"THE CONFESSION" " Are they back?" " No, no." " So, is it one of your cars?" " Well, it's not from my department." "I don't handle ministers." "You're being followed, that's for sure." "It must be one of his." "There has to be an explanation why." "They're not exactly being subtle." "Why are you doing this?" "What do you want from me?" "It's started again." " Since when?" " Three days." " You're sure?" " They're there!" "Well, let's see." "What makes you think it's a security car?" "If it's not, then you should take measures to protect me." "I have rights." "Here, the plates of the cars that followed me." "Go get Pavel." "You're forgetting, comrade." "If they point to me, they point to you too." "And everyone else who served in Spain." "I've had enough of it!" "Why not just confront me about Noel Field?" "I know very well that he's in prison in Hungary." "Yes!" "Who's behind this?" "They're after the old guard in Spain." "Those who went to France or London." "... during the occupation." "You think you'll escape because you're in Security?" "Loebl, Pavlik, Feigl were all high ranking officials." "And now they're all in prison." "The Vice-minister of security is at the Party School, as a student." "Otto has lost his position." "Today it's me." "And tomorrow?" "Whose turn will it be?" "Are they security cars?" "Yes." "You don't know what goes on in your department." "Verify who gave the orders." "If they come from whom I think they do, it could be dangerous." " Don't they know?" " It's better this way." "Why not?" "It concerns them too." " Did you come together?" " No." "Just coincidence." "Oh, really?" "When they're surveying veterans of Spain there are no coincidences." " It looks like a brigade meeting." " "Surveying"..." "Yes, there are problems." "But nobody is surveying me." "You lost your position." "Sling is in prison." "At the School, they are lecturing me on party philosophy." "The positive and the negative." "The deepening of the class struggle to build socialism." "The vice-minister is being followed, and the security chief doesn't know about it." "As they say, the shoemaker's son goes barefoot." "Resign." "Leave your position." "Do your bit of self-criticism." "They won't accept my resignation." "They're keeping me from everything." "Type this for the Department Chief's meeting." "But... the meeting was this morning." "What's the meaning of this?" "The Minister said your presence wasn't necessary today." "And they believed him?" "Gerard, I no longer believe anything." "I only wonder where all this will end up." "It's a misunderstanding." "The Party will clear things up." "Obviously." " Unless it comes from the top." " I thought it was about Field." "The secretariat told me it's not about him." "Bederich said:" "The Field case has been dealt with." "The Secretary General..." "I think this meeting is useless." "Yes, I'm still here." "Gerard insists." "He thinks it's important." "He has a lot of work at the moment." "He'll call you." "As for the Party, it's all above board." "You know how Security works when it's a serious situation." "But if you have friends there..." "The Chief of Security for example." "The Security Chief has problems too." "He knew Noel Field as well." "We'll have our own trial, like in Hungary." " No, the circumstances are different." " They're the same." "Here too, we track down spies and traitors." "Did you speak with my successor?" "The new Minister." "He seems to believe it." "You have a terrible record." "This business isn't done with." "There are Ramifications everywhere:" "Poland, Germany..." "You should see him." "Let's go." "They'll never believe we met to reminisce about Spain." "We feel guilty already, don't we?" "Don't forget." "They're still waiting." "I'll ask the minister to see you." "I'm with Gerard, he wants to talk to you." "He's very worried." "Tell him to come tomorrow." "Since that business with Field he's fallen out of favour." "A dozen comrades were with Field during the occupation." " The Party knows it." " We weren't able to see the enemy." "Treason and death are part of the Revolution." "We knew it." "Now it's our turn to taste treason and death  so that the Revolution can go on." "That's the important thing." "That it goes on." "Even if we must die." "Go see him tomorrow." "What else can I do." "Nothing." "Trust the Party." "Who is it?" "You're the Frenchwoman?" "Soon your husband will hang." "What is it?" "Nothing." "Wrong number." "Who are you?" "What do you want?" "Let me go!" "Let me go!" "Who are you?" "!" "Shut it." "The handcuffs." "I want to see the Party member in charge." "Be quiet." "You have no right to demand anything." " Who are you?" "I demand to see..." " Shut up!" "Undress him." "Put it on." "Bills, odd papers..." "Pen..." "Watch, keys..." "Take them off." "Wedding ring..." "Wallet..." " 350 koruna..." " 350..." " Party cards." " cards..." "Family photos." "Ah, here's the Frenchwoman." " Tell my family." " She'll think you ran off!" "Darex bonds" "Worth 1200 koruna." "Special business, like foreign diplomats..." "While we sacrificed ourselves to build socialism  you lived like a bourgeois." "Leave that!" "You number is 3225." "Don't forget it." "You're forbidden to sit down!" "Forbidden to stand still!" "Walk!" "Walk!" "Walk!" "The Party is always right." "There's a misunderstanding." "Everything will be cleared up." "You must submit to the rules, harsh as they may be, to prove your good faith." "Each time you stop walking, we'll smash your face in!" "Walk!" "Walk!" "The soup." "No, none for him." "Walk!" "Have you seen Gerard today?" "Oh, he didn't go?" "Have you seen Gerard today?" "He didn't go?" "Is Zadovsky there?" "Thank you." "Excuse me." "We're here to search." "What's this about?" "What's happening?" "Not there!" "That's where the children sleep." "What's this all about?" " We have orders to search." " Search?" "I have a direct line to the Secretary General." "Let's see what he says." " Do you have a warrant?" " We don't need one." "I've told you: we have orders to search." "And I'm telling you:" "I won't let you search without a warrant." "Go on, Mum." "Go to bed." "Stay here, madam." "He's my eldest son." "He was born in jail, in France, in La Roquette" " A jail in Paris." " Why were you arrested?" "Because in '42 the Germans arrested the communists." "I was sentenced to death." "They didn't kill me because I was pregnant." " Were you in jail for long?" " I was deported to Ravensbruck." "My son was France's youngest political prisoner." "My husband was sent to Mathausen." "NF." "Night and fog." "Ever heard of it?" "Those are photos of my husband in the Spanish Civil War." "And in France, during the Resistance." "Please, my daughter is here." "Put that away!" "Hello dear." "Where's daddy?" "He'll be back soon." "These are friends from the Ministry." " Did you have fun?" "Was dinner nice?" " Yes." "Off to bed." "It's late." "Go see how the boys are sleeping." "Do you want coffee?" "There." "The search warrant." "No!" "You're acting like Nazis." "I didn't see the warrant." "Everyone works as usual." "Not a word about this to anyone." " I want to speak with the minister." " At five o'clock in the morning?" "After school we'll go to the ministry." "Nothing important." "They only took letters, photos, papers..." "Fifteen years of marriage." "Souvenirs from Spain..." "Letters written in jail..." "Gerard doesn't keep official documents at home." "We'll get this sorted out." "You have a direct line." "You can always call me." "Last night he had an appointment with the doctor." "For his lung problems..." "Of course, we'll take care of it." "He's in isolation, as I said." "For you and your family, nothing has changed." "The driver and the car from the ministry are still at your service." " Did you see the minister?" " Yes." "Gerard is not under arrest." "He's just isolated with some comrades to clear up some problems." "They need his help." "It's Party business." "Confidential." "It's best if they let him explain." "I was worried it would be worse." "If