FOURTH WORLD
43
they deplored intervention in the internal affairs of another socialist
country, they would not like
to
see similar reforms in their own country.
The Czech people remained alone both from the military and political
points of view. They did have, however, the moral support of many
people in the West, and in the countries of their uninvited guests, where
it of course required tremendous courage.
This feeling of isolation has been projected into the discussions–
forced upon them by the general situation - about what was good and
what was bad in the post-January policy. Their State and Party leaders
accepted the "need" for such discussions without much protest. And
these discussions show that young people are convinced of the necessity
of creating a system which would differ from that in Moscow and that
in
New York.
The main conclusion drawn by the present generation from its
twenty years' experience is that a system is necessary which would make
it impossible for any group, large or small, to accumulate too much
power in their hands and to enforce the narrow interests of a power
group in the name of Party, people or nation, or in the interest of
country, Communism, party unity or unity of the people. The concen–
tration of power in the hands of individuals and the limited choice for
the others between remaining silent or throwing in their lots with the
governing dynasty are the common denominators of all the shades of
social
organization which have been imposed on them since 1948. The
period from January to August of this year gave rise to the hope that
a system such as the one envisaged by youth could be created. Recollec–
tions of the days when thousands traveled to Prague only for the pur–
pose of signing a statement supporting their Government's policy, when
people saw that their views could influence the basic formulations of
the press and electoral laws - these and other reminiscences of the
experiment which has been nipped in the bud before it could find the
answers to all the outstanding questions are an inspiration to the stu–
dents today as they ponder over the kind of society they want to fight
for. It is already clear that it will be a long and strenuous struggle.
Today students are concentrating on a struggle to insure the basic
civil and human freedoms which the April Action Programme proclaimed
and promised to guarantee by law this fall. They regard the United
Nations' Declaration on Human Rights as one of the basic documents
of their long-term program. Czech students are convinced that these
freedoms are an inseparable part of socialism, because socialism, which
should mean the total liberation of mankind and Man as an individual,
