The Velvet Revolution

On 17 November 1989 a group of students in Prague began demonstrating for freedom and democracy in Czechoslovakia. Thousands of people joined them and 12 days later the Communist Party gave up its power. The anniversary was marked in Prague yesterday with rather more low key celebrations than were seen in Berlin, but Vaclav Havel, the playwright who became the figurehead of the revolution and later the president of the Czech Republic, was there to retrace the steps of the first demonstrators. There is BBC footage of the celebrations here and archive film of the events in 1989 here and here. John Simpson shares his opinions here. For the local perspective, here is the Prague Post.