Ross Hedvíček Helsinskému výboru amerického Kongresu:
Protestuji proti pronásledování Petra Cibulky za to, že zveřejnil estébácké seznamy
Níže uvedeným dopisem protestuje Ross Hedvíček u Helsinského výboru amerického Kongresu proti pronásledování Petra Cibulky. I kdyby bylo oprávněné stíhat podle nového zákona osoby, které neprávněně zveřejní utajované informace, jak na to poukázal Tomáš Pecina, Petr Cibulka žádné nové utajované dokumenty od 1. června 2000, kdy tento zákon vešel v platnost, nepublikoval. Prohlašuje-li šéf Úřadu na ochranu osobních dat Neuwirth, že se hodlá zabývat publikací Cibulkových seznamů, hodlá snad česká státní správa uplatňovat tento zákon retrospektivně? JČ
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe
234 Ford House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-6460
Rep. Christopher H. Smith, Chairman
Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Co-Chairman
csce@mail.house.gov
Gentlemen:
I would like to bring to your immediate attention the case of Petr Cibulka
in the Czech Republic and ask your Helsinki Commission to closely examine
the lack of progress in the improvement of human rights conditions in Czech
Republic.
Mr. Cibulka's story is as follows: During the eighties, before the fall of
communism, Petr Cibulka was one of the leading dissidents from the circle
around the current president of the Czech Republic, Vaclav Havel. He was
imprisoned three times for a total of over 5 years. Actually during the
famed Velvet revolution he was still in prison and was released only after
demonstrators formed a human chain around the prison where he was held.
Around 1992 his friendship with then president Vaclav Havel ended abruptly
when Petr Cibulka published in his newspaper (and later in a book) a
listing of members and collaborators of the Czech communist secret police
(StB), which eventually became known as "Cibulka's database". Mr. Havel
maintained that the publishing of the names of these communist
collaborators was a negative thing to do, and of course Mr. Cibulka's stand
was that the public has the right to know. Publishing information from the
communist past was done to various extents in several former communist
countries of Eastern Europe, i.e.; in Germany complete secret police files
were made available to the public (as opposed to the names of people only
in Cibulka's case).
In the spring of 2000 Czech parliament (since 1990 populated more than ever
before by former Communists) voted in a law (no. "102/2000") about the
protection of personal information. The official lame excuse was that the
new law was fully in line with current European legislation, but in fact
the law was designed to prevent Mr. Cibulka, who in the meantime put the
database of the names of the secret police and its collaborators on the
Internet, from publishing and otherwise dispersing this information.
The penalty for doing so is a prison term up to three years and financial
fine up to 20 million Czech crowns (a financially crippling amount for any
individual and most businesses in the Czech republic).
Petr Cibulka already has received a letter from the new established Czech
government agency, which will be overseeing only this new law, to appear at
their offices and the head of the agency. Karel Neuwirt confirmed on Czech
national TV that Mr. Cibulka will be under investigation for publishing the
databases. Mr. Neuwirt, as it was just confirmed to me by the wife of Mr.
Cibulka, is refusing any contact or communication with Mr. Cibulka's lawyer.
The Czech Republic has undoubtedly tarnished his reputation when it comes
to human rights. Just recently your commission was looking into the
racially motivated murders of Romanies in the Czech Republic. However
horrible the crimes were, it was still a crime committed by individuals or
groups, but what we have here in Mr. Cibulka's case, is government
sanctioned human rights abuse. And it is quite ironic that it is a
government of that famous human rights activist Vaclav Havel.
I would like to compare Mr. Cibulka's situation to Mr. Simon Wiesenthal's
center for information on Nazi war crimes. Mr. Wiesenthal center is
collecting information on Nazi criminals; can you imagine the U.S. or any
democratic government would be prosecuting him for that? And that is
exactly what the Czech government is doing to Mr. Cibulka.
I am calling on you to take an immediate look into this situation, because
Mr. Cibulka is supposed to be investigated this Friday morning, and we
certainly do not want him to "commit suicide" while in the interrogation
room or "accidentally fall out of a window", (as is still possible in these
countries) and take a stand in defense of Mr. Cibulka. And let that stand
be known to the government and the president of the Czech Republic.
The Czech Republic has to realize that now that they are newly accepted
members of NATO, their human rights standards must be substantially
upgraded, and that it is no longer possible to manhandle their own citizens
as was common amongst Warsaw Pact barbarians.
With regards
Ross Hedvicek
