Prague - Following the controversial Mašín Brothers and Milan Paumer who were awarded by Czech PM Mirek Topolánek in the past few days, PM Topolánek decided also to decorate Ivan Medek, musicologist who was denied a career as one by the former regime only to become a voice of freedom as an exiled radio journalist.
Ivan Medek was granted the award for devoting his whole life to fighting for freedom.
Never afraid to speak out
"I respect Mr. Ivan Medek very much because he gave up of everything he liked, he did and what he studied, only for the sake of freedom. He gave up his profession of a musician and music review writer only to work as a ambulance driver, dish washer and clockroom worker," said PM Mirek Topolánek.
According to Topolánek, Ivan Medek is the type of man who has never feared to speak out, be it under communism or after its fall in November 1989.
"Mr. Medek is a man of principles and his views have always been consistent regardless the fact if someone liked them or not," said Topolánek.
Painters and poets
The Medek´s family was of no little significance in the Czech and Czechoslovak history; Ivan´s father Rudolf was a poet and a general in legendary Czechoslovak legions in Russia.
His grandfather Antonín Slavíček was a significant painter and Ivan´s brother Mikoláš also painted but his works were suppressed by the Communists and Mikoláš was fully rehabilitated only after the Velvet Revolution.
Ivan Medek was born 13 July 1925 in Prague. He became a signatory of Charter 77, an informal civic manifesto calling on the communist regime to respect basic human rights, because of which he was eventually forced to leave the country.
In 1978 Ivan Medek emigrated to Austria where he worked for broadcasting stations like Radio Free Europe and BBC. For 15 years he was addressing Czechs on the Voice of America.
After his return from the forced exile, Ivan Medek became advisor to the Minister of Culture and Head of the Federal Council for Radio and Television Broadcast.
Between 1993 and 1998 Mr. Medek worked as a chancellor and office manager for President Václav Havel.
He is also an author of a memoir book called Thank you, I am fine.
Along the decoration of the Mašín Brothers and Milan Paumer, Medek´s award is allegedly to spark a country-wide debate about the third resistance movement, which has been rather taboo up until now.
