The icon of Czechoslovak Velvet Revolution died yesterday peacefully in his sleep at the age of 75. The whole Czech nation is in mourning, however condolences are being sent from all over the world.
Havel was a politician, a writer, a poet, and a world-known pacifist. He was a political prisoner for 5 years, who later become the last president of the former Czechoslovakia (1st term) and the first president of the Czech Republic (2nd term). He loved music and became a big buddy with the Rolling Stones, who played at the Prague Castle during his going-away party in 2003.
I did not know Mr. Havel personally but I have a feeling that he would agree with this great quote: ‘The purpose of life’s journey is not to arrive at the grave with a well-preserved body, but rather to slide in sideways, completely used up, yelling and screaming, what a ride!’
CZ: Vaclav Havel zemrel vcera ve spanku v jeho chalupe na Hradecku ve veku 75-ti let. Je to rana (ac ocekavana) jak pro Cechy, tak pro cely svet.
Vlada se ma dnes rozhodnout, jestli pri prilezitosti patecniho pohrbu vyhlasi take statni smutek.
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Rest in peace! I might have differed with his politics, but I believe that he was sincere in his goal to re-introduce freedom and respect for his homeland. If not Havel back in 1989, then who?
P.S.
Any reports that Putin and Medvedev sent their condolences yet?
RIP.
I am surprised his health lasted that long, being a chain smoker his whole life
no, cetla jsem ze mu v roce 2003 vyrizli kus plice protoze mel rakovinu, takze mu to opravdu prodlouzilo zivot.
Hezky ze si to sem dala. Bylo mi receno ze par slov poslanych na amabasadu daji do soustraci knihy.
( to jsem urcile rekla spatne Cesky)
PS: to si malovala ty Tanja? Prekrasny.
Jo jo, jeste dlouho pred tim, nez umrel. Diky!!!!
Jinak na jeho pohreb pry prijeli i manezele Clintonovi a francouzky a rakousky prezident!!! A samozrejme i dalsi ozobnosti…snad i nekdo z Rolling Stones??
Takze tva vec je portrety. Protoze se mi libi sperky i ostatni, ale tve portrety jsou opravdu krasne.
S Rolling Stones on byl kamarad, tak to se nedivim, a je to opravdu hezke od Clintonu.
Ja jsem se chystala dat na jeviste hru of Chekhova, ale myslim si, premyslim, ze na pocest by bylo pekne directovat Largo Desolato, nebo nejakou neho jinou ktera neni moc znama…nevim. Delam auditions u me doma, tak uvidim jake herce dostanu a rozhodnu se pak, kterou hru dam na jeviste.
Proč žádné kondolenční knihy Havla nepodepisuji? Nechávám to na lidech omytých, Havla a situace neznalých, na komunistických kolaborantech a pohrobcích, anebo na lidech přímo hloupých. A tento človek nám v emigraci rozdával medaile a vyznamenání, aby se udělal hezkým. Mašínům, kteří si vyznamenání zasloužili nedal nic, protože ho příliš dobře ze školy v Poděbradech znali, říkali o něm nepříjemnou pravdu a neměl u nich tudíž co získat. Byli také nepřáteli komunismu a to Vašík jak se ukázalo nebyl. Všechnu svou špínu zastíral svým “Vašík pašík” ksichtem, na který mu plno lidí naletělo. Vašík láskapravda měl zůstat u piva a u svých sprostonárodních dramat a nezavádět dramata do života slušných Čechů, kteří toužili po spravedlnosti. Otevřete si následující link
http://www.osud.cz/sites/default/files/obcan_havel.pdf
a počtěte si. Není to kydání špíny či vytahování detailů z kontextu. Jsou to historická fakta, o kterých Havel mlčel, která by ale každý Čech měl znát.
