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CZECHOSLOVAK SOCIETY OF ARTS AND SCIENCES |
A Silent, Long-distance Runner
(from
Respekt, 13/2000, supplement)
The first took place soon after November 1989. A small, round Brit, one from the
hundreds of journalists, political scientists and diplomats who went through our country
at that time, sat down in an armchair opposite me and asked me simple questions: from
where will your people learn democracy? There are already political and economic
structures, but it is necessary to cultivate a culture of civil society over a long period
of time - without it these structures are like body organs without blood circulation.
Havel's and Tomašek's speeches are nice, but democracy isn't only ideals, and it isn't
merely the existence of institutions such as political parties or the free market.
Democracy is a certain culture of relations, it is the totality of skills: how to
communicate, delegate authority, take on responsibility, control power...do people who
have lived for two generations in a totalitarian system have any experience with this? And
what about a public opinion, which has such tremendous weight in democracy? It is created
simply though public discussion, but who is concerned about it?
The ability to take a
broad view
Do you think you can leave it only to the media that is becoming mere tabloid
sensationalism, or to professional politicians who will naturally guard particular
interests of their party and their voters? Don't you think the creation of democracy would
be helped by a group of 20 or 30 people getting together - scientists, writers,
philosophers, and other thinking people who have moral weight in society? They are able to
take a wider view of affairs - surely the role of the intellectual in public life belongs
to the Czech political tradition - and these people would be able to offer inspiration,
give critical words, encourage or warn, or simply stimulate thinking. Of course it isn't
about claiming to have a monopoly on the truth, but rather pose the questions and try to
have critical discussion, so that essential things won't be neglected and populist slogans
won't be tolerated. From this moment on, the idea of such an informal group didn't leave
my head. I spoke with a series of people and looked for an appropriate base. A club which
is run by Charles University or one of its faculties? Our something that would not only
have a "Pragocentric character"?
Let's get to know
each other
Some years later I appeared on several of the Sunday discussions held by TV Nova,
once with the philosopher Václav Bilohradský and once with the former Premier Václav
Klaus. Surprisingly, I received many letters from people who wrote: we've had enough of
the politicians who always repeat the same phrases and merely assert their own beliefs.
Now there was finally something of interest: two intellectuals from completely different
camps, and they are able to discuss topics and show political reality from completely
different angles. And also Premier Klaus, when he stood against someone whose arguments he
could not completely discredit, was a completely different person in such a discussion.
After these public receptions, I had a long discussion with the director of TV Nova, Jan
Vavrá, and the result was the following decision: Let's invite intellectuals who are
interested in public life, people with moral and intellectual authority, and let's put
them together at the table with responsible media representatives, and have them get to
know each other, and talk about important issues in society. After some months of
preparation, when we invited Václav Bilohrdaský and political scientist Jioi Pehe to
participate, the four of us sent a letter to several dozen intellectuals who we elected
according to the following criteria: people with moral weight, interest in social affairs,
but who were independent, without narrow ties to certain political parties. Later in
Prague, an informal circle started to meet regularly. It consisted of top political
scientists, social scientists, economists, lawyers, and media personalities. Suggested
discussions were: what are the main problems today? Is the political elite able to
recognize, formulate and defend the real interests of Czech society? Is it possible to
delegate all the responsibility of political life to professional politicians and parties
or is there a specific task for intellectuals?
Community of Plural
Opinions
And at the same time, with these discussion, self-refelection was going on within
the group. What do we want and can we be: a non-binding deabate circle or perhaps the
beginning of a new political party? Both of these extremes were rejected. A discussion
circle is not effective. There is currently not a place for another political party on
today's political scene: mistrust of political parties by the public means that just
another party would be damned from the start. Moreover, we had intentionally built this
association as one of pluralistc opinions - it would hardly be possible to agree on
somewthing different than basic moral principles. This plurality would be an obstacle from
the outlook of building a political party. But it is a huge asset if we think of it as an
intellectual workshop, which can give ideas, inspiartion, arguments and enriching discussion, which shouldn't be closed within the
walls of some café. It should be offered to all citicens who haven't lost interest in
public affairs and are conscious of their responsibility to them. And those who are losing
this interest could be encouraged by the fact that many people they respect see the same
problems, but are not discouraged. From these discussions there originated the idea of
establishing a citizen's initiative and to introduce it to society under the title IMPULS
99.
Summer of 99 - IMPULS
enters the public realm
The introductory text that originated during several nights in July 1999,
consciously followed up on the tradition of manifestos with which intellectuals once
addressed the public and politicians in key moments of our past. It wasn't, however, only
a manifesto, but a citizens' initiative, a "working association." Because we
counted on the negative reaction of ceratin politicians and the skepticism of a large part
of the public, and we wanted to avoid the belittling criticism that what we had was only
an elite association, we immediately tried to address the widest spectrum of civil
society. We addressed representaives of trade unions, church and religious associations,
professional organizations and ethnic minorities, as well as the business community. Their
reactions surpasseed all our expactations - mostly they not only promised moral support,
which was our original goal, but they welcomed this initiative and identified with it to
such a degree that they were willing to sign the introductory initiative, includuing
"a comitment to work." So this commitment was made to work in a broad and free
association on the recovery of society. Thus IMPULS 99 got a chance to be something more
than a mere political party.