you need anything, count on me." "He said nothing has changed." "Madam, I'll be taking care of you." "This is your car." "Report!" "What's your complaint?" "I want to see an officer from the Party." " Identify yourself" " The Vice-minister..." "You're nothing!" "What's your number?" "Your number!" "You are here to confess." "To confess everything." "Confess what?" "Who are you?" "February 1st." "Confess your crimes!" "Confess who you are!" "Vice-minister of External Affairs." "You're nothing!" "Nothing but a number." "Your number?" "Your number!" "Number 3225." "Specific questions." "What am I accused of?" "You know." "Better than anyone." "What's your name?" " The Party knows my..." " Don't invoke the Party!" "Ever!" "You are here to confess and you will confess!" " I demand to see the person in charge." " Confess!" "Confess what?" " Confess!" " I demand to see who's in charge!" "I'll make you confess!" "In the beginning, you try to help the Party." "You try to understand why you are there." "What you have done...." "You're open to criticism, to admit mistakes..." "Years of struggle, discipline and our education  have led us to believe that the Party is never wrong." "That the USSR is always right." "We're not alone here!" "We have advisors!" "How many times we proudly said that it was better to err inside the party..." "Than to be right outside of it." "Confess your crimes!" "Confess everything!" "But confess what!" "?" "!" "Ask specific questions!" "Eat!" "Enough." "Walk!" "Enough." "Get up!" "Walk!" "Walk!" "Get up!" "Don't behave like the enemy." "Obey your orders!" "Walk!" "Please..." "Is it two AM or PM?" "You are here for a very grave reason." "The Party ordered your arrest." "It's our duty to interrogate you." "The matter concerns international spying against the Soviet Union." "Your duty is to help establish the truth." "You're not the only individual involved." "Many other high-ranking officials are implicated." "Only you can save yourself." "You've been a member of the Party for a long time." "I appeal to you to help the Soviet Union and the Party." "Have you anything to say?" "All I want is for the Party to clear all of this up." "I'm willing to answer all questions." "Very well." "We shall start the interrogation." "Tuesday, February 4th..." "I declare..." "Where and when did you start contact with the Americans?" "How did Noel Field recruit you?" "Did you collaborate with other American spies apart from Field?" "No-one, I've never!" "Silence!" "Answer the questions!" "Heads are going to roll!" "We have all the evidence." "We'll use methods you can't even dream of!" "You will confess your crimes." "Your fate depends on you." "You either confess to save yourself  or you'll stay an enemy of the Soviet Union and the Party to the gallows." "Answer the questions!" "Walk!" "Enough!" "Hand over the plate." "Enough!" "Keep walking." "You may sleep now." "On your back, standard position." "Arms straight." "Stand up!" "Registration Number!" "You may sleep!" "Stand up!" "Stand up!" "Registration number!" "Registration number!" "3225." "You may sleep." "Registration number!" "Stand up!" "Stand up!" "Registration number!" "You have to obey the orders, sir." "You and your dirty race are all the same." "The gas chambers never finished the job, but we will." "You talk like that wearing the Party emblem?" "A traitor is going to lecture me?" "You want the party, but it throws you out!" "You're expelled!" "You're lying." "It can't be." "It's against regulations." "The regulations are very clear." "What a bourgeois conception of the Party's democracy." "The Central Committee can deviate from the rules in an emergency." "Here." "Your cards:" "Yours, Vales  and Zadovsky's, Chief of Security." "We know about your criminal activities in Spain and France." "You are expelled from the Party." " And we'll find the missing cards." " You're not the Central Committee." "No." "We're above it!" "Our duty is to expose traitors, even those in the Committee." "We embody proletarian power." "The friends you protect are here, and they're talking." "You will do the same." "You will answer the questions." "Like Zadovzky, who gave a complete confession." "He was chief of security." "He knew the only way to save his head was to confess." "Zadovsky?" "Confessed?" "But confessed what?" "You went to an underground meeting the day before his arrest." " What decisions were taken?" " Did you organise the meeting?" "Were you the leader of the Trotskyist group in Spain?" "You knew you had been found out." "What decisions were taken?" "How did you organise your work?" "Your work of sabotage!" "You met Rajk in Spain, did he put you in touch with the Americains?" "Rajk was discovered, tried and executed in Hungary." "You understand what awaits you." "What was the nature of your relation with Rwal?" "Why did you protect Dapchevitch in Spain?" "The others confessed." "You can only save yourself if you do the same." "And only if your confession goes further than their's." "Since you were the one in charge." "Here we weed out the bad plants." "We reap them." "Did you meet Rajk in Spain?" "Did he put you in touch with the Americans?" "Bartons was also in Spain." "What do you know of him?" " We know he deserted." " Jares was part of your unit." "Do you remember?" "Here is a report saying he had Trotskyist tendencies." "Like all your contacts, here and abroad." "They were the French and Italian communist parties." "Where does that report come from?" "You must understand..." "We know it all." "With the experience and help of our Soviet comrades..." "We uncovered the spy ring you lead." "Zadovsky confessed everything." "He described the criminal activities of your Trotskyist group." "It's false." "Zadovsky can't have said that." "And this?" "It's his signature!" "It can't be." "It's impossible." "Yes, it's possible!" ""My activities for the US services..."" "Don't you recognize his signature?" "Zadovsky and the others tricked you." "You didn't know what you were getting into." "To prove your good faith, tell me all you know." " Your confessions will help the Party." " Confess what?" "That I'm a spy?" "You have a very subjective view of things." "Zadovsky, arrested immediately after you, confessed at once." "And he's still confessing." "He knows it's the only way out." "But this is all false." "The French party and the resistance have official documents." "They can verify my activities." "They are nothing next to these confessions." "And the others are confessing the same story." "Believe me." "Here everyone confesses." "You're the leader." "You cannot escape." "Think of your family." "What could happen to them?" "Listen: "I spied for the USA to overthrow your regime..." "In these crimes I was led by... "" "Look." "Your name." "Black on white." "What can you do against that?" "Are you thirsty?" "He's admitted to the worst crimes, following your orders." "Who will they believe in court?" "You, who denies everything, or him, admitting his guilt?" " And he hasn't finished talking." " It's not true." "All that matters is to confess." "Why would Zadovsky confess things that could cost him his head?" "To save his life." "He knows there's only one option: confess." "I want to help the Party." "But I have nothing to confess." "You're not permitted to mention the Party!" "And don't talk to him like that." "He's not a comrade but a traitor." "Get out." "The Party abandons me." "Friends, comrades..." "Nobody doubts my guilt." "I reacted the same way during the Rajk trails." "What communist wouldn't be appalled?" "How to even conceive that the Party which one holds above all..." "Can force innocents to confess?" "We shall do everything to reveal your treason to the Party and the people." "Zadovsky knew of the contacts with the American spy." "He hid it because you knew about his contacts with the Gestapo." "Your friend Vales confesses to have collaborated with the British police." "You're Jewish, but you left the concentration camp alive." "Why?" "Because you collaborated with the