Anna Hašková

“A protocol about our group was written, they interrogated me, and confronted me with what Josef Fric had confessed to them, they executed him, and he told them in what places he had been, so they arrested all of us, they tried us in Prague, there were about sixteen of us, out of which three of us were underage including the brother of this Josef. The trial was held on June 26th, but many bad and nasty things happened even before the court started; in detention it was not easy, a woman was put in our cell, she came from Loket... We could not trust anybody, with Mrs. Hájková we talked a lot, but this woman was very inquisitive from the beginning, one could not trust her. The little window was very high, we could go out only twice a week, walking around the courtyard, but I could not see my mom, only then during the court trial.”

“The institute was intended for our re-education, but they did not succeed, for to re-educate us properly they could not have done it by force, that hurt us very much. For political education, we had Pittner from Slovakia, he later became a minister. Then there were various clubs, there was a recitation club, a choir club, a rhythmic dance club.”

“It is obvious that one did not know anything, and the female wardens there, you cannot even... They treated us terribly. For me, the worst experience was when they led us to the showers. Because the way it was there, I knew it from the housing in Germany, common washing rooms and common showers, women from more cells were made to shower all together, but it never happened that I would meet my mother there, they were careful about that. But when I saw that we had to run naked in the hallway! Till that time I have never seen anyone naked, because in that time, there was still some sense of shame about it within people, so for me, it was very... When I recall that two of those wardens, plus a male warden stood there… they turned the water on, I had nothing to wash myself with, they only gave me a simple flax towel and a common soap... I remember they would for example turn on hot water, and as soon as we were covered with lather, they would turn it off, and leave only cold water running, they were really making fun of us by humiliating us in this way, and it is terrible, everytime I remember that.”

“We were put in a cell. The worst thing about it was that we had to undress. My parents felt ashamed. The way they treated us, one can never forget that. My father was more than sixty, and my mother was sixteen years younger. They put us in a cell, we had to stand facing the wall, I think my dad was led away first, we were not even in touch with the other people, in Pankrác it was imposible to keep in contact with somebody. I was then in a cell with one lady, her name was Mrs. Hájková. I like to remember her, because she was almost like my mom. That is why I say that there was something about the people I met there. There was something to it, they were awfully nice. We would have done everything we could for the other´s sake. I remember that this Mrs. Hájková would separate the crust from the slices of bread we received, and she would give them to me, telling me it contained vitamins, for me to eat. As a minor, I had no special privileges. The food was same for everybody, but it was very bad, I still remember it... Two times I was led for interrogation at night – they wanted to get me involved with another group in the Svitavy region, about which I had absolutely no clue. The interrogation is something I would not wish anybody to experience, it was done mostly at night, I don´t even want to think of it again.”

“...in the cell we were not allowed to lay down or sit down, we had to keep moving, we were only walking. I don´t know when the curfew was. Another rule was that lights were on during the night and you were not allowed to keep your hands under the blanket, you had to place them on the blanket. Then, I got a toothache. The tooth could have been saved; in the evening, blindfolded, of course, I was led to a doctor by two wardens, through several doors with bars... and this doctor also thought it would have been a pity to lose the tooth... I still remember the caressing touch doctor gave me.”

“But eventually I was transferred to Zámrsk, to an institution for young delinquents. I could not believe it, because the guys had built it, the block for us girls, because the institution for girls in Lnáře was closing down, and therefore the girls from Lnáře were also moved there. There, the rooms had no bars anymore, there were curtains in the windows... I thought it was some trap, that it was not even possible, because it was completely shocking for me, and for the guard who escorted me there as well – he began treating me differently. In the Pankrác prison, one was a mere number, only a number, but in Zámrsk they called you by your name, they even used the polite style when speaking to you. After our arrival to Zámrsk we were all brought together and it was determined who would work where. We were told we could work in a tailor´s shop, a carpenter´s shop, in agriculture, or as gardeners. I was left with gardening. There were seven of us girls assigned to work in horticulture, and an older man was put in charge of us. This man was more understanding. But even in Zámrsk, there were careerists, who only strove for higher positions. The worst of them was Ježek, we don’t know anything about him or his whereabouts... I began to like the gardening work… I thought, this is what I will enjoy doing.”