Czechoslovakia: 1) Treatment of Roman Catholics in Czechoslovakia; 2) Information on the Revolucni odborove hnuti (ROH), Socialistickyy svaz mladeze (SSM), and Svaz Ceskislovenski-Sovetskeho Pratelstvi (ZSCP)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 July 1989 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | CSK1196 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Czechoslovakia: 1) Treatment of Roman Catholics in Czechoslovakia; 2) Information on the Revolucni odborove hnuti (ROH), Socialistickyy svaz mladeze (SSM), and Svaz Ceskislovenski-Sovetskeho Pratelstvi (ZSCP), 1 July 1989, CSK1196, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6acf7a.html [accessed 2 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
l) As per your telephone conversation with the research officer, please find attached a copy of an earlier response to an information request regarding the treatment of Roman Catholics in Czechoslovakia. To update this information, a former member of a Canadian Czechoslovakian association and retired academic on East European politics addson the basis of recent discussions with the emigre community in Londonthat the situation with respect to Catholics is improving in Czechoslovakia. It appears that attendance in the churches is growing. Also, religious teaching is not penalized as it had been and parades and petitions are tolerated as long as they refrain from criticizing the authorities too strongly. This source cautions, however, that promotion is still hampered if one is a practising Roman Catholic.
2) The ROH is the official single union of Czechoslovakian workers and membership is compulsory, according to the source mentioned above. Delury's World Encyclopedia of Political Systems and Parties notes that this organization enrols nearly all workers in Czechoslovakia. [George E. Delury, ed., World Encyclopedia of Political Systems and Parties, (New York: Facts on File Publications, 1987), p. 264.] Further details are contained in the attached excerpt from Delury's reference work.
Membership in the SSM, according to the academic source mentioned above, is necessary in order to enrol in higher education. Also, membership translates into employment opportunities and the chance of career advancement. Refusal to join would "undercut your career". Further details are contained in the attached excerpt from Delury.
The Svaz Ceskoslovensko-Sovetskeho Pratelstvi is much less of a mass organization. The Czechoslovakian community member contacted by the IRBDC states that membership in this organization is such that if offered, one could not refuse without risking discrimination. It was further commented that this would be an unpleasant organization to join if one were not a communist. Delury's book mentions that the organization is dedicated to increasing knowledge of and affection for the Soviet Union.
All three of these organizations are satellite organizations of the Czechoslovak Communist Party.
