Věra Kordíková

„Tomu se říkalo Domeček Hrůzy a byl tam nějakej vyšetřovatel a ten se jmenoval Pergl. Potom byl taky souzenej a pak měl nějakej průšvih, takže na to i doplatil. A ten byl zlej, to tatínek dával ty onuce a ty vám byly tak krvavý, to bylo hrozný…to bylo hrozný…víte ale, člověk…lidi přežijou všechno. A já musím říct, že můj tatínek byl takovej, že si nikdy nestěžoval. Nebo, nevracel se k tomu, aby říkal, že máme nenávidět socialismus nebo demokracii, nebo co to tehdy vládlo. Neovlivňoval nás, protože já jsem tehdy chodila hrdě do SSM, Svazu socialistický mládeže, protože nám to nařídili ve škole, no tak jsme se angažovali. Hráli jsme volejbal, prožívali jsme život úplně normální. A tatínek nikdy neříkal: ‚Tam nechoď, to nesmíš.‘ Že nám ublížili. Nikdy to neřekl. Byl strašně hodnej a vlastně pocházel z vesnice a jenom díky tomu řídícímu a tý podpory finanční, který se mu dostalo, tak vlastně vystudoval.“

„Ono to tam působilo spíš tak tísnivě, protože každej čekal na to, že uvidí, možná a nebo že aspoň bude moct dát tomu partnerovi nějaký jídlo, takže…já si pamatuju, že ty lidi se mezi sebou vůbec nebavili. Že jsme tam stáli…my jsme tam jezdili s maminkou, protože to jsme už jezdili z toho Jičína. To už jsme byli v tom Jičíně, takže jsme museli z toho Jičína jet. Že jsme tam pak stáli s maminkou a maminka vždycky plakala, že ty vonuce…onuce se tomu říkalo…že to bylo krvavý a tatínek říkal, potom, vlastně, že…museli třeba chodit celou noc, aby je donutili k přiznání. A jednou taky, si pamatuju, že říkal mamince, že musí přiznat nějakou vinu, že mu to poradil jeden z těch, kteří tam byli s ním vyšetřovaní a že mu říkal…ne s ním, už před nimi, že se potkali a že mu říkal: ‚Prosím tě Josef, přiznej něco, musíš něco přiznat, nebo odsud nevyjdeš.‘ Takže vlastně nevím, co přiznal, ale pravda je, že potom v tom šedesátým devátým se prokázalo, že to bylo všechno vynucený a vymyšlený.“

“On 18 March 1949 I was arrested by members of the fifth department of military HQ by order of General [Bedřich - ed.] Reicin. I was immediately handcuffed and taken to headquarter. Interrogated regarding some anti-state organisation of Lieutenant Colonel [Josef] Gonic and [Vilém] Sok. Later discovered it was a fake military organisation. I knew nothing. I was taken to the Little House of Horrors in Loreta for violent interrogation. This consisted of beatings and doing so-called kilometres. Two chains placed from the hands to the feet, Corporal Pergl or a soldier with a stick behind the back, and walking like that the whole night through, a pre-filled protocol brought in the morning. Confess. To what, I still do not know. That lasted two weeks. I continued to refuse the made-up lie. During one visit, a lawyer - a member of the investigation committee - an acquaintance, since deceased, said: ‘Please, sign it, otherwise you won’t be getting out of here alive.’ So I signed, I don’t even know what. All my fellow detainees went through the same. I remember Colonel Forman, Ulrich, Klimt, Kotiar, Stodola, Šimeček, Šádek, Ženíšek. None of them are alive any more. Colonel Ulrich of headquarters endured the violent interrogations the longest. After signing, we were all taken to Pankrác. Two months later, they sent some of us to the state court, a few of us including myself were stood before a military court. Major Dr Lord presided. I rejected the charges on the grounds that it was a violent interrogation. The two assessors, old colonels, refused to judge the case. New assessors were appointed, one of them was General Slabý. And I was sentenced to two years of high-security prison. After spending a year in the Little House of Horrors, I was taken with others to Opava. On 18 March 1951 I was released. But there were two men waiting for me behind the doors of prison, they handcuffed me and took me to a labour camp in Brno. I spent another thirteen months there, when I was suddenly released - after the arrest of General Reicin in the Slánský anti-state group.”

“I remember the Germans more [than the American soldiers - ed.]. Because when the Germans were fleeing from the Americans, they took one village [Všepadly - ed.], and the Americans found them there. The Germans had taken up position in a farm that belonged to my dad’s brother. The farm had a very big yard. They built their field kitchen in it and baked one cake after the other. They gorged themselves. They had supplies, chocolate. As children, we hovered around, and we didn’t say no to some cake either. So I have more memories of the German cooks who baked there than the Americans. Because the latter just passed through, I think, they didn