"The worst were the beginnings in Bărăgan, when we had to build a house and work hard. I was fifteen and Jakub and Petr were older, so they helped us. We were two sisters and they were two brothers. The boys harnessed the horses and went to cut reeds. That was the worst before we had a place to stay, after that it was fine. The worst was when they put us on a pile and we had nowhere to lay our heads. We didn't know, none of us knew what was coming or where they were taking us. Everybody at the station was asking, 'Where are we going?' There were soldiers all around and it was all secret. We didn't know where they were taking us."
"The first year we were there, we had to sell the cow and horse to the old village in the fall. The man was very good to us. Every time they had something, like fish, he would come up to the village with his horse and treat us well. They didn't judge us. He told us they thought they were bringing criminals. When they unloaded us from the train, those who came with the wagon looked and wondered if we were normal people. Poor, dirty, hungry and thirsty wretches. They took pity on us."
"She says now, when they got a reward for deportation to Bărăgan. She says, 'Hey, Katka, I'll give you at least a little money.' I say to her, 'I don't need it, I've already got my pension, leave me alone.' 'But you shared your piece of bread with me.' We were like sisters, each one relying on the other, inseparable. We went to bed at night and she said: 'I'm so cold, take me under the blanket.' She was even younger than me and it was already colder in autumn... So we survived..."
Ekaterina Černíková, née Kovaříková, was born on 23 April 1936 in the village of Sfânta Elena in Banat, Romania. She grew up in a traditional farmer family of evangelical faith, which joined the Baptist community after the dissolution of the church. In June 1951, the Kovařík family, together with their relatives the Klepáčs, were deported to the Bărăgan region, where the communist regime in Romania concentrated politically unreliable people. The deportees had to leave their homes within a few hours. The authorities then dropped them off without any means in an uninhabited landscape, which they were not allowed to leave. They suffered mainly from a lack of food. Within a few months, the deportees built the settlement of Ezeru (Cacomeanca Nouă), one of the 18 newly created villages. The witness and her family members worked for state-owned enterprises and agricultural farms. Her brother Alois, who died of illness, did not survive this difficult period. He was buried in the village of Cacomeanca, where other deported families of Banat Czechs also attended the last farewell. Her sister Elisabeth left after the war on a re-emigration transport to Czechoslovakia, from where she later tried to escape back to Romania. She was sentenced to an unconditional sentence for illegally crossing the state border. In the spring of 1956, the Kovařík family returned to St. Helena and began to rebuild their farm. A year later, the witness married and, after obtaining emigration passports, the young family moved permanently to Czechoslovakia. As the witness lost her Romanian citizenship, she did not receive compensation for her deportation to Bărăgan. At the time of filming (May 2024), she lived in Cheb.
The grave of the late Alois Kovařík. Although the tombstone says the year of his death was 1955, the witness claims that her brother died in 1953 and the stone cross was not made by their father until three years after their son's death.
The grave of the late Alois Kovařík. Although the tombstone says the year of his death was 1955, the witness claims that her brother died in 1953 and the stone cross was not made by their father until three years after their son's death.
Deported from the village of Ezeru (Cacomeanca Nouă) to work for state farms. In the middle stands the witness and next to her Tina Sorescu, daughter of a deported Baptist preacher from Síkovice, 1955
Deported from the village of Ezeru (Cacomeanca Nouă) to work for state farms. In the middle stands the witness and next to her Tina Sorescu, daughter of a deported Baptist preacher from Síkovice, 1955
