We would like to begin by asking something about the period in which you first became politically active, just before World War Two. We understand that you joined an anti-fascist organization in 1937, while still at school, and became a member of the Czech Communist Party in 1939. Could you tell us how you experienced the major events of those years, the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1938 and 1939, the German/ Russian pact in the summer of 1939, the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 and the Czechoslovak resistance movement?

My case is typical of many people of my generation who entered the political arena as secondary school students in the late thirties. The Spanish Civil War was in progress and the danger of a German invasion already hung over Czechoslovakia. We were, of course, very excited about the fight of the Spanish people against fascism, and saw the important role of the communists in that struggle—though without any real understanding of the problems involved. Then we saw that the communists were the most resolute opponents of fascism in Czechoslovakia and internationally, and this brought us into sympathy with the Communist Party. It is most important to understand that Czechoslovakia, unlike the other East European countries subsequently liberated by the Red Army, had always had a legal Communist Party before the war. During the 20 years of bourgeois parliamentary government between 1918 and 1938, there had been real guarantees for democratic freedom. The fact that Czechoslovakia was an industrialized country, and had a working class with long revolutionary and democratic traditions, was the basis for the subsequent success of the Communist Party.

When the invasion of Czechoslovakia proper started in 1939, we saw the Communist Party as the only force which opposed it—although there were, in fact, other patriotic groups which did so too. It was at this time that I joined the Communist Party and became a part of its underground network. I helped to produce and distribute leaflets and newspapers, organize students and so on, until 1940 when I was arrested.

The Nazi/Soviet pact, of course, came as a great shock to us. But right from the moment of the invasion, when the resistance started, Russian policy had dismayed us. For example, I remember clearly a friend’s case. He was much older, had been a Communist since his university studies in 1933 and was one of the leading members of the party in our city in Moravia. When he received instructions from the Comintern after the Nazi occupation he was extremely shaken. Even messages signed by Gottwald himself stated that the German solders who had invaded Czechoslovakia were, in fact, proletarians in soldiers’ uniforms and therefore in no way class enemies! The real enemies were the Czech bourgeoisie headed by Beneš, and the American and British plutocrats. This was the Comintern line at the time. I remember my friend refused to transmit these instructions to the members of the party. They would have meant that instead of fighting against the occupiers we would be fighting against our own people. In fact the Party throughout the country modified these instructions, saying firstly that the comrades in Moscow were not well informed about the situation and secondly that the instructions were completely out of touch with reality. When the German/Russian pact was signed at the end of August, this was a further shock. We had received a lot of explanations of how the Soviet Union had been obliged to do this, because of the refusal of the Western powers to conclude a military treaty and in order to buy time. Despite our feelings, we could appreciate rationally that the pact probably was necessary. But what we did not understand at all were the positive articles which we started to read in the German newspapers about the Soviet Union and the broadcasts we heard from Radio Moscow at the time: instead of working to build up the Resistance, they began toning down all anti-fascist propaganda and just putting out items about how many pigs there were on some kolkhoz or other and how many tons of such and such a product the Soviet Union had produced. I remember the comrades were very angry when they saw that what was involved was not just a pact of non-aggression with a fascist country, but rather some sort of political agreement. Another thing which dismayed us was Molotov’s speech after the collapse of Poland, in which he spoke of Poland as an artificial state from its creation, now destroyed for ever by the common action of the German and Soviet armies. But all these hesitations came to an end in June 1941, when the war between the Soviet Union and Germany started. After that, of course, the situation changed completely; the Moscow Party leaders now gave full support to the Resistance and cooperation with other anti-fascist forces began.

Yet the Communist Party had not lost its position as the main force of resistance in Czechoslovakia during the period from March 1939 to June 1941?

I would not say that the Communist Party was the main force. In fact we claimed after the war that we were the main force, but it is difficult to assess. There certainly were other groups—though not so well organized as the Communist Party. I think the claim that the Communist Party was the only, or the main, force in the resistance was a sectarian one.

Could you say something about the development of the Party during the War? For example what were the relations between the leadership in Moscow and the new leaders in the Resistance? Were there differences destined to be important later on?