Prague Spring 1968

• what happened in January 1968?

  • Novotny pressured into resigning by USSR, being replaced by Dubcek.
  • soviets hoped he would appeal to minority and prevent protest but he turned out to be an advocate of political reform, quickly replacing key officials with those who wanted reform without consulting soviets
  • Kremlin was watching Czech very carefully
• what actions did Dubcek take part in apart from his reforms?

  • eliminated press censorship, exposing Eastern Europe to the possibility of 'democratic infection'
  • April 1968, announced Action Programme (stated communist partys determination to achieve socialism with czech path)
• what would allow the Action Programme (april 1968) to occur?

  gov needed to allow:

  • basic freedoms of speech
  • press and movement
  • formal recog of state of Israel
  • freedom for economic enterprises to make decisions from consumer goods rather than government targets
  • increased rights for autonomy for politically repressed slovak minority
• what associations came to light during the Prague Spring?

  • Club K-231, organisation made up of former political prisoners
  • club of non committed party members (KAN)
• what did Dubcek reassure Moscow about?

  czechoslovakia would remain loyal to the Warsaw Pact
• how did countries in Eastern Europe feel about the Prague Spring?

  alarmed, soviets wanted to see how far these reforms would go.

  • no clear opposition to Action Programme (April 1968) means the czech com party ended all press censorship, planned to open borders with the West and begun trade agreements with West Germany