Josef Špaček (7 August 1927 – 11 July 2004) was a
Czechoslovak
Czechoslovak may refer to:
*A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93)
**First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38)
**Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39)
**Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60)
**Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...
communist politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...
who was an important member of the government during the 1968
reformist
Reformism is a political doctrine advocating the reform of an existing system or institution instead of its abolition and replacement.
Within the socialist movement, reformism is the view that gradual changes through existing institutions can ...
period known as the
Prague Spring. He was appointed to the
Central Committee of the communist party of Czechoslovakia after communist party leader
Antonín Novotný
Antonín Josef Novotný (10 December 1904 – 28 January 1975) was First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1953 to 1968, and also held the post of president of Czechoslovakia from 1957 to 1968. An ardent hardliner, Novo ...
was replaced by Slovak politician
Alexander Dubček
Alexander Dubček (; 27 November 1921 – 7 November 1992) was a Slovak politician who served as the First Secretary of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) (''de facto'' leader of Czechoslovak ...
. Along with Dubček and other Central Committee members, Špaček was arrested by the
Soviets
Soviet people ( rus, сове́тский наро́д, r=sovyétsky naród), or citizens of the USSR ( rus, гра́ждане СССР, grázhdanye SSSR), was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union.
Nationality policy in ...
during the
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist repub ...
invasion of Czechoslovakia (22 August 1968). In the years following the collapse of the Dubček government, Špaček was relegated to low-level, non-political positions, including working as a
forestry
Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...
official. Following the restoration of democracy in 1989, he was again politically active and in 1990 was elected to the
national parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
.
Background
Following
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, liberated Czechoslovakia became increasingly subject to political pressure from the Soviet Union. Although the pre-war democracy was initially restored, by 1948, Communist influence had grown to the point that a puppet communist state under Clemet Gottwald took power in February of that year. The communist party retained power until the pro-democracy, anti-communist
Velvet Revolution
The Velvet Revolution ( cs, Sametová revoluce) or Gentle Revolution ( sk, Nežná revolúcia) was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations agains ...
of 1989. Following the death of Soviet dictator
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...
, however, some degree of reform took place in several of the
Iron Curtain countries of central and eastern
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
.
Dissatisfaction with only modest reformist development within Czechoslovakia led to political maneuvering against First Party Secretary
Antonín Novotný
Antonín Josef Novotný (10 December 1904 – 28 January 1975) was First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1953 to 1968, and also held the post of president of Czechoslovakia from 1957 to 1968. An ardent hardliner, Novo ...
. Early in 1968, Novotný was ousted and replaced by Slovak Alexander Dubček. Špaček, a party official from
Moravia
Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia.
The m ...
, was soon appointed to the Central Committee, along with other reformist communist politicians, where he was a voice for increased democratization.
Five weeks before the
Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia
The Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia refers to the events of 20–21 August 1968, when the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was jointly invaded by four Warsaw Pact countries: the Soviet Union, the Polish People's Republic, the People's Rep ...
, Špaček was injured in a head-on automobile collision outside the town of Havličův Brod (along the
Bratislava-
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...
highway) and briefly hospitalized.
[''Rudé právo'', 18 July 1968]
Following the invasion of August 1968, Dubček and the other leading politicians were returned to their positions in the party and government, but within a year, under Soviet pressure, they were swept out, to be replaced by the hard-line government under
Gustáv Husák
Gustáv Husák (, , ; 10 January 1913 – 18 November 1991) was a Czechoslovak communist politician of Slovak origin, who served as the long-time First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1969 to 1987 and the president o ...
. Like Dubček, Špaček was also relegated to minor posts, a common fate for the reformists.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spacek, Josef
Communist Party of Czechoslovakia politicians