Czech History (2)

The Czech economy had been slowing since the early 1960s, and the government responded with reforms designed to improve and stimulate the growth. On 5 January 1968 a period of political liberalization and mass protest started called The Prague Spring, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ), and continued until 21 August 1968, when the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact troops invaded the country to suppress the reforms and seized Dubček, transporting him to Moscow. After his return hard-line communists restored the country to conformity with Soviet-bloc norms.

The occupation by Soviet troops, totalitarianism, censorship and lack of freedom continued in the 1970s and 80s. This period is called normalization. Czechoslovakia was one of the more prosperous but also one of the more repressive countries in eastern Europe. After the Chernobyl accident, the Soviet Union lost the last vestiges of credibility.

The year 1989 was marked by political changes between November 17 and December 29, which led to the fall of the Communist regime and the transformation of political governance in the country. This event is called the Velvet Revolution because it was not accompanied by any violence.

In November 1989, Czechoslovakia returned to a liberal democracy through the Velvet Revolution. However, on 1 January 1993, the country split into the independent countries of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Both countries went through economic reforms and privatizations with the intention of creating a market economy. In 2006 the Czech Republic was recognized by the World Bank as a "developed country“.

From 1991, the Czech Republic has been a member of the Visegrád Group and from 1995, OECD. The Czech Republic joined NATO on 12 March 1999 and the European Union on 1 May 2004. On 21 December 2007 the Czech Republic joined the Schengen Area. Until 2017, either the Social Democrats or Liberal-Conservatives led the government of the Czech Republic.

In the 21st century, the Czech Republic has had had 3 different presidents - Václav Havel, Václav Klaus and Miloš Zeman (in this order). The economy, infrastructure and technology have been growing steadily, and unless we include NATO operations in Afghanistan, Czechia has been in peace for all this time.

Vocabulary:

Defector – dezertér, odpadlík

Prisoner of war – válečný zajatec

Legion – legie

Industrially advanced – průmyslově vyspělý

Betrayal – zrada

Proclaim – prohlásit, vyhlásit

Reprisal – odvetné opatření, represálie

Censorship – cenzura