Ivan Stránský

“Vagonka was split. One part of the management was convinced that this could not last long and aggressively pointed out all the various lies spread by Husák and others. And then there was the loyal group who realized that if they side with the Russians that they will get priceless benefits from it. So even those who originally shouted out loud at the reception that they wouldn’t even give them a glass of water (to the Warsaw Pact soldiers, ed. note), those turned their coats within two or three weeks. They insisted that it was a sort of international help and without it we’d get occupied by the Bundeswehr. That it was all at last minute. And they forced the others to sign a declaration approving of the entry of the Warsaw Pact armies. And that was the condition for a person summoned before the committee that was supposed to judge… That was the usual sentence: “So, comrade, what side are you on?” And as soon as the person said they don’t agree with the armies entering the country, they’d immediately have to hand in their party identification card and they’d be expelled. And if they signed it, they’d get told: “Comrade, we are counting on you if you behave as we expect you to!” And what’s interesting is that those committees consisted of people who three weeks before that had been shouting out loud that they’d never even give them water.”

“A decent society is not about anarchy, it’s about a juridical order. Everyone should make effort to maintain juridical order and they should get together but not in hate, in the fight for legal security and juridical order. Every state can have varying degrees of wealth. It depends on natural resources, on many things, on know-how, on values. Whatever the country has, law is the base. And if law doesn’t work, the state simply falls apart, evaporates, others will seize it. People should fight for law the most of all. And choose very carefully those who apply the law. But I’m not sure that the next generation realizes this at all. Since not even the people in charge of governing realize it, or if they don’t fight for it. On the contrary, they are satisfied in chaos.”