Nedávno jsem dostal e-mail od známého, který kdysi v zahraničí organizoval sbírky na Chartu 77. Jeho text otiskuji v plném znění:
Z duveryhodneho zdroje jsem se v roce 1990 dozvedel, ze za rok se na hrade vypilo vic nez za bolsevika za celych 41 let, takze nezbylo skoro nic. A rozhodne to byly kvalitni stare zasoby. Jsem si jist, ze to tak pokracovalo i po dalsi leta. Ale Havlovi se clovek divit ani nemuze, jeho rodina na to byla zvykla jak pred valkou, tak behem valky diky stykum s vladnouci garniturou, a on i pak za bolsevika. “Chudak disident” mel pekne bydleni, Hradecek (kde StB natacelo disidenty), mercedesa, valutove konto – prisun valut pro Chartu (ze kterych si uzival jen on a jemu blizky okruh pratel). Ve fesackem vezeni mu pry nosili jidlo z hotelu, takze si stezovat moc nemohl. Pak se vydaril predem dobre zrezirovany samet, ze ktereho mely obe strany velky zisk. V privatizaci dostal jako prvni Barrandov a Lucernu asi za 250 milonu (v rozporu s Benesovymi dekrety), zatimco jeste mnoho lidi dodnes ceka na navraceni majetku (hlavne krajanu ze zahranici). Svuj podil v Lucerne pak prodal kamaradickovi od StB, takze byl hned za vodou. Zatimco lid si naivne zvonil klicema a poslouchal jak nejsme jako oni, a ze pravda a laska zvitezi, tak uz se pripravovalo zplundrovani Ceskoslovenska, a pak Ceska. Myslim ze ceskemu narodu uplne stacil jeden Vaclav, a ti dalsi dva byla jen chyba osudu, za kterou Cesi budou jeste dlouho platit.
Co z toho mas ze pomlouvas mrtvyho? Je ti lepe? Positivita jde dal, ne?
Mariko, ja jenom informuji lidi o tom, co Havel prisne strezil aby se to nedostalo na verejnost. Ja jsem ho zkousel kontaktovat v dobe kdy zil. Nekolikrat. Schovaval se za komornika – sekretare pana Hladika, aby se k nemu dopisy neprijemne ani nedostaly. Proste se opredl jen samou jak ty rikas positivitou, ktera mu zajistila, ze hejna neznalcu mu placou u rakve. Procti si dokumenty. Pisi to lide, kteri ho casto znali z primeho osobniho styku a kteri maji silny emocialni zajem na tom, aby se svet dozvedel pravdu. Tito lide samozrejme meli na Havla pivku a nemohli mu prijit na jmeno, protoze o nem vedeli vic anebo s nim meli velice rozdilnou zkusenost nez mas ty a nakonec i ja. Mne nic neudelal, ale udelal hodne zla mym lidem doma a vsem mym znamym politickym veznum, kteri sedeli a trpeli. Ne jako Havel, tomu “pan dozorce” nosil teplou vodu na omyvani hemeroidu (see jeho kniha Dopisy Olze). Ani na jednoho z mych veznenych pratel se takhle slunicko v kriminale neusmalo. Kdyz pak lide posilali penize na Chartu a jeji vezne, pan Havel (ktereho propustili ze zdravotnich duvodu (kaslal), zatim co matku Masinu nechali komuniste ve studenem kriminalu zemrit na rakovinu) a jemu sprizneni si zili jako prasata v zite a na kolegy v kriminalu si ani nevzpomneli. Divis se, ze se dnes plno takovych lidi snazi, aby se to o panu expresidentovi verejnost dozvedela driv nez si to oni sami vezmou do hrobu? Kazdopadne ten bordel, zlodejstvi a moralni zkazu co vladne v nasi zemi dnes (a po novem roce to ma byt jeste horsi) tam zavedli komuniste a jim podobni, pod ochrannou rukou Havla. Komunistickou moralkou je tam nacichla valna vetsina lidi, a hlavne ti ve vlade, kteri byli, jsou a nebo pochazeji z rodin byvalych komunistu. Ono se nemusis nazyvat komunistou, staci, ze se jako takovy chovas, a muzes byt clenem jakekoliv strany. A takovych tam je habadej a nic se jim nedeje, diky prave Havlovi, ktery v soudnictvi zanechal vsechny komunisticke soudce na dozivoti. V takove zemi nema slusny clovek sanci. Mariko, nemusis se mnou souhlasit, zij si dal ve svem bludu o prezidentovi se svatozari, ja nemam v umyslu se s nekym kvuli Havlovi hadat. Ahoj. Honza Chlumsky.