At the end of July we addressed the
public via the media and just before that we addressed the leaders of all parliamentary
parties, the office of the president and both legislative bodies. We introdcued IMPULS 99
as a free, working association of people who with their signatures were obliged to work
for an improved political culture in our country. And above all, by offering opinions,
information and suggestions to public discussion about pressing problems in society. In
the spirit of the introductory declaration, the initiative called to the greater creative
potential of civil society and to cooperate with all democractically thinking people.
Regardless of their political preference. IMPULS 99 therefore is open for cooperation with
various institutions of civil society, including political parties.
Stormy Reaction
The immeduiate reaction was more impressive than we expected. Unabigously
unfriendly positions were expressed in only two political parties - the Communists and
Klaus' ODS party. The four-party coalition and some independent people within CSSD showed
a certain restrained sympathy. Negative reaction wasn't concerned with the contents of the
document and the plans of the initiative, but more with it's literary form and mainly with
the fact of whether the iniative had a place in political life. Politicians in ODS
appealed to memebers of IMPULS 99 to enter some existing party or establish a new one, but
not to try to influence politics from the outside. There was a popular argument that the
president was behind the initiavtive, but Havel rightly answered that he had nothing to do
with it, while also pleasing us by saying he was flattered to be contected with it.
When the reaction of ODS took on hysterical tones and terminology became
reminiscient of the Normalization campaign again Charter 77, it casued an understandable
reaction among the public - the rise of support. We originally counted on maybe 50 names -
after some weeks there were 2,000 and during the following months the number grew to 15
times the original signatories of the introductory declaration.
Finding a Form
The unexpected flood of signatures pushed IMPULS 99 toward higher
institutuinalization. Publisher and doctor Martin Stránský offered IMPULS 99
administrative-technical support, in the space where at one time the Stránský family
published Lidové noviny and Poítomnost. The first three spokesmen and the circle around
them asked Stránský to lead administratively; an economic citiczen association was
created in support of the initaitive and we offered the growing supporters two structures:
regional branches and working groups. Intensive work started at several levels. One level was preparation and implementing a
nation-wide dicussion forum on urgent question facing society. The second level was the
elaboration and publication of expert opinions to concrete questions - entry to the EU,
racism and xenophobia, social tension, health matters and others. The third level was the
activity of working groups. The fourth level was contact with the signatories and
symapthizers in the regions. The fifth level was represented by contact with other
particpants of civil society and with poiticans - dialogues with ecological groups and the
initiative "Thank You Now Leave" could be included here, as well as the
four-party coalition, which expressed interest. The sixth level was the ongoing
expaination of the initiative and ongoing defense against attacks from the media. The
seventh and most demanding level was a continuous search for a legal and organiazaional
form that would make possible the implementaion of the initiative's mission.
Unrealistic
Expectations
Soon our convictions were confirmed that IMPULS 99 could not function as a mass
organization. In the ranks of the signatories and supporters it was neccesary to always
subdue unrealistic expectations that IMPULS 99 would change into a political party or some
such similar organization, or that the modest Prague office could effectively direct the
activities of thousands of signatoiries, change the political climate and solve all of
societies problems. Such promises were never made. Communication
with signatories and supporters was limited by our time and financial means, but we
nonethless met many new people - excellent self-sacrificing citizens from all parts of the
republic to whom IMPULS 99 was able to return hope.
At the end of 1999, IMPULS 99 was
integrated into various structures: an informal circle of "father and mother
founders," three spokesmen, an adminstrative office and innumerable citizen
associations with roughly 200 original signatories and nearly 4000 others in regional
branches and "expert groups" at various levels, as well as a students group. The
season of searching for an identity had ended and it was time to decide on a definitive,
suffuiciently flexible form.
At the beginning of 2000, a general meeting was held and after careful deliberation
it was decided to abolish the citizen association and in its place was established a 15
member board of directors. Regional branches started to transform into informal clubs of
IMPULS 99 and "working groups" changed into teams acting in the frame of the
concrete project. The spokesmen of IMPULS 99 are still elected by the board of directors
and they are responsible to it. At the same time, the admninistration office headed by
Martin Stránský is responsible to the board of directors.
Out for the future:
we aren't interested in power but help
So IMPULS 99 isn't an organizational type of political party or citizens'
association with a base of wide memebership, but an informal citizen's initaitive, which
sees it necessry to maintain contact with specialists in the fields of politics,
sociology, law and other discioplines, particularly with those who were present at the
birth of the initiative. We want this circle
of experts and specialists to expand and strengthen.
At the same time, we want to maintan contact with an informal network of interested
citizens in regions (in the form of IMPULS 99 clubs) and with working teams. We predict
that the "expert groups" will either diminish or take on another form, while
those groups that show results (for ex. health groups, law and others) will continue as
working teams on concrete projects.
The main misssion of IMPULS 99
remains being able to contribute to political culture and encouraging the creative
potential of civil society through offering topics of discussion and stimulating debate on
important issues. We want to contribute so that key issues in our society receive
attention from both the media and politicians. Therefore, we want to gives impulses for
public discussion, proposals, to hold public discussion forums, and to be politically
active by maintaining dialogue with similar organizations as well as political parties. We
can imagine that in the future, personalities with a background in IMPULS 99 may decide to
be directly active in political parties, either in present ones or some new ones.
Moreover, IMPULS 99 will closely cooperate with some political actors if an urgent
situation demands it. However, IMPULS 99
itself wants to remain as it is now: more of a silent long-distance runner, independent,
yet open to cooperation and dialogue with all whose heart lies in the culture and
democracy of our country.
Tomas
Halik, Founding member, spokesperson, IMPULS 99
Translated into English by Frank Forrest
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