Gestapo?" "The spy Dulles got to the Gestapo list." "That's how you were recruited." "Walk." "Every day we make a report on the co-operation of the prisoners." " Number 3225." "Present." " Louder!" "Number 3225." "Present." "What did you do?" "Why are you here?" "I don't know." "They don't let me sleep." "I haven't eaten, haven't drunk..." "I'm innocent." "Wait." "They gave orders on you." "You're a special case." "Don't tell anyone or they'll punish me." "I want to see an officer from the Party." "You're commiting a crime." "I haven't slept or eaten or drank for ten days." "Let an officer ask me specific questions and I'll answer." "You haven't slept or eaten?" "I'll look into that." "The guards do what they want here." "Ready." "Holdos is here." "Your group is complete." "All the veterans from Spain." "Here, like in Hungray, it concerns all the international brigades." "Those are the questions they asked Rajk in his trial." "It seems like you've studied his trial." "Each of Rajk's confessions uncovered more." "But you used your knowledge to hide better." "We'll do the same as the Hungarians who liquidated Rajk." "This is the resolution that proposes the condemnation  of the spy and traitor Laszio Rajk, unmasked  by our Hungarian comrades." "Whoever agrees, let him raise his hand." "There are many veterans from Spain in this trial." "Not all of us were good in Spain." "I hope the tree doesn't hide the forest." "Good." "Let's carry on." ""In my work I committed certain errors  out of carelessness." "I made contacts with Kohnova, Vesela, Pavlik and Feigl  all condemned by links with the spy Field"" "Vesela was not condemned." "He committed suicide during the trial." "Well, not Vesela then. "I accepted for my underground work  money from the American imperialists."" "That's all." "Sign." "Isn't it better like that?" "Now you may sleep." "I was unconscious." "I revoke my signature." " It was extorted." "What?" " Yes, physically!" "You think that was a confession?" "It's not even self-criticism." "I'll see that you end up signing." "Start again from the beginning!" "You'll talk." "Otherwise, we'll eliminate the entire affair!" "Go." "First your life." "Walk." "Walk!" "Tell me your life." "From the beginning." "When were you born?" " When were you born?" "!" " February 11th 1915 in Ostrava." " My father was a railway worker." " Why do they call you Gerard?" "That was my alias in the French resistance." "Resistance in a foreign country?" "You're a communist and a Jew." "The Gestapo captured you  and you escaped." "How suspicious." "Go on." "My son was born in jail." "He's called Gerard because his mother  didn't know if we'd meet again." "Don't try to elicit sympathy." "Continue!" "My father was the 5th of 8 children of a Moravian railway worker  during the Austro-Hungarian Empire." "Afterwards he went to Switzerland." "At the turn of the century he went to the United States." "He quickly learned English." "He could recite poems from Whitman, pages of Paine or Jefferson." "In New York he met my mother, another immigrant." "They went back to their country together." "He was a stretcher-bearer during the war." "In touch with Russian prisoners  he met affiliates of the Bolsheviks." "He was the first to talk to me about Rosa Luxemburg." "About the Spartakists, Lenin, the Cantonese commune." "He made me read Heinrich Heine." "My father showed me the way to the Communist Youth." "In 1930 we wanted to blow up the Ostrava town hall." "Did you do it or not?" "Last night you said otherwise to my colleague." "No." "We were fifteen." "We just wanted attention." "We only dreamt of blowing it up." "Dreamt?" "This morning you told me differently." "Three versions: one in the morning  another in the afternoon, and yet another at night." "Start again, let's see if there's a fourth." "I'm listening." "I was born in Ostrava the 11th of February..." "You said your friend Wagner disappeared in Moscow in 1935  before your trip to Spain." "The other day you said  that you knew nothing about him." "Which version am I to believe?" "Again." "I met Wagner in Moscow." "He was coming back from China..." "No!" "From the beginning." "When were you born?" "Go on, go on..." "Your father made you read Heinrish Heine?" "What else?" "Heinrich Heine." "My father showed me the way to the Communist Youth." "The Sacco-Vanzetti case interested you." "I marched with him through the streets of Ostrava." "I respected the physical courage of Bakunin  and had high regard for Kropotkin." "I knew all his writings." "But I didn't share in the fundamental ideology  of the anarchists." "An old member of the socialist faction  he was one of the founders of the city's Communist Party." "Boycotted by good society and the Jewish community  who considered him a traitor for being an atheist  and being a member of anti-religious organisations  it was hard for him to find a job." "His family didn't help him either." "Apart from his uncle Sigmund, who lectured him." "I last saw my father in the summer of 1935, in Moscow." "He was very old." "He was organising  a trip here with   with some people who were with him." "He wanted to meet my wife." "He was interested by everything." "Sometimes he asked questions  I wasn't capable of answering." "I couldn't answer them." "He didn't like everything in Moscow" "He couldn't understand some things." "But he had fulfilled his dream  of seeing the Red Square and Lenin in his mausoleum," "When I left, he was sad." "He asked when would we see each other again." "I never saw him again." "Not him, not my mother, or my brother Jean." "Nor my sister Juliette." "They all died in the camps." "We were in a room, 4 meters by 5 meters..." "A greenish grey wardrobe and a typewriter." "An empty beer mug and a cup of coffee... bread..." "Dirty traitor!" "Out!" "We'll talk later." "Let's go." "Finish this." "Bastard..." "Trotskyist bandit..." "It was in Moscow you started your dirty work." "Go on." "They are going to hang me." "Talk or we'll finish you!" "They'll make me disappear, like Wagner in Moscow." "They took my Party card." "They say I'm a Trotskyist." "They'll say I committed suicide for having too many regrets." "He committed suicide." "He couldn't face his crimes." "You're lucky." "But you still might end up hanging." "And our people will have revenge." "If the orders come from who I think, it could be dangerous." "For the moment, the comrades want you alive for the trial." "I gave the Soviet Security Advisers  the status and benefit of the diplomatic corps." "They're policemen." "Not diplomats." "We're taking advantage of their experience in Moscow." "The presence of the Soviet Advisors seemed natural to us." "It came from the principle of technical and economic aid  of the USSR to socialist countries." "The trial will be in August." "You have 5 months to confess." "In Moscow Radek had 3 months." "As you can see, we have ample time." "Comrades are disappearing every night." "There's going to be a big trial." "Confess soon or I'll sentence behind closed doors to make you hang." "They made me write down my memoirs." "They found an inconsistency in a tiny detail I'd forgotten." "Confess you are a Trotskyist!" "Confess it!" "In Moscow, in '36, I had contact  with Trotskyist spies." "You went to Spain to avoid being discovered." "Wagner had been in the Komintern for years." "He came to see me at the hotel on Gorky Street." "Because I forgot a detail, they took everything." "My papers, my card, my job, the hotel..." "It's not possible." "Stalin can't know about this." "He couldn't." "We've got him, boss." "He's started confessing." "Look at his wonderful admissions." "One sentence haunted me." ""The individual in his agony becomes guilty..." ""because he believes himself to be so."" "Look, what a wonderful statement." ""This is what I have to say about the activities of the  Trotskyist group of Brigade veterans"." "From this we can really start work." "It's your friend Tonda." "The Party clears up every misunderstanding." "Trotskyist group!" "Your friend