On April 8, 1963, Alexander Dubček became First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Slovakia. For Antonín Novotný – First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia and President of Czechoslovakia, a representative of the conservative Stalinist wing and a proponent of neo-Czechoslovakism as well as anti-Slovak chauvinism, as described by Czech historian Karel Kaplan – a serious political rival had quietly emerged.
As a member of the Kolder rehabilitation commission established in August 1962, which concluded that the so-called bourgeois nationalists led by Gustáv Husák and Ladislav Novomeský had been victims of fabricated trials, Dubček fought for their full rehabilitation, including within the party. Novotný rejected this. The result was a wave of outrage in Slovakia. The pressure from party members and the public became so strong that Novotný was forced to agree to the removal of several of his allies who had supported these trials, thereby weakening his own position.
Alexander “Priestorovič”
Dubček’s election as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Slovakia triggered a development that Slovak historians later called the “pre-spring” – a period of political thaw. Into public life, discredited by Stalinist practices, Dubček brought a sense of decency and opened space for dialogue and freedom of thought. He earned the nickname Alexander “Priestorovič” – a play on words suggesting openness and space. The release of accumulated energy led to an explosion of creative output in art, architecture, historiography, and other social sciences. Civil society began to form spontaneously. Journalists were suddenly able to write about sensitive and difficult topics. A symbolic expression of the liberalization in Slovakia was the weekly Kultúrny život, which became highly sought after even in Prague. This atmosphere gradually spread from Slovakia to the western part of the country. Dubček also helped restore public awareness of key figures of Slovak national life, such as Ľudovít Štúr and Milan Rastislav Štefánik, who had previously not fit the prevailing ideological narrative. He forcefully raised the issue of uneven economic development between the Czech lands and Slovakia.
A decisive confrontation
The spark for open conflict came during President Novotný’s visit to Matica slovenská in Martin from August 25 to 27, 1967. He accused its representatives – and, by extension, Slovaks in general – of separatism and nationalism, refused to accept gifts, and demonstratively left the meeting. This was widely perceived as an insult to the Slovak nation and provided the pretext for a decisive political attack against him. At a meeting of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia on September 26–27, 1967, Dubček openly addressed the negative impact of economic reforms on Slovakia. He called for greater powers for Slovak national bodies and increased authority over enterprises in Slovakia. Novotný interpreted this as evidence of concealed Slovak nationalism and renewed efforts to remove Dubček from his post. The conflict escalated further at the Central Committee meeting on October 30–31, 1967. Dubček delivered a key political message: the problems in society were not the result of ignoring its class character, as Novotný claimed, but of a dogmatic, sectarian, and overly centralized system of governance. He also criticized the concentration of power, clearly alluding to the fact that the president – who also held the post of First Secretary – wielded excessive authority and should relinquish one of the roles. Novotný responded with a sharp personal attack, accusing Dubček of succumbing to “narrow national interests,” effectively reviving accusations of “bourgeois nationalism.” However, his attempt to punish Dubček through a special commission failed. He did not even secure the support of Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev, who famously responded, “eto vaše delo” (“that is your affair”), depriving Novotný of further backing. After prolonged and difficult negotiations, both behind the scenes and formally, Novotný resigned at the Central Committee meeting on January 3–5, 1968. Dubček was then unanimously elected First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
The reform process
From a position that had previously offered only limited powers, Dubček achieved what Prague’s reform communists had not: he defeated Novotný and the conservative system he represented. Without strong pressure from Slovakia, the balance of power within the party leadership would likely have shifted much later. Initially seen as a compromise candidate, Dubček – together with a strong group of Czech and Slovak reform communists – launched a process of democratic renewal and modernization. He abolished censorship and attempted to reform Soviet-style socialism. Through the Action Program of the Central Committee in April 1968, he also opened the path toward the federalization of the previously unitary state. That, however, is another chapter of history.
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