Czech Election Farce
The time for the people of Czechoslovakia to express their dis- approval of the seizure of power by the Communists was last February when Mr. Gottvvald's coup itat took place. Since that opportunity was not taken, the fact that percentage of votes cast for the National Front was 89.28 is of no practical interest. Even the fact that as many as rgoo,000 people summoned up enough courage either to stay away from the poll or to deposit the blank papers which were the only alternative to the official National Front list makes no difference to the government of the country, since all the world knows that had they been more numerous other means would have been found to rob their expression of opinion of effect. All the stories of anti-Communist slogans slipped into ballot envelopes, of the underground activities of students, of discreet demonstrations of scepticism during the showing of official pro- paganda films, and of whispers of complaint to foreigners, are worth little. Such events were common currency in Germany under Hitler, but they, did nothing to shift him. What was needed was determina- tion in February, not childishness in May. It remains as certain as ever it was that a majority of the people of Czechoslovakia would be glad to be liberated from Communist rule. But it becomes more
certain every day that the initiative would have to come from outside Czechoslovakia. Beyond that hope lies only in the fact that in centuries of subjection to foreign rule the Czechs have perfected a technique of keeping their national spirit and will to freedom alive, so that one day in the future they may come up again as quietly and as undemonstratively as they have gone under.
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