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Date:         Mon, 25 Jan 1993 15:09:06 EST
From:         George Frajkor <gfrajkor@CCS.CARLETON.CA>
Subject:      Re: Ad fontes! Slovensko v Ceskoslovensku by Jan Mechyr.(ISBN a
              "s565havra@IKEVX1.ENERGIETECHNIK.UNI-STUTTGART.DE" at Jan 25,
              93 2:41 pm

s565havra@IKEVX1.ENERGIETECHNIK.UNI-STUTTGART.DE writes:
> I am still completely unclear in what the Slovaks exactly mean by
"a Confederation of two equal states, or a federation in
 which Slovaks are equal
> partners, or a federation arrived at by treaty between two equal republics".
Is there a draft of the treaty available? Was the draft published in
the Czech Republic? Were there discussions on the particularities of the draft
> in the media and what was the publicity of the draft in both the Slovak and
> the Czech Republics?

          Write to the Christian Democratic Party and ask for the copy
of the treaty as they proposed it.  I have thrown away the only copy I
had.  I doubt that it was published in the Czech media as they do not
habitually care much about what Slovaks say.  Yes, all proposals were
widely published in slovakia and debated to the point where
Carnogursky was defeated and Meciar elected BECAUSE of their
proposals.

> Did the Slovaks really take care  to explain precisely
> what they meant by an equal partnership?

     In 1848, Stur's declaration of independence.
   in 1861, the declaration of Martin.
    in 1917, the Pittsburgh Agreement
   in 1938, the Zilina agreement
    in 1945 the Kosice agreement
   in 1968 the federation of the state.
           If the Czechs have not yet read any of these, I would not
be surprised.

> Now it's important to make everybody clear, that after the "Jurisdiction Law"
> had passed the Parliament on Dec.12, 1990 and The Declaration of the State
> Sovreignity of the SR was  declared in March 1991 the Slovaks has been given
> any possible support by the Czech representation to play an equal role in
> a common state.

        One can name Carnogursky's treaty proposal and Meciar's
confederation plans.   Name the Czech initiatives for equal
participation.

> Still everything what the Czech representation  has ever done
> was not enough and the Slovak representation clearly went for a partition and
> a total dissolution of the hated
>     "stepmother colonialist and ungrateful abuser Czechoslovakia"!

       Meciar's and Carnogrusky's proposals were for a union of some
kind.
   Klaus' was for a unitary state or no union at all.
       I can't recall a
statement by anyone in Slovakia that speaks of hatred for the
federation or the Czech people.

> For particular Czechs, originating from Central Bohemia, particularly from
> Slany  like me, it always has not  been easy to understand what the Slovaks
> really want.

       Try reading Slovak history and slovak publications.


> Keeping this in mind I should like to know why the kokoti in and around
> Slany should be interested in any 'loose federation', a 'union' or a
> 'confederation' with such a partner who has just crashed the common state in
> the way he did? (see Jan Mechyr: Slovensko v Ceskoslovensku, Prace, 1991,
> ISBN 80-208-0225-8)

         The Common state was legally dissolved by a legally elected
federal government and not by any one of the two parties.  Dissolution
by unilateral declaration of any republic, or bilateral agreement of
the two republics,were among the options that
could have been used if the federal assembly had not voted to dissolve
it.  All parties agreed with the exception of the CZech Communists,
Slovak Communists, Czech neo-nazis, Slovak reform Communists and Czech
reform Communists, and the Christian Democratic party, who
wanted to keep the country together.
    But in the end even they  could not go against the tide, as the
popular will was pretty clear.


    Jan George Frajkor       _!_
 School of Journalism       __!__
 Carleton University,         |
 Ottawa, Ontario             /^\
 Canada K1S 5B6           /^\   /^\
   -- gfrajkor@ccs.carleton.ca --
  613 788-7404     fax:613 788-5604
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