Svatozari? Hele, me castne detsvi v Cesku je mila vzpominka, i pionyr. A i kdyz moc ani nerozumim tomu co zde pises, muj president je Obama 😉
Hi Marika. Who’s “ranne detstvi” is not pleasant memory? I lived there till my 26 and I also have a nice memories. I was pioneer too, almost everybody had to be… When I was 11, they kicked me out (low attendance on their meetings) and I made a stupid comment “my father does not want me to be pioneer anyway…” Next day I was called to political “vychovatel” and asked sweetly why your father did not want… At that time I subconsciously realizer that my father was in danger and I replied “…because I am not good and I do not study enough…” which was totally false, but it saved me my father. Here we have no such problems and it spoils us to the point that we believe most of what is told, because we have no need to lie. We had to do it there being presured by the “Ideology” and its bodyguards – communists. You did not live through the bad times and neither did I. Meaning we did not know what was under the cover. Also we were small and did not have to bring food on our table. Our parents did and I guess they left the country to give you better life outside the comunist system. You are fortunate as my kids are, to grow up in honest decent society. Well, not ideal, but reasonably decent. It has only small disadvantage in you being absolutely unaware of what was and still is going on in rotten system created by leftists and communists. I call them bad people and they do not have to be realy communists. Just bad characters. And Havel was one of them. It is hard to explain it to clean straitforward thinking person as you are. You just think differently then Havel and others over there. You have happy life without strugle or complications and It is good for you. In Europe the mentality is different and the life there is constant struggle to live well. I guess that is why they hate us Americans or Canadians and if you go there, you are the rich bastard, who lived well while they struggled and so you are suppose to give, give and give and get nothing in return except nice trips to their historical countryside or castels.
Read the following. It is exactly what Havel was. In English you should have no problems to understand…
June 4, 1998
Vaclav Havel : He Could Be A Hero!
While I was listening to the radio in my car this morning, I could not avoid catching the remake of “We Could Be Heroes” from that movie Godzilla. But the association it brought to me was not of any pre-historic dinosaur, but another historical anomaly in the Czech Republic – president and playwright Vaclav Havel – a dear dear darling of Western media and university professors.
Contrary to the opinion of left-leaning media and even more leftist university professors at American universities, Havel proved to be a huge disappointment while undoubtedly, he could be a hero.
Havel was “elected” to his presidential chair quite a few times – maybe not as often as Suharto was, but almost. When he was elected for the first time, he was “elected” by proclamation by the very same communist government he was supposedly about to overthrow. Well, he did not! He actually guaranteed that none of the communist tyrants of Stalinist era in Czechoslovakia were ever punished. Over the years Havel grew more “experienced” (among other things he presided over the fall-out of the country into two separate states), and even after such a failure he ran for president again in the Czech republic – and won! All of the people can be fooled all of time – that’s the Czech way. And during the last presidential “re-election” there was a great danger that he could lose by ONE VOTE! His cronies did not waste any time and had one parliamentarian (expected to vote against Havel) promptly arrested a few hours before election. What do you think happened? The media kept quiet and Havel won the re-election BY ONE VOTE! Isn’t that amazing? Gee, what a democratic process! And when one of the colleagues of the arrested parliamentarian protested, Havel’s wife – the First Lady loudly whistled on her fingers in the parliament. Well, Hillary is in a class of her own, but have you heard her whistling and disrupting Congress during some official proceedings?
Yes, Havel could be a hero – but he is not.
A few years after the Velvet revolution transcripts of tapes were published in Prague. Transcripts of talks Havel held with representatives of the communist government in November 1989, talks about transfer of power. Incredible scenes of primitivism and unheard of bluntness and horse haggling as to who will get what position in the next government in exchange for communists going unpunished. And Havel kept his word to the people responsible for tens of thousands of deaths, communist concentration camps, and hundreds of thousands lives destroyed. Not only did they all go unpunished, but also they were all involved in “privatization” of the state-owned properties and eventually they all became rich. They went from nomeklatura communists directly to hard-core capitalists in a few short steps. All in the name of Havel’s Velvet Revolution. Unreal!
He could be a hero – but he is not.
Another of Havel’s memorable things is his “use” of presidential clemency. Not only did he not hesitate to interfere with valid judgements and give clemency to true hardened criminals, he gave clemency to someone who beat his own father to death (the victim was Jozef Odlozil, silver medalist in the long distance running, from the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City) just because the mother of the criminal (former Odlozil’s wife, also multiple gold Olympic winner from 1968 Mexico, Vera Caslavska) was one of the Havel’s close friends, but he brings his misuse of clemency to new level these days, when he pardoned two gypsies (long criminal records for thefts and robberies) who physically attacked a parliamentarian during his pre-election speech. Havel pardoned them so fast that the local police did not have time to officially charge the two culprits with the attack! Can you believe that? And another interesting bit is that the parliamentary who was attacked is the same guy, who was locked up in prison, so he could not attend and vote in last Havel’s re-election. Funny, isn’t it? Life is not so complicated, afterall…
Well, yes, Havel could be a hero – if he were not just another neo-communist criminal.
This so sad…
Jan, don’t you get tired thinking like this? It must be exhausting.
