New Pressure On Czechs

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31727, 10 July 1968, Page 13

New Pressure On Czechs

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) PRAGUE, July 9. The Presidium of the Communist Party has met in Prague to cope with growing pressure from Czechoslovakia’s Communist allies, the “New York Times” News Service reports.

The 10-member Presidium was called into session last night to discuss “letters of warning and complaint” from five other Communist nations —the Soviet Union, East Germany, Poland, Hungary, and Bulgaria. In a statement, Prague’s Communist leaders called for respect for each Communist country’s sovereignty. In an apparent expression of readiness to discuss the other countries’ concern with Czechoslovak developments, the Czechoslovak Party lead-

ership declared that it welcomed “a mutual exchange of experience among fraternal parties.” Rumours of a Soviet request for a renewed meeting of the top leaders of the European Communist countries have been circulating in Prague for several days. The existence of letters from Moscow, East Berlin and Warsaw has been known here since last week-end. The Budapest and Sofia letters were received later, according to informed sources, and their receipt completed a picture of a concerted step in the Soviet bloc’s campaign against Czechoslovakia’s farreaching liberalisation process. The five letters all of which are reported to have originated from groups of workers, rather than official party leadership—assert that Prague’s allies are concerned over the rise of “counter-revo-lutionary” sentiment in Czechoslovakia. The letters single out a

manifesto published on June 27 by a group of progressive Czechoslovak Communists and non-Communists, calling on the people to demonstrate and strike, if necessary, against doctrinaire party officials who resist pressure to surrender their offices.

In spite of their unofficial origin, Czechoslovak leaders are reported to be convinced that the letters represent a new move in Moscow’s unceasing campaign to keep the reformist Czechoslovak leadership under pressure. While the Presidium met, expressions of concern were mounting from individual Czechoslovak citizens about the continued presence on their soil of Soviet troops. Although the joint command exercises of the Warsaw Pact forces ended on June 30, and the impending departure of foreign troops has been announced by Mr Alexander Dubeck, First Secretary of the Czechoslovak Party, Russian forces remain there.

The Russians are explaining their slow departure by presenting a variety of technical problems, such as repair difficulties for their vehicles and a shortage of rail transport. Meanwhile, the Associated Press reports that the scientific council of Charles University in Prague has denounced anti-semitism as “Barbarous and irreconsilable with the humane traditions of the Czechoslovak nation.”

The council made its statement to Czechoslovak news media in response to threatening letters received by Professor Eduard Goldstuecker, chairman of the Czechoslovak Writers’ Union and a vice-rector of the University. The statement condemned what it described as “efforts to provoke anew a distrust of intellectuals.” and it denounced attempts to misuse the name of the working-class for threats of a rule of terror.