talks!" "After three weeks without sleep or food." "He's talking." "He's confessing to everything." " It's not signed." " It's a copy!" "Like our friends did, we have to get to  the definition of a:" "'"Trotskyist Spy Organization":" "That's what he has to sign." "You will sign, too, since you're the leader." "The Party will not stand for this." "What did you do when thousands were disappearing?" "He's delirious." "What would you do in my place?" "Confess!" "Confess what?" "That I'm a spy?" "What would you do in my place, Gerard?" "Leave him." "He's at his limit." "Stalin taught that man is the most precious capital." "If he drowns, take him out of the water." "Eat." "I heard Smola say: "Leave him." "We'll carry on in a moment."" "They left me on the floor and I had a wonderful vision." "I was in Monte Carlo, where I'd never been  on a very beautiful beach." "So, the first thing I did when I got to France..." ". ." "... was to come and see this place." "The doctors advised me to for the climate." "It's good for my lungs." " You have to speak out, Gerard." " About what?" " All this." "You have to make it known." " To who?" "Write a book." "If you like, I know some publishers." " Write for who?" " For us." "The communists aren't ready to confront the truth." "They'll say you shouldn't wash your dirty linen in public." "That I'm playing the enemy's game." "They'll even say  that there's never smoke without fire, he's clearly against the Party." "It's too soon, objectively." "Even so, you should write the book." "The people from these trials are still in power." "They wouldn't allow such a book to be published." " Publish it here, in French." " No." "First it has to be there." "Such a book must emerge from the circumstances." "So, we're just going to keep quiet?" "Jean, I don't have anything to settle with anyone personally." " The big picture is the problem." " Exactly." "And the others, who will speak for the dead?" "And for us?" "Who spoke for us in '52?" "You?" "Do you remember what you said during the trials?" "We were rabid dogs, spies, Trotskyist bandits." "All my activities in France, the Party knew very well." "But no-one spoke out." "What did you do?" "Nothing." " Why?" " They would have expelled me." "Yes, ok." "But did you think them guilty or not?" "There wasn't sufficient information." "We found out about it in the 20th Congress, in 1956." "You should have known before that!" "In the bourgeois press you saw that the trials were a farce." "But you lived in a closed world, with a religious devotion to the party values." "In my opinion, your story doesn't reveal anything new." "593b 01:01:00,320 -- 01:01:03,189 Apart from the details, the mechanism of this hell." "But its existence was well-known." "A senator at the time wrote:" ""The trials of Prague remind us that hell has its own logic"." "The same words were used to justify the war in Indochina." "And in Algeria, which caused almost a million deaths." "Well, all this explains the "how"." "What about the "why"?" "Stalin eliminated the best, the most brilliant." "Stalin, who wasn't alone, was a former seminarian." "Public confession, the sinner's humiliation..." "What's more he was unimpeachable." "In '49, during the Cold War, the popular democracies weren't solid." "They came from the Soviet military victory  and not from Revolutions." "There were serious economic and social problems." "Stalin distrusted the independent socialist powers." "He distrusted Tito, who refused to replicate the Russian model of Socialism." "Tito was denounced as an imperialist agent." "Titoist became synonymous with spy." "They did the same with the word "Trotskyist"." " And?" " After the Rajk trial in Hungary  the Party accepted taking on Soviet Advisors." "I consider it to be a test of confidence." "A special work group will be formed  under the direction of our comrade advisors." "It will only answer to them, the President of the Republic  and the Secretary General of the Party." "No other branch of the Party shall oversee their activites." "After a month I was transferred again." "It was at the end of February." "No, the cars were more recent." "In '51 it was the Tatraplan with the back flap." "Finding myself in a normal jail gave me hope." "You may sleep." "If you saw yourself  you'd have a shock." "Today is March 6th." "He's refused to collaborate for the past 35 days." "The Party is informed every day about your negative attitude." "Let's start from the beginning." " I shall answer under the condition..." " What condition?" "!" "Your neck is on the line!" "You have only one option:" "Confess everything!" "Take him." "Prepare him for the interrogation." "You may sleep for 4 hours." "Take off your shirt." "Standard position!" "You must admit your guilt." "As an old member of the Party  you must submit to its judgement." "If I'm a Trotskyist spy..." "Why appeal to my feelings as a loyal communist?" "And if I am a good communist, what am I doing here?" "Commander." "The telephone." "Watch him." "That's him in the corridor?" "He looks exhausted." "It was hard on him, but he's getting out now." "And what will happen to me?" "You will work 4 or 5 years in a state farm, enough to forget all this." "Zadovsky was executed in 1954 after the rest." "We received a letter from your wife." ""It's not easy to keep a family, of course... "" ""... but I get by with the help from the Party."" "She has the right mind-set..." "She's abandoned you." "You're surprised?" "It's not the first time." "For the past two years, she's been the mistress of one of your friends." "He's here and confessed it." "Bastard!" "It's all here!" "Idiot!" "A nice lot your Trotskyist friends, eh?" "I know she's French..." "But him!" "They were found together in his office." "She was resting on his shoulder." ""In that case, were you intimate with her?"" "Answer: "We weren't intimate, just very friendly."" "Question: "Was she resting on your shoulder?"" "Answer: "Yes."" ""So you were intimate?" "That would be the word used in the dictionary."" "Answer: "Fine, then we were intimate."" "He finished by confessing she was his mistress." "What bastard made all that up?" "Guess!" "All that matters is  she has abandoned you and put herself at the disposal of the Party." " New information?" " Every day." "We have to speed up." "Send me all the documents on Gerard." "So?" "What is happening with my husband?" "You wrote many letters." "The comrades can't spend their lives reading your letters." "The secretary asked me to see you." "What do you want?" "To know what has become of him." "It's been 2 months." "It seems to me that he has been very compromised." "All this concerns him." "Is he under arrest or not?" "If he is, I have the right to know it, and why." " I'm his wife and a member of the Party." " He hasn't been found guilty." "But some shady business has to be cleared up." "His life is transparent." "I've been sharing it for the past 16 years." "You know nothing." "One day something is discovered and everything changes." " It's not the case with Gerard." " You say that because you love him." "There have always been traitors, provocateurs, policemen  in the workers' movement." "Their wives never discover them." "In '41 in your party  they had to get rid of your organisation's secretary." " Are you talking about Gitton?" " Gitton." "He had been a police informer for years." "The organisation's secretary..." "Wasn't he behaving strangely lately?" "Didn't he leave you, come back late?" "Did the Party arrest him for his private life?" "I mean isolate him..." "To teach him morals?" "I said he hasn't been found guilty." "You should go back to France with your family." "Oh yes?" "Should I be the first to condemn him?" "Why should I believe him guilty?" "Let him talk to me." "Your life won't be easy here." "It's my duty to inform you that you have to leave the radio." "Why?" "The leadership nominated me  best journalist in the French language." "It doesn't matter." "You can no longer work in official services." "You can go to a factory." "Is