Prague Embassy cable, Czechoslovak Independents Establish New Organization and List Agenda of Demands

The established opposition reacted slowly to November 17; while students and actors began mobilizing on Saturday, it was Sunday before opposition leaders met to determine their next steps. That afternoon, independent activists created Civic Forum and drew up a list of four initial demands (see document 493). This U.S. embassy cable reported on the press conference announcing Civic Forum's establishment the next day. The movement's founding members comprised the entire spectrum of independent and political activity: dissident intellectuals, youth groups, Communist Party reformers, free-market advocates, and politicians from the officially-sanctioned Social Democrats and People's Party, to name just a few. Overseeing this motley crew was Vaclav Havel, Czech playwright and de facto leader of Charter 77 who commanded great respect at home and abroad. Over the next few days, Civic Forum rose to the forefront of the popular protests and would negotiate the peaceful transfer of power from the communist regime. But on November 19 its fate remained unclear. In the midst of growing social and political turmoil, Civic Forum had not yet made a name for itself. This perhaps accounts for the embassy's terse statement, describing what in hindsight proved to be one of the most important events in the Velvet Revolution.