As a Buddhist I can appreciate someone who wins a battle and doesn’t cut the balls off his enemies just because he can. Even at the White House the republicans invite democrats to festivities and vice versa, come on. Let it go. Put all this energy toward something positive.
Ja si myslim, ze Havel byl problemova osoba a mohli si podat ruku s Jelzinem….Oba meli pokriveny character. Ale je videt, ze se obklopoval lidmi jemu podobnymi. Ten link Jane, co jsi dal z http://www.osud.cz ukazuje, jak ho mohli je
ho kamaradi pomlouvat za jeho zadama a pred jeho oblicejem se vydavali za jeho pratele. Musime pockat, az tato banda vymre, teprve pak nastanou zmeny k lepsimu v CR (jestli jeste jako samostatna zame bude existovat)
Tak ctu ten link a nektere casti jsou slatanina….Napriklad, proc by po kriminalech chodili zahadni muzici, kteri mluvili s ruskym prizvukem….Rusove meli kolaborantu vice nez dost, kteri mluvili vyborne cesky ….
(budu psat anglicky protoze moje psana cestina je spatna)
I find it very troubling what Vlastimil writes about Havel, but I have heard similar undertones in the past. Even though it is very disappointing to read about a modern Czech ‘hero’ in such terms, the truth should be known. And kudos to Vlastimil to stick with it.
I have been in Canada since childhood, so only have great memories from those days. Visiting CR nowadays as a tourist, you see a much different picture: one of a happy, newly democratic and very historic country. At one point, I also thought when I retire I would consider moving there.. but then I started hearing subtle signs of future troubles: Karlovy Vary pretty well owned and run by the Russians, the communist party still having a solid presence in all elections, Klausian economics being a ‘gravy train’ for close associates, etc. .. and now Vlastimil’s eye-opener on Havel. (the communists of yesteryear just traded their ‘red-star lapel pins’ for suits and ties in the new order?)
On occasion, I have asked my relatives still living in CR about their views on the new CR and it always surprises me how cautiously they answer it. Some even saying they hope that the freedom lasts, but they cannot be sure. I guess for a nation that has been dominated on/off for centuries by others, one has the right for a little realism (pessimism) ?
Let’s hope we fix our internal problems soon. I hope you excuse my rant, but I am really proud of my Czech roots and I wish all the best for the future of CR !
Hi Vladimir2!
I can tell you that my mom still lives there and she says the Czech Republic is full of corruption and dishonest people. As a teacher she even tells me that the students have gotten much worse since the Velvet Revolution. They are more disrespectful and do not obey as they used to.
On the other hand, my mom really liked Havel, she said the other day that he was the last living person that gave people hope and positive outlook into the future and everyone was just so sad when he died.
Tanja, how old is your mom? Does she look a lot for informations on Internet? I have such people in my family there too. Havel was expert on hiding things and not answering unpleasant news. There is lot of bad things published and known to all who want to know in Czech republic. Strangely enough everybody ignores it, nobody gets punished, nothing happens. Politicians with cabinet immunity have free hand to do whatever they want. They are arrogant, often extremely money wise, they steel billions, increase state debt, then leave their post for another and that’s it. Another immune senator takes over and does the samething. State is full of fraud, ex-communists, communist families, lobbyists and people with bad past. All these people got absolute pardon from Havel’s “nejsme jako oni” and “there will be no hunting season on communists in Czechoslovakia”. His thick black line behind past caused moral mess for which the nation is paying today. Lot of people do not make the connections and they gloryfy Havel. Havel got his family properties worth of hundreds millions of crowns illegally, having the right connections with communists, promissing not to panish them for their past. He kept his word to people who destroyed and kiled thousands of people undder the previous regime. For that Havel’s and his family STB files and blackmail materials disappeared (after he covered sensitive police posts by his ex-communist STB people. He did not like to talk about this nor the restitutions, he ignored questions about it or played to be above it. Some people bought it, some did not. Just in case the fast restitutions of his properties would be taken up in courts, he gave to all communist judges protection and life long continuation of their posts causing the state now being in horrible legal mess without honest solid justice system. Today to sue somebody who has connections could turn out to be very unpleasant and tragic experience… There are cases of gross influence and manipulating of justice. Ridiculous jugements rendered against anticommunist people who dared to refuse to be judged by communist judge. Refusal to hear witnesses by judge, false reports and lies in judgements. People are again being thrown in jail for no reasons and held there illegally without time limits and no one can do anything about it. Judge is judge and his jugement must be respected. If judge does not know the law or ignores court procedures being in past employed as physical education teacher, another judge of the same callibr rejects the complain, because judges assigned to sensitive cases communicate with each other. At the appeal court judge of the same breed will refuse to overthrow the bad judgement. Assigning of cases to different judges is being done by head judge or clerk of the particular district court, heaving too oftenn comunist past. And executor will seize everything you have and sell it to his friend lawyer for fraction of its price. What would you do in this kind of legal environment? No wonder why friend of mine, visitor from Czech rep. told me …U nas se nikdo nesoudi… Reasons are too obvious. And all this mess was forced on Czechs by “humanist” Mr. Havel and his velvet revolution. Maybe your mother does not know about cases of this sort and she accepts the public leftist propaganda which does not talk about them. Media or Tv turn bling eye to them. Doesn’t it remind you communist system? It is communist system. To me, to Masin’s brothers and to many other people who know what comunizm was alike… Jan.