this a punishment?" "It's a rather vexing appreciation for the working class in power." "It's not me who decides." "In the Soviet Union this is how these matters are dealt with." "Mum, they are taking our things away." "I couldn't stop them." "What are they doing?" "Dad, your paper." " What's happening?" " Minister's orders." "You must vacate the house." "You'll be given another." "Where?" "Here." "It could be worse." "You can put the children here." " Who is this lady?" " A friend." "Her brother is with daddy." "We are going to work together." "Is her brother in prison with daddy?" " Who told you that?" " Everyone says it at school." " Are you Londonova?" " Yes." "Do you know my husband?" "I've heard of him." "Some comrades I know were with him." "I'm looking for work." "I need it urgently." "I don't know how to do anything." "It doesn't matter." "We'll teach you." "And you?" "I found a place at Autorenova." "Good." "Right next door." "You'll be neighbours." "If you want you can start at the end of the month." "I'd like to." "Thanks." " We'd like to be together." " If it's possible." "I'll see what we can do." "Come on, sit down." " They fled because of me." " No, no..." "Yes, they did." "Happens all the time." "I'm used to it." "Did you hear?" "They arrested the Secretary General of the Party." "Who knows where they'll stop." "I wrote to him about Gerard." " He never got the letter." " Now it's over." "With this arrest, everything will be sorted out." " What did your paper say?" " That he's responsible for the arrests." "Gerard's included." "To hide his corrupt economic policies  he set out on a purge of all those who were against them." "I know them..." "If you knew how they persecuted me..." "You'll see." "Gerard will be freed soon." "He was the chief editor of the Party's paper." "A few weeks later, he was arrested, confessed  and was one of the 14 accused of conspiracy against the State  condemned and executed." "There he is." "I hope you enjoy him." "Sit down." "Sit down, sit down." "In 6 months you have worn out 12 inquisitors." "You even ended up irritating the commander." "But don't worry." "It doesn't matter." "We shall start from..." "The beginning." "We have many more men." "And more importantly, a lot of time." "All that's necessary for you to confess." "A year or more, if it's necessary." "I have 5 months to make you confess." "As you can see, I'm in no hurry." "You can't imagine the fun that awaits you." "Put these on." "Stand up, please." "Walk." "Walk." "I later learned that Kohoutek, in the old days  during the Nazi occupation, had been a police commissary  in charge of the anticommunist repression." ""I established contact with Noel Field in Geneva in 1947"." " Sign, please." " The Party knows that." "I wrote a report." "Well, all the better." "Sign it." "The Party already knows it." ""For these meetings... "" ""..." "Noel Field paid me the sum of... "" "How much was it?" "Not "for these meetings", but "during these meetings"" "It was to pay for health expenses." "The Party knew and authorised it." "Who said otherwise?" "How much were you given?" "I can't remember..." "It was five years ago." "It wasn't for contacts he gave me the money." "I caught tuberculosis at the concentration camp!" "The Party knew of Field's health services for deportees!" "Go on." "How much did Field give you?" "300 Swiss Francs?" "More?" "Less?" " More" " How much?" "Double, or more." "Face the wall." "You said 800 Francs?" "Now we are getting to the facts." "That's what I want." ""In 1947... "" "Come closer." ""Noel Field paid me the sum..."" ""... of 800 Swiss Francs"" "Sign, please." " But the Party knows..." " Go on." "Szony, condemned to death at the Rajk trial, received only 300 Francs." " But mine..." "... were for health expenses, I know." "Nobody is saying otherwise." ""In 1947, in Switzerland... "" ""..." "I was in contact with the American spy, Noel Field"" "Sign here." "No, in 1947 I didn't know that Field was a spy." "Is Noel Field an American spy?" "Yes..." "Did the Rajk trial not establish that Field was an American spy?" "Yes..." "This resolution voted for the Party condemns the traitor Rajk." "Did you sign this resolution?" "Yes." " To cover yourself up..." " No!" "Did the Rajk trial not establish that Field was a spy in 1947?" "Yes but, in 1947, we didn't know he was a spy." "Let's say that in 1947 you were in contact with  a spy unmasked in 1949?" "Say that then." ""In 1947, in Switzerland..." ""..." "I was in contact with the American spy, Noel Field"" "Yes, but in 1947 I couldn't know what was to be discovered in '49." "No one could have known in 1947 that Field was a spy." "Good." "Very good." "Let's consider each fact objectively." "Later we shall consider the subjective aspects." "Noel Field was an American spy." "You were in contact with him." "I did it because..." " What kind of contact did you have?" " I did it because..." "Spying." "Espionage contacts." " No, nothing like it." " Admit it." "No, I was sick and had no money..." "So I contacted Field's health service." "I'm not a social worker." "How did you establish your spy contacts with Field?" "It wasn't spying." "You've signed..." ""In 1947, in Switzerland..." ""I was in contact with the American spy, Noel Field"" ""In 1947, Noel Field paid me the sum of 800 Swiss Francs"." "Consider the facts." "Why would an American spy pay for the health expenses of a communist officer?" "We are just listing the facts, I repeat:" "The subjective aspects  will be dealt with later." "Right." ""In 1947 I was in contact with Noel Field, who was a spy."" "I summarised it in the most favourable way for you." ""and as I was in contact with him..." "I am objectively guilty of being in contact with spys." "At that time, Field gave me 800 Swiss francs"." "Right." "If you would sign..." "I have taken out the subjective elements." "Excuse me." "Here, too." "For the translation." "For our comrade advisors." "Ah, I almost forgot..." "I have a letter from your wife for you." "Afterwards you can sleep for a while." "Standard position." "Sit down." "The chief forgot to make you sign this little addition." ""Given that the veterans of the Brigades recognise being  Trotskyists and traitors, being in charge of them  puts me on the same level, objectively"." "Sign." "Afterwards you can write to your family." ""In the Communist Youth I had already worked  under the leadership of Smirkovsky  whose Trotskyist past  is well-known"." " I never said that." " Didn't you work with Smirkovsky?" "Yes, but I never said that he was a Trotskyist." "He said it himself." " Don't you recognise his signature?" " No." "Well, it's his." "You're only confirming his confession." "We are convinced you were a Trotskyist..." "... before going to Spain." " Where did you get that from?" "In 1936, you brought Wagner to your hotel in Moscow  A Trotskyist expelled from the Party." "You talked." "You were sceptical about the Moscow trials." "I have to include something about it in the questioning." "Come closer." ""In Moscow, I lived in a hotel full of Trotskyists"." "As did the President of the Republic  and the Secretary General." "They lived in the same hotel." "Precisely." "The former Secretary General of the Party  is here." "Do not build up your hopes." "It's no excuse." "To the contrary, it proves that they appointed you to important posts  to take power for the benefit of the American imperialists." " It's you who says that?" " No, he will say it." "And you will confirm it." "You've already started saying it." "I will never sign any of this." "Yes, you will." "Like all the others." "Do you think the Party arrested the Secretary lightly?" "The secretary wrote to the Englishman, Zilliacus." "His letters went by diplomatic post  Through your service." "How many letters?" " Zilliacus is from the peace movement." " He was an agent  of the intelligence Service." "Add: "I declare having received and sent... "" " How many letters?" "Four, five?" " No, two." "Five." "I'm going to do the translation." "You'll sign