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A velvet anniversary for Vaclav Havel
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Today marks the twentieth anniversary of the beginning of the Velvet Revolution. Sparked by a student protest on November 17th of 1989 which was brutally quelled by riot police, the fall of communist rule in then-Czechoslovakia eventually came just one month later on December 10th. Nineteen days after that, the country had elected its first democratic president since Edvard Beneš during the Second World War.
That president was playwright and dissident Václav Havel. Havel grew up in Prague part of a well-known family involved in the city's culture and politics. Because of this privileged background, Havel was restricted in his education by the harsh regime of the 1950s. Apprenticing in chemical laboratories and studying economics (being unable to attend a school with a humanities program), it was after two years in the military that he ventured down the path which would lead to his fame.
Working as a stage hand, Havel began writing plays, his first being The Garden Party. This work, as well as The Memorandum and The Increased Difficulty of Concentration became well-known in Prague, throughout Europe and the United States.
In 1968, following his "revolutionary" activities during Prague Spring, Havel's work was banned from theaters domestically. He continued to write, however, while working in a brewery to make ends meet. Works like Audience, Mistake, and Protest, as well as political activity made him a hero outside of his country, but had ramifications within the communist state. Various terms in prison, as well as heavy surveillance and harassment, became a way of life for Havel. Letters to Olga is a compilation of the letters Havel wrote to his wife during his longest stay in prison.
The astounding events of 1989 culminated with Havel's being named president by the Federal Assembly, a position which was cemented after official elections the next year. The turn from plays to formal politics was perhaps unexpected, but it stuck. He remained president for ten years, overseeing the "Velvet Divorce," the split of Slovakia and the Czech Republic in the early 90s. During his presidential reign, he survived two bouts with lung cancer and suffered the loss of his first wife, remarrying a year later. Though his presidency, like any, was not without controversy, Havel is still widely recognized as an important figure in the country as well as internationally.
After leaving national government, Havel remained active on the global stage. He returned to the theater with his play Leaving in 2007. In the same year he published his memoir To the Castle and Back.
Today, on the anniversary of a revolution which transformed him from public enemy to president, Havel joined with current-president Vaclav Klaus and other dignitaries to commemorate the events of that day, those that followed, and those who risked everything to bring it about. The student protest was re-enacted on Wenceslas Square, which included many original participants. In a move which shows how Havel's image surpasses that of mere former head of state, the playwright was the only politician invited to participate. An organizer told the Associated Press, "We do it for normal people." It may seem strange to consider this iconic figure as a part of something normal, but it is a testament to just how revered Havel is: you can't have a Velvet Revolution without him.
Where to buy: You can find books by and about Václav Havel in stores and online.
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