Jan, I feel like you put more energy into this than needed, ignoring the most important message Havel was trying to pass on, which is that two wrongs don’t make a right.
I hear that you desperately seek justice, but sometimes an example can be set by taking no action.
Come out the bigger man, take all the energy you use for complaining to either write a book about how you feel or to put it toward a better use. Do something positive with it, again, show by example.
Marika, it is not exhousting and I just like it. I have no idea and do not realy care what your Budhist ideology tells you, I feel just that if you do not help the truth, the lie will prevail and eat you. You did not suffer under communists, to you their ideology did not break family and did not destroy life to your kids, so you have the right think as you do. But I think I have my right to think my way also. I am happy man here in Canada, I have nice new family here now and I do not miss Czech republic a bit. On contrary, I am sorry for all people who go back to try fullfill or finish their lifes there. For now it is morally one of the worst countries I know. Population wise. I love czech music and I do it a lot, huge positivity and creativity and some Havel is just my sideway interest. What I do not like is the western naivity and acceptance of ideologies dangereous to our nice life here in this hemisphere. Being very conservative and believing that for hard work good life and for no work no life in front of color Tv (which was forcefully paid for by someone else). I do not accept people of Havels’ class and that’s it. Because his way of living and thinking could soon be here (if it is not already here) and then you’ll have problems you can not imagine. To survive will be easier for me and people who think the same way than for people like you. To give and give and give could mean that at the end you will be stuck with nothing to give. This was the way Havel was going and Czechs today have realy nothing to give anymore. But let’s make peace and call this to be end of our conversation. Thanks and have a nice life with Budha, maybe I am missing something but I do no thing so.
Have a nice life with Buddha? Are being condescending or rude? You’re offensive.
Meaning You’re Budhist, I am not. Maybe that is the point where we do not agree on things. I have no idea what budhism is, but I repect it. Under communists you would have no right to be Budhist, Roman Catholic, Jewish, only communist. Similar rules sem to have muslims. Myself as Catholic, since I discovered, that Roman Catholics priests in France helped to Fasists to get safely to Brazil, I have no religion. Jan.
Vladimi2, I don’t want to take credit for anybody eye’s opening. I always say what I feel and in most cases it turns to be true. The history of Czech nation during 1945-2011 makes me puke
FYI Bibles of all religions are written by man. Text is added, or removed or mistranslated. Only the 10 commandaments were written in stone and even those are barely followed.
If they were, everyone would be vegetarian, no one ever would be killed.
Forgetting what all scriptures for all religions say – if you only follow visual symbols, you will see that they ALL lead back to Buddhism,the first philosophies that can be proven. Buddhism is not a religion, it is a philosophy and a way of life. True Buddhism doesn’t believe in the statue of Buddha, even Shyakamuni the original Buddha said pray not to me, I am only a man, believe in the power of cause and effect.
This is the only truth in the world. You can prove it every minute of your existence.
For example: You say something stupid and rude – it pisses me off.
You are here to make choices. You make choices daily, in every aspect of your life.
When it comes to politics, many people get passionate -most of the time only verbally – few do something very stupid and only a very few others use their passions toward good.
According to you I should keep my Buddha.
As I said above, I don’t believe in Buddha. He was just a man, an example of a man who believed in the power of cause and effect. You seem to not believe in anything, or as you say, you have no religion.
So, try mine. It’s a good way to be and less ulcer pain, which you seem to have…
You certainly put more than enough energy into posting novels about why you would not sign Havel’s farewell book. I merely suggested for you to take that energy and put it toward something positive. Like the Japanese say, forget the blame and fix the problem. Their way makes sense. That’s why most things in Japan run like clockwork. Two wrongs don’t make a right, so Havel made his choices.