after." "Put it back on." "And walk." "Walk!" "Translated." "Now you can sign it." "Here." "Afterwards you can go to sleep." " Wait." "It's not the same." " It's a copy." " No it's not the same!" " It is, you're tired." " No, it's not a copy." " Yes, it is." "You can sleep." "According to declarations you signed, and to testimonies  you denounced the Central Committee to the Gestapo  thus indirectly causing the execution of Fucik." "Testimonies?" "What's this, another dirty trick?" "You've signed:" ""I organised the return of Klecan by procuring him false papers"." "You say that Klecan was in your Trotskyist group  and identify yourself as in charge of them." " I followed instructions..." " Sit down." "I followed instructions." "Klecan was in France." "We took him out of jail and got him false papers..." "So that he could re-enter the country." "Did Klecan denounce Fucik and the Central Committee to the Gestapo?" "Klecan didn't talk." "How do you know, were you present?" " It was said..." " There's no proof." "While your Trotskyist group says that you ordered Klecan to denounce the Committee." " But Klecan..." " Don't argue." "We have testimonies." "What about the Central Committee?" "I put it in the interrogation of Rejistin, who's just signed it." "Here." "Put these on." ""In Spain I had more esteem for the anarchist leaders..." "... than for those of the Party"." " I won't sign that." "In Spain I admired leaders  such as La Pasionaria, Durruti." "Walk." "Walk, I said!" "We've been stuck on this for days." "I've even had to delay my trip." " During your anarchist activities." " I never had anarchist activities." "Yes, you did." "You wanted to blow up the town hall." "I was 15." "The age were tendencies are crystallised." "Anyway, it's a formality." "The cuffs." "We cannot try you for that." "It's just an administrative question." "The Party can condemn you severely with  little material or lightly, with a lot." "Your only hope is to surrender yourself completely to the Party." "Good." "Now I can go on holiday." "I won't let you ruin it." ""In Albacete, at the HQ of the Brigades..." " I met the Titoist Dapchevitch"." " No." "I'm reading from your previous declarations." "No." "Not only did I meet Dapchevitch But also Luigi Longo..." "..." "Paglietta, Marti..." " Face the wall!" " We haven't got to them, yet." " I never said the word "Titoist"" "It's not a word, it's a political qualification." "A concept that defines our enemies." "But in '37 in Spain they were only Yugoslav communists." " Not Titoists." " And you got to Vice minister?" "You don't know the basics of dialectics." "You must judge the past in  the light of the current truths of the Party." "Do you know what Titoism is?" "Say it, sir, say it!" "Listen, I approved the denunciation of Titoism." "Don't talk about your approval!" "Dapchevitch is a Titoist." "Because he's a Minister of Tito's." "You're waiting for daylight?" "You won't sleep before you sign." " Good morning." " How were your holidays?" " They did me good." " Great, we need you." "Here things are dragging." "Still splitting hairs." "It's obvious he's Jewish." "How are you?" "You did well in telling your wife  to go back to France." "It's the best she can do." "Did you see her?" "Didn't she write to you?" "Sit down, sit down." "The leadership of the Party has asked for a hearing  that brings together all this and reflects your activities." "The advisors prepared the declaration to save time." " But... will they hang me?" " No, of course not." "The hearing won't go to court." "It's internal." "Your co-defendants have already signed theirs." "Believe me." "Theirs are much more serious." ""In 1947, I got in contact with Field, the well-known American agent  in return for the information I gave him  he gave me 800 Swiss Francs"." "In return for what information?" "But that's impossible!" "The Party approved the wording." "Be like him." "Show yourself to be a good communist." "By signing that I'm a Trotskyist spy?" "It's because you're still a communist that you accept your mistakes." "Confessions are the highest form of self-criticism." "And self-criticism is the principal virtue of communists." "They asked for corrections." "Your friend Hadju has had Trotskyist replaced by Zionist." "He's a Jew, not a Zionist." "We are in a popular democracy." ""Jew" is an insult." " We'll write "Zionist"." " It's a political qualification." "In the USSR the word "Jew" is banned." "They use "Hebrew"." "Then put "Hebrew"." "Zionist is not at all the same." ""Hebrew" doesn't sound right." "We'll write "Zionist"." "It's the order." "Let's carry on." "Wait." "This is the prosecution paper." "Afterwards we shall write the defence, dictated by yourself." "There was never a defence paper." "After hearing "Trotskyist", "Titoist", "bourgeois'" for so long..." "Words start to lose meaning." "If you asked me to write:" ""My son Michel is a Trotskyist", I would have signed." "I had only one way out: suicide." "I attempted it." "Twice." "And yet you're still a communist." "I can't understand it." "It's a faith." "They are believers who dislike the church." "Which one?" "There are many." "God is already dead." " Today we can be communists." " And what happened to Field?" "In '55 he reappeared in Hungary." "They freed and rehabilitated him." "He's still there." "Didn't want to come back to the West." "But what was he?" "An American agent?" "A Russian agent?" " Maybe one day he'll write about it." " But why did they choose him?" "Soon after the Spanish Civil War he directed aid  to refugees in Marseille and Geneva." "He met many communists in Central Europe." "He helped them." "And he was still in touch with Alan Dulle." "Who directed an American information network in Switzerland." "In the war against Hitler, the USSR and the USA were allies." "Then when the Cold War came the US fired Field  because he knew too many communists." "And the Soviets made him look like he was an American agent." "So, you're in your twentieth month of interrogation." "Learn this by heart:" "questions and answers." "Take him back." "Put your blindfold on." "Question: "Did you confess to leading a plot against the State?"" ""Yes, I didn't hide anything during the proceedings." "I admit to my participation in the conspiracy against the State..."" "Say your lines when he finishes talking." "Just like we rehearsed." " There you are." " He knows his lines." " Take that off." "You don't look good." "How often are you outside?" " Never, for the past 21 months." " What do you mean, never?" "At least it's nearly over." "It wasn't always easy." "Put it on." "Now you'll face your leader and accomplices." "Come on." "The Party asked for a report on your behaviour." "Take the blindfold off." "Sit down." "I travelled often to the Popular Democracies  and had contacts with Domoulka in Poland  and in Yugoslavia with Tito and his fascists." "... in Hungary with Rajk, in Bulgaria with Kosto." "We ended up together again, all of us fallen into the same trap." "The Secretary General, who ordered the first arrests  and the Security Minister, who prepared the trial  with the Soviet advisors." "I formed the group of conspirators against the State  with many enemies." "Later I found out the Secretary General had attempted suicide  hurling himself against the walls." "To stop him they padded his cell." "Another time, he locked the door and tried to hang himself." "They broke down the door just in time." "His saviour was given a medal." "... men who lived in the West before and during the war." "That's how I was introduced to the General Secretariat  the bourgeois nationalist Bederich Geminder, in Security, J. Pavel and Karel Svab," "... Why deny it here?" "Nobody will know." "The Party asked for a report on your behaviour." "If you deny it, there'll be a closed-doors trial." "You've got to survive." "At a public trial you can tell the truth." "You signed all this." "I was part of a conspiracy against the State  led by the Secretary General of the Party." "I was in charge of a Trotskyist group in the Ministry  of Foreign Affairs..." "You did well to stick to the script." "It means you can proceed to a public trial." "The Secretary General wants to limit your role to..." "The ideological direction of the group." "In Moscow, Bukharin did the same, but it cost him his head." "Well..." "Now we have to learn all this." "Don't worry." "He'll be there." "Solicitor: "How many espionage letters  did you deliver to Zilliacus?"" "Answer  Two, maybe five..." "I didn't keep count." "Solicitor: "be more precise." "Ten letters have been mentioned"" "Answer..." "I admit, maybe there were ten." "Your injection." "It's calcium." "Warms you up, right?" "You're as white as chalk." "We'll have to fix that." "I was guided by my bourgeois instinct to have a career..." "No." "I was guided by my bourgeois instinct to have a career..." "No. "Selfish"." ""Bourgeois and selfish"." "Oh..." ""I was Guided by my bourgeois and selfish instinct..." "To have a career and assure my personal well being..." "In the West I became a cosmopolitan..." "And joined the ranks of the bourgeoisie"." "That's it!" "Good." "No." "It's not good at all." "The lines are fine." "But no-one will believe you're guilty if you speak like that." "You've got to put across your sincerity." "You don't know how lucky you are with this trial." "You're not the main defendant." "The injection?" " Yes, only five to go." " Good." "It gives him colour." "Take that off." "Dr. Novak, President of the State Tribunal." " Have you ever been convicted?" " Yes, twice." "In the years '31, '32." "And in Paris in 1942." " For what reasons?" " The first, for communist activities." "The second, for participating in the struggle against the Nazis." "There's no need to write that down." "Do you have a lawyer?" " No." "I don't want one." " The law requires it." "The State shall provide you with one." "Dr. Ruzick, your lawyer." "Despite the seriousness of your case, I see the State takes good care of you." " Spoils you even." " It's fattening me." "Like a turkey." " What?" " Serious case, you were saying...?" "You risk capital punishment, which you deserve." "It's the penalty contemplated by law." "You will only receive a lighter sentence  if you plead guilty and behave well." ""What was your role in the conspiracy?"" ""I established spy contacts as a member of the conspiracy  of the Secretary General with the British agent Zilliacus." "Moreover I was in contact with the American spy Noel Field  and I gave him secret information."" "I have spoken with the attorney." "He believes your case is the least serious." "Fifteen years tops." "Like I said:" "this trial is a lucky break for you." "Behave well." "If you don't, your family will suffer." "The security minister wanted to see you." "Go on..." "In the name of the Party and the President of the Republic." "I appeal to you to keep to the Tribunal's proceedings." "You would be doing a great favour to the Party." "The global situation is dire." "There is risk of war." "The Party hopes you are guided by its interests." "That would be taken into account." "Don't forget who protects your family." "They will suffer the consequences of this trial." "The night before the trial they brought me a new suit from home" "Don't forget the tie." " These?" " Yes." " Is he going to be let out soon?" " I don't know, madam" "Is he coming home?" "They took away my brother's things as well." "Maybe they will come back tonight" "To school, kids." "Later we found out those in charge  of getting rid of the ashes of the executed  found their way blocked by snow  and decided to throw them on the roadside." "And the drivers laughed." "First time I take 14 people in my Tatraplan." "Us 3 and 11 more in bags." "The court is in session." "I address the accused." "Was the time limit before your apperance in court respected?" "Yes." "Proceed with reading the indictment." "Followed by the cross examination." "Make use of your right to express your opinion." "I remind you that you may defend yourselves as you see fit." "I hand over proceedings to the comrade General Attorney." "The investigation led by the Ministry of Security  established that the North American imperialists  to ensure their control over the world, just after WWII," "organized a conspiracy against the peace of the peoples." "In the popular democracies they created underground groups of corrupt agents." "I accuse you all of being traitors  Trotskyists, Titoists, Zionists  bourgeois nationalists and enemies of the people  for creating a conspiracy organisation  accountable to the American imperialists  led by western intelligence agencies  to break up the people's alliance and friendship with the Soviet Union  to overthrow the regime  to halt the building of Socialism  and restore capitalism." "Even though the conspirators and their leader may have  risen to important positions in the Party and the State  they did not manage, like Tito in Yugoslavia, to take power  nor achieve their criminal goal." "Thanks to our loyalty  to the Soviet Union, the conspiracy was defeated." "For that, the accused:  Ex-Secretary General of the Party, of Jewish origin  ex-Head of Foreign Affairs of the Party  of Jewish origin  ex-Head of the Economy, of Jewish origin  Ex-Junior Secretary General of the Party, Czech  ex-Minister Foreign Affairs, Slovak  ex-Vice minister of National Defence, of Jewish origin..." "Ex-Vice minister of Security, Czech, of Jewish origin  the two Vice ministers of Foreign Affairs  of Jewish origin  the two Vice ministers of Foreign Trade." "... of Jewish origin..." "Ex-Vice minister of Finance, of Jewish origin  Ex-Secretary of the Regional Committee of the Party, Jewish  Ex-Chief Editor of the Party Newspaper, Jewish..." "I accuse you all of..." "During the 3 hours that the accusations lasted  an absolute silence reigned in the room." "They filmed us." "We were a show for the cinema." "Court adjourned." "Stay seated." "Cigarettes." "Everything ok?" "Everything ok?" "Cigarettes?" "Take a drag." "It's a political trial." "We don't need executions." " Open your mouth." "They're vitamins." "Swallow." "Do you need anything?" "The President of the Republic wishes everything to go smoothly." "It all depends on you." "Have they all had coffee?" " You alright?" " Fine." "I've got news." "There will be no capital punishment." "The party does not want heads  just a high-level political trial." "If there are 1 or 2 death sentences they will be a mere formality." "If anyone tries anything before the court..." "Their microphone will be turned off and they won't be heard." "And in will come the witnesses." "It's mine up next." "The court is in session." "We continue with the live transmission of the  trial of the conspiracy against the State." "You will listen to the testimony of the former Vice minister of Security." "The American spy Field  exposed by the trials in Hungary  who formed a spy ring in our country." "How did you keep this secret?" "As we could not suppress his testimony, I ordered  that the investigation be carried out formally." "I told the accused to prepare their defence." "Here." "There's a change in the script." "It's necessary to learn it." "You're next." "Let's go through it again." " I know it..." " Come on." ""What led you to work as an enemy of the Republic?"" "I grew up in a bourgeois family, without contact with the working masses..." " Do you want an interpreter?" " No." "Do you understand the questions and believe yourself able to answer?" "Yes." " What school did you go to?" " The German School in Ostrava." "What language do you know best?" "German." "How well do you know it?" "I haven't spoken it for a long time." "In reality you don't know any language well." "Typical cosmopolitan." "What was your attitude towards the working class?" "I was..." "I was indifferent..." "Did you understand the question?" "What was your attitude towards the working class?" "My wife wrote to the President of the Republic  to express her anguish following my confession." "We shall read the letter of Londonova  the wife of one of the traitors on trial  adressed to the President of the Republic." "To president Gottwald, soon after the arrest of my husband  with all that I had shared in his life  I believed he was a victim of traitors  that hid their criminal activities inside the Party." "After reading the charges and the confessions..." "My hopes faded." "My husband was no victim..." "But a traitor of his Party and country." "My suffering is great." "I'm human." "But as a communist it heartens me  that the conspiracy has been uncovered for the good of the nation." "I stand with honest people in claiming a just punishment for those on trial." "Since I don't manage the factory anymore, I get to leave earlier." "It's because of me." "If you hadn't hired me..." "No, it wasn't that." "I'm not from a working background..." "And I was in the West during the war." "Listen, I don't blame you." "I know you're sincere." "But that letter was a mistake." "I wrote it to the President, not the radio." " But you heard him, didn't you?" "He pleaded guilty." " I heard too much." "The testimonies, accusations, confessions..." "It's all false." "They say they learned it all by heart." "I don't buy that trial." "Why would they hold a trial if it wasn't true?" " There are regulations..." " Exactly." "The cross-examination was filled with anti-Semitism." "It's inadmissable." "Veterans become traitors." "I don't understand." "I don't agree." "I'm deciding to leave the Party." "Do you know what could happen if you do?" "Why would a man like him confess?" "I hope one day he'll tell us." "When I heard the charges, I thought back  to the role of Reising during the occupation." "I came to the conclusion that he denounced Julius Fuchik  and the Clandestine Central Committee to the Gestapo." "The story of the CCC?" "Forget it." "We put it in Reising's confession." "He signed it." "I'd like to read you the last words of Fuchik." ""He who lived for the future and who fell for its beauty  is a figure cast in stone." "He who wanted, with the dust of the past, to build a barricade  against the revolution, is rotten wood  though his shoulders may be covered in stripes." "Man" " I loved you so much..." "Be careful!"" "The statement of Fuchikova, the widow of the resistance hero." "... Left an impression that the judges won't easily forget." "Before that, the chief conspirator declared:" ""The conspiracy had hundreds of members." "The judges will have their work cut out for them"." "I'll go on, comrade." "Three benches are sagging  under the weight of the crimes of these treacherous vampires." "Our citizens should see the leader." "His pink face, his thick Judas eyebrows." "He's buried under the weight of his crimes." "He's a dead man." "For a dog, a dog's death." "The court is in session." "In 1939, I established a spy ring in London." " Who with?" " Emmanuel Troska, American agent." "I gave him information on the Communist Party..." " And its aims in England." " Go on." "Moreover, I confess I made contact with agent Hanz  of the intelligence service." "He summoned me in December '44  to an interview at the Ministry of Information  in the British Ministry of Information  for my subversive action  in our country  in my country, once it was liberated." "Go back to your seat!" "The court is adjourned." "You wanted to ridicule justice with your imperialist stunt." "It will cost you your head." "Traitor!" "Don't leave him." "He put his neck on the line with what he did." "He did it on purpose." "He was always of bad character." "He wants to make fun of the trial." "It'll cost him dearly." "The court is in session." "All rise." "Listen to the sentencing." "The court listened from the 20th to the 27th of November 1952... to the trial of the criminal conspiracy against the State." "In the name of the Republic, the following  are condemned to death..." "In the name of the Republic, the following are condemned  to life imprisonment  to life imprisonment..." "I allow the defendants some time to reflect." "You may consult your lawyers to decide if you accept your sentence." "The court reserves the right to clarify its decision." "The court is adjourned." "Where's my lawyer?" "They're not here!" "Where are our lawyers?" "Where's my lawyer?" "I want to see my lawyer." "Call him." "Where's my lawyer?" "I want to appeal!" "I'm going to appeal too." "Yes, now I'm going to appeal." " Me too." " We have to." "Here are your lawyers." "A great many trials ask for the death penalty." "The international situation is getting worse." "We're on the edge of world war." "The Party needs you." "If you appeal, the prosecution will do the same." "You'll be hanged." "Petitions from all over the country call for your death." "If you behave and accept the decision of the court  you will be pardoned." "The Party needs a trial, not your heads." "The court is in session." "I address the accused." "Do you accept your sentence?" "I accept my sentence and renounce my right to appeal." "I accept my sentence and renounce my right to appeal." "I accept my sentence." "I accept my sentence." "I accept my sentence." " I accept." " I accept." " I accept." " I accept." " I accept." " I accept." " I accept." " I accept." " I accept." " I accept my sentence." "I accept my sentence  and renounce my right to appeal." "In '63 we finished our political rehabilitation." "Though some were never rehabilitated." "Why did nobody deny it in front of the journalists?" "The communists wouldn't have believed us." "Only the enemy would have cheered victory." "In '63 they freed and rehabilitated you?" "No, they freed me in '56, but it was more complicated than that." "One year after the death of Stalin, they executed Beria:" "The Minister of Security in the Soviet Union." "Along with some of the officers who organised the trial." "In '55 a commission re-examineed the proceedings." "Kohoutek and his band were arrested for abusing their power." "The survivors are still in jail." "Two years later, they gave amnesty to Kohoutek." ". ." "While many of his victims from other trials..." "Stayed in jail for 2 or 3 more years." "Don't you remember me?" "What happened to us, sir?" "Do you understand any of it?" "In '56, when they freed you..." "They put me in jail!" "No one knows what is true and what isn't anymore." "But those who gave the orders are still in power." "I followed orders." "They had microphones to survey me." "I knew it!" "Can I buy you a beer?" "Is your wife well?" "I heard that after the trial, once she learned you were innocent..." "She did a lot for you, here and in France" "And your health?" "Better?" "You've got to take care." "As for me, I found a quiet job." "They'll never get me again." "Ever." "I'm happy for you, sir." "The story of Kohoutek..." "Do you want to keep it in?" "What happened to us, sir?" "Do you understand any of it?" "I didn't sleep all night." " Are you really publishing it?" " I'm not." "The Czechoslovak Writers' Union are doing the publishing." " They're waiting for the manuscripts" " The global situation isn't clear." "The imperialist forces are loose." "You risk pouring-!" "Water on the enemies' mill?" "I know, I know, but you're with me, right?" "I'm not alone." "The Party agrees  and demands the truth, despite the difficulties." "I hope we don't regret this." "Many will say" "Many things." "They'll say: "In your place, I wouldn't have confessed"." "They'll ask what I'm doing alive." "Let them speak." "But, I'm not alone." "I'm with the Party, which is in agreement." "The conservatives lost the leadership  of the Czechoslovak Communist Party in early 1968." "A new period began." "The people spoke out after years of silence and passivity  indifference, spitefulness." "It was proved: socialism is to the freedom of the masses  what a fish is to water." "Then the same day that I arrived in Prague..." "I lived through the invasion of the country by 600,000 men." "And 6,000 tanks from the armies of the Warsaw Pact." "Lenin, wake up." "They have all gone mad." "Subtitles edited by Anna.L.Clover."