glasses. I say: Well, it was a bit over too much. I didn't count with that, I mean with such a force of penetration I didn't count. I reached the underpass and Franta was already gone. The statue was halved in its crotch and I think its right leg was blasted off. The right leg – well, probably the right one... Well, and it was made by an academic sculptor Benda then, I remember that from the judgment. So they gave it to him to fix it because he still had the casts. So he simply cast a new leg somehow, well, a shame... I was charged with damage on Gottwald about 110, 120 thousand, I can't tell you exactly. I had to pay that, well... We were practically at large for seven more days, nobody knew that. We often just met after work and we had a chat. Of course you were thinking hard because all those different statements and, you know, you were worried what would happen next. So we were thinking that we could possibly leave, beyond the border somehow. But how. There were no acquaintances to do that for us, we didn't know anyone, it was simply... Twenty-three-year-old young guys, it was dropped eventually. There were police in twos, in threes at each corner in Příbram. They were simply at each corner, they were checking pubs in the evening. It was like the martial law at the times of Heydrich, like I saw it in a film once.”

"My mom was married for the second time and my step father was a hunter. So he had weapons like shot guns, scatterguns or rook rifle etc. One day, when we were in the wood, it was just on August 21st or 22nd, one day after the russian invasion or just the day. My step father was on still hunt and I was joyning him for I was interested in hunting too. In fact I´m till these days. We were in the woods and saw about five helicopters flying over our heads. Step father said:" Look, here they come the son of a ...." He waited a little before they were far away and then he fired his gun. We were hiding in that wood afterwards. He must have missed the helicopter. Maybe, maybe not, I don´t know. And that´s .... My mom was always... She used to tell me about Russians and Germans. She told me, that the Germans were much better behaved than the Russians. She told me that after the Russians liberated us thay were steeling, raping, killing and all that stuff. She had experienced better behavior with Germans she said. Maybe all this anti-communist aversion was growing with me since the childhood. My mom was often calling the communists bad names. I guess it went with me since my childhood."

" And so I was given nine years, Frantisek Polak got seven years also in Valdice prison a Jaroslav Tysl got one year and since he spent nine months already in the custody he left the prison after just four months. Sitting at the court room I knew it was him who reported on us. I kew it all along, because the agent let me read his statement. I knew it from the beginning. We couldn´t talk to each other at the cour room it was impossible. I would have been hit by the chasers, it was simply impossible."

"When we arrived on the square I said: ,Fanda, you wait here in subway and I will put it there.´ I had some experinces with explosives. I grabbed the twelve second detonator and fired it away from about half a meter distance. I had only twelve seconds for the escape. I placed it on the granite pedestal between the statue legs. The statue was standing on the Pribram town square, I think it was called The Great October Revolution Square. I don´t really remember. The statue was above lifesize, I know that from the court judgement. It was 2,6 meters high and it was made out of bronze. When I came closer to it and looked up, what a giant. I said: ,Oh, boy is this going to be enough for you? I guess so.´And so I have put the explosives between it´s legs and by using the 4,5 voltage battery I have detonated it and ran off. I reached the fountain next to the subway when I heard the blast. It lifted me a little and then I heard glass smashing noise. I thought: , I have overdone it.´ I didn´t count with such power. When I ran into subway Frantisek was gone already. He ran off perhaps even before the detonation, he said, he better be going. I ran to the hostel, I didn´t get caught by any policeman, nothing. I made it safely to the hostel. "And have youn seen the statue to go up in the air? Can you describe it?" I turned around at the balst and I saw the Gottwald´s statue falling down, broken glasses and everything. I said: ´I have overdone it surely.´ and I ran off to the hostel. When I got to the hostel Mr. Polak was already there. I told him: What´s up, where were you?´- ,I went ahead already.´-, You´re a wimp.´ He said: , That was something! It was awful. I bet the whole Pribram town could hear that.´And so we just talked and smoked and went to bed about an hour later. In the morning we went to work. As we were passing the square we could see it was closed. The buses had to ride around so I didn´t know what was going on there. I was on the morning shift. When I left work at 3pm I headed to the square. I looked around and saw the Gottwald was gone. I came closer to the pedestal and saw there was a hole made by the explosives because I placed it right between the statue´s legs. I said:, Oh , well...´ And then it started. The local radio system was on every two or three hours asking who saw anything, should come and this and that. I felt quite nervous."

"After seven days I was on the night shift when at 2am four or five men showed up. They asked who is Stavinoha.,Me.´ - ,You will go with us.´To go underground we wore a tool bag where we had the axe to use on the wood, some snacks etc. So I wanted to take this bag with me, but he pushed me away, took the axe out of the bag and put on the handcuffs. Because I was standing on the ladder about 30 meters under ground when they came, I told them: , You don´t expect me tp climb up the ladder with the cuffs on , do you?´ So they took them off. Two of them climbed in front of me and the other two behind me. That´s how we got out. They let me take a shower, but two of the men were in the bathroom with me. Then they took me to Pribram town. There they let me stay alone for two or three hours until the morning... Nothing was going on. I could guess already what happend. The door opened finally, someone wearing civies came and said:, Come on Ondrej.´ He looked like a nice guy. We came in the office and he said:, You know why you´re here?´- ,I have no idea.´He said:, There is no sence in lying to us,at all.´- ,I´m not lying, I dont´t know what you want from me.´- ,So you don´t have the slightest idea, huh?´ - ,I don´t know. Someone fired off the statue of president Gottwald, so I guess you suspecting it was me?´- ´You know what, I let you to think about it.´ He left. Another one came. , So Stavinoha, will you speak or will you not? Who have you done it with? How did it happen?´ And then it started. Hands behind the chair, handcuffs on, and he began to slap my face. , I will get it out of you!´ - , Listen, what are your intentions?´ I kept to fib I told myself they can´t know anything. After half an hour of yelling at me the other nice guy came back. ,Ondrej, look I let you read something here and you decide if there´s any sence of being lying.´And he handed me Mr. Tysl´s statement."

" My name is Ondrej Stavinoha and I was born on June 14th 1955 in Znojmo town. I come from the working class family, as far as I´m concerned. My mom´s maiden name was Marie Stavinohova, and after she got married Marie Vankova. We lived in Znojmo region for a while and then we moved to Velke Kralovice, that´s in Beskydy mountains. We lived there for about five years. After that we moved again, this time to Svobodne Hermanice town which is in Bruntal region. After some three or four years we moved once again, this time to Horni Benesov. Here Ihave finished the grammar school i.e. nine grades and I went to agriculture brand school for three years."