Do not put yourself above anyone, but do not demean yourself in front of anyone either
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Pavel Vořech was born on 19 September 1944 at 11 Třístoličná Street in Prague-Smíchov. Fears that he might catch tuberculosis from his father caused him to be taken out of Prague to his grandparents the Hornas in Slovakia. When the Communists came to power in 1948 and nationalised his grandfather’s printing office, the family was forced to leave Slovakia and return to Bohemia. In 1950 he began studying at the so-called national school on Pilsen Avenue. In 1958 he began attending the secondary construction school on Zborovská Street in Prague 5, which he graduated from in 1962. On 1 May 1966 he took part in a student demonstration at the Karel Hynek Mácha Memorial, and when the procession moved on to Wenceslaus Square he was arrested by members of the auxiliary police force. He spent two months in custody in Ruzyně before being sentenced to 17 months of prison. He was forced to work as miner at Zdeněk Nejedlý Mine in Rtyně v Podkrkonoší for more than three months. In September 1966 he was transferred to Pankrác Prison in Prague. When he had served half of his sentence, he was conditionally released with a five-year probationary period. He received at least some satisfaction when he won the first prize of the Mona Lisa lottery in 1968, which included a three-week stay in the USA and Canada. His prison record caused him to have to change his job several times. He retired in 2006, and he now (2016) lives with his family in Prague 5.
