EASTERN EUROPEAN INTELLIGENCER

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79B00864A000800010123-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 17, 2010
• Sequence Number: 123
• Publication Date: February 25, 1968
• Content Type: REPORT

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EASTERN EUROPEAN INTELLIGENCER
25 January 3968
Soviet Media Still Mum on Czechoslovak Developments
Through 24 January Soviet media have been exercising
extreme caution and giving Czech developments the barest
minimum coverage. The US Embassy in Moscow believes
the Soviets are disturbed by the appearance in the Czech
party press of ideas downgrading the role of the party
and stressing individual rights and liberties.
GROUP I
EXCLUDED FROM AUTOMATIC DOWN-
GRADING AND DECLASSIFICATION
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Russian congratulations to Vasil Bilak, a
Ukrainian, on his 23 January election as Slovak party
first secretary suggest that the Soviets are not too
pleased by this development. The Soviet Consul
General in Bratislava delivered a letter from USSR
Ambassador Chervonenko in Prague which "congratulated
comrade Bilak on his election to his function." Tnis 25X1
low-key approach is hardly a reflection of the comradely
bonhommie that has prevailed on such occasions in
the past.
Czech Writers Defend Selves and Students
In its first move following the ouster of party boss
Novotny, the Czechoslovak Writers' Union has issued a
statement aimed at regime conservatives and their inter-
pretation of past intellectual dissidence. Published
in the current issue of the literary monthly, Plamen,
the statement zeroed in on Jan Kolar, chief editor of
the cultural weekly, Kulturni Tvorba, whom it accused
of tendentious and disparaging reports on last year's
turbulent, writers congress, and the Prague student
demonstrations last October. Kolar is charged with
attacking the dissident writers at the congre.4s,
"disparaging" the former Writers Union weekly, Literarni
Noviny, v&ch~had been their mouthpiece, and describing
monstrating students as gangs of hooligans influenced
by Western propaganda.
The statement in Plamen then charges Kolar with
having taken an "over-dim3Iified" view, and defends both
the writers and students as critical Communists who
had acted with "good intentions."
COMMENT: The writers' quick and bold move to set
the record straight reflects the new atmosphere of
cautious hope among them in the wake of Novotny's demise.
They have probably already taken heart from new party
boss Dubcek's reported statement that they can have
their magazine (Literarni Noviny) "back." Some regime
caution concerning ie ne`w Wfffers' Union statement is
suggested, however, in the fact that, as far as is
known, ;publicity for it was restricted to Prague's
English language broadcast to Africa.
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Conference of Mediterranean "Progressive" Parties Schedules
rt^~ A conference of progressive parties and movements of the
Mediterranean region will be held in Rome in late March
or early April. The decision was announced at the end of
a two day consultative meeting in Rome of 16 Mediterranean
progressive parties. The host for the spring conference
Socialist
d
h
e
t
will be the Italian Communist Party an
Party of Proletarian Unity of Italy.
COMMENT: The announcement reinforces earlier
speculation that the Yugoslavs are having doubts
about the scheme and have been replaced by the Italian
communists as its main proponents.
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Yugoslav Party Expels Author
The Yugoslav communist party announced the expulsion
of author Bozidar Bozovic on 24 January for some of
his writings in the literary journal Knjizevne Novine.
Decisions in the cases of one of the fo -ry a cI t r
and a columnist were postponed.
COMMENT: Bozovic may have been purged for publiciz-
ing Serbian nationalist views. Knjizevne Novine was
criticized at a Belgrade city par y meeting on 8 January
for favoring Serbian nationalism and opposing the
regime's economic and political reforms. One week
later a purge of conservatives was started in the Belgrade
city party and on 19 January the head of the parent
Serbian party was replaced. In enumerating the pro-
blems facing the party, outgoing leader Dobrivoje
Radosavljevic stressed "considerable remnants of bureau-
cratic (read Serbian centralist) views and a mistaken
approach to the national problem characterized by
extreme nationalistic concepts . . .11
NOTE: THE VIEWS EXPRESSED ABOVE REPRESENT
ONLY THE ANALYSIS OF THE EE DIVISION
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