It seems to be predestined that I arrived Prague on the night of the 20th August 2018. On the next day —— the 21st August 2018 —— the Czech people would be commemorating the 50 years of the Warsaw Pact invasion to Czechoslovakia in 1968. I believe it's my fate as a political scientist and I am pround of that.
When I got off the train and walked down the stairs to the main hall of the Prague railway station, I saw a bronze statue standing there, with a quotation inscribed on the wall, "The world must be made safe for democracy." At that moment I immediately sensed a touch of political flavor of the capital city. As I later checked in the web, the statue was dedicated to the former US president Woodrow Wilson, who was considered as the foster father of Czechoslovakia for championing its independence after the World War I.
The night of Prague is stunning. The castles, towers and churches stand quietly on the other side of the Danube and were illuminated in mesmerizing color tones that transform the entire landscape into an oil painting on the canvas. I stood on the bridge and looked at the breathtaking view, with the breeze on the summer night gently kissing my face, I felt so blessed and comforted. It is actually easy to find one's internal peace.
On the next day, I followed the classic tourist route and visited the almost every church and palace that must be seen. But for me, the highlight of the day was the 68' Concert in front of the National Museum. When we reached there, it was already 6.30 pm and the square was already packed with people from everywehre. Two huge screens were established and they were continuously broadcasting the documentary of the Prague Spring and the invasion of the Soviet Union. I saw that for the first time. I might have heard of the Prague Spring, but I have never serioulsy studied the history and the ensuing events that facilated the foundation of the Czech Republic. When I was in Bratislava -- the capital city of Slovakia, I also saw several monuments in the city center that are dedicated to the survivors and victims of the invasion. But I just can't believe that these two countries were once under one communist reign and experienced the crisis of 1968 that remains the common memories of the nations.
I guess that the 68' concert on the 21st of August was a national event. The most famous singers were invited to perform on the stage. Flags of the Czech Republic were flying everywehre. Old people came to share their memories and young people came to learn what had really happened on the night of 21st August 1968. When the 2000 tanks crushed into the capital city and ended the Prague spring, what did the Czech people really feel? When the Soviets declared their legitimacy in invading the spheres where they had influence, how did the communist party secretary of Czechoslovakia react? Making open-air concerts to memorize such a historical event was great. Individual citizens might not want to discuss what is the right democracy for the Czech people, but they konw what they do not want. They can shout aloud at the concert and just be angry with the intervention and they will never let it happen again on the soil of their own country.
1968 was a miracle year, for both the West and the East. And in the broader context, the Prague Spring can also be regarded as a turning point of the Cold War. When I came back from my East European trip, I just couldn't wait to search for the reports and analyses of the Prague Spring and the Soviet invasion. The most realistic and easy-to-read book is the one edited by Guenter Bischof, Stefan Karner and Peter Rugenthal 2008: The Prague Spring and the Warsaw Pact Invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968.
In this book, the authors gathered rich documents and memories of the witness and their analyses were succinct and solid. The most enlightening statements and theses are:
1). The lesson of the Warsaw Pact invasion is: intellectuals in the East and West came to realize that building socialism with a human face is not feasible.
2). The political goals of the military intervention had been defined by the Communist Party leaders of teh Eastern Bloc countries at several meetings in the months that preceded the intervention: putting an end to the reform process ("socialism with a human face"), defeating the counterrevolution, putting the CSSR back on a course loyal to Moscow, preventing the democratization of Czechoslovakia and the country's leaving the Warsaw Pact, and staging a bureaucratic coup of the healthy forces loyal to Moscow against the reformers within the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
With these introductory information, I will be happily reading the further stories and memories of the crisis year of 1968.
Despite the Charles Bridge, the Palace, the Church, the Old Town Square, the thousands of towers in the city, I have seen a different Prague and I definitively want to know more about that city, that country and its people. I will be back again, Prague!
