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Revolutions

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The Declaration of the Civic Forum by Representative Vaclav Havel on Wenceslas Square

Anti-state demonstrations have traditionally taken place in the heart of Prague on Wenceslas Square.

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Teleprint from Jozef Lenart, Secretary of CC CPCz, to Regional Committees and Municipal Commitees in Prague and Bratislava

The battle for public opinion occupied both government and opposition at the beginning of the Velvet Revolution. In this November 23 communique, Central Committee member Jozef Lenart reported on the party's measures to sway the public against the opposition.

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Teleprint, "Summary of the Demands Made by Opposition Groups Represented by the Civic Forum,"

The Czechoslovak Communist Party's attempted to control public opinion in the early days of the Velvet Revolution.

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Speech by Premier Ladislav Adamec at an extraordinary session of the CPCz CC, stating his preference for a political solution to the crisis

Only days after November 17 a growing number of Czechoslovak communists were becoming convinced that the conservative leadership's hardliner approach to the growing public unrest was failing.

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List of Goals by the Civic Forum

From the beginning, Civic Forum had to balance two objectives: leading popular protests and negotiating with the regime. In its first week, the Forum concentrated on mobilizing public support for the upcoming general strike. November 26 signified a turning point.

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The Position of the Civic Forum and Public Against Violence Toward the Negotiations with Czechoslovak Prime Minister Ladislav Adamec

Civic Forum and Public Against Violence released this communique after their second round of negotiations with the government on November 28.

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Teleprint, Information on the Conclusions of Nation-wide Party Congress held in Prague

The Czechoslovak Communist Party faced some unpleasant realities on November 28. The previous day's general strike had seriously weakened its hand.

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Instructions of the Coordinating Center of the Civic Forum for the Local Forums with a Recommendation for Policy Toward the Communists

The name "Velvet Revolution" was an oxymoron: revolutions were traditionally violent overthrows wiping away the old regime in order to build a new society. The Communist Party followed this model in Eastern Europe, and opposition groups rejected it in 1989 with their strategy of non-violence.

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Letter from Shevardnadze to Gorbachev about the Romanian Crisis

December 1989 proved to be a revolutionary month in Romania.

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Serbian Academy of Arts and Sciences (SANU) Memorandum, 1986

Dobrica Ćosić is a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, and is considered by many to be its most influential member.