Evening star., 1938-09-11
BY the Associated Press.


PRAGUE, Czechoslovakia, Sept. 10.
Following is the full text of an ad-
dress to the nation broadcast today
by President Euard Benes:
am talking to you at moment Of
international difficulties. the most
serious since the World War, which
have entangled not only Europe, but
also the greater part Of the world.
I am talking to you at critical
moment about ourselves and about our
situation in this disturbance and am
talking to all of you-Czechs, Slovaks,
Germans and all other nationalities-
and through them to all of their politi-
cal parties. to all creeds and all classes.
am talking to you as . people who
want security and peace and who aim
at human dignity and good will.
today in detail on international prob
Deliberately, I am not going to talk
lens and the international situation
For 20 years the republic has de-
veloped quietly and progressively. Po-
litical democracy and freedom, eco
nomic prosperity, religious tolerance
and social justice have been achieved
step by step without crises, upheavals
or revolutions.
One Difficult Problem.
This, which in other places causes
dangerous upheavals, was in our coun-
try reasonably, dispassionately and
practically resolved
We have, however. one unique prob
lem which always has been for cen
turies difficult and requires new
methods of treatment-the nationali-
ties question.
But we have endeavored to solve
this problem in progressive way. l
do not want to enumerate the different
methods we have tried to apply but I
do make this clear: That European
and world events from which We can
not Isolate ourselves have compelled
us to accelerate our actions.
That explains the course we are now
pursuing. We are modifying the
tempo but we do not alter the spirit
in which this state is trying to solve
these great problems Of today.
This is a sincere and fruitful effort
on our part to achieve as great
degree of political justice as politically
and practically possible.
This must be done in spirit OF true
and sincere democracy.
1t is in this spirit that the govern
ment opened negotiations with the
different nationalities of our republic.
Begin With Sudetens.
We have begun with the Sudeten
German party as being the most i'm
portant group, but proposals which
have thus been prepared apply to all
citizens of this state and will be the
subject of negotiations with every one
of the nationalities.
The problems under discussion and
the lines along which we hope to reach
a solution were made public today.
A great part of this material pub
lished today was previously contained
in proposals for the nationalities
statute issued last spring.
The new proposals, however, nave
not been presented in the form OF 3
law, as was the nationalities statute.
They were presented in the form Of an
agreement on the basis of which new
can be obtained.
They were further formulated in
such a way that no misunderstanding
shall arise; but there are other parts
of the proposals which were not con-
tanned in the original plan.
Gets Encouraging Letters.
These are elaborated in order to give
to the state what belongs to the state
and to the nationalities what belongs
to the nationalities.
At the same time, we are endeavor-
ing to guarantee the individual against
the whole, minority against majority
and freedom of thought and national
rights.
This applies to Czechs, Germans,
Slovaks, Hungarians, Ruthenians and
Poles. Our democratic conditions
make us proceed IN this manner.
During recent days have received
hundreds and hundreds of letters from
Czechs, from Germans and from for
eign countries encouraging me.
If in these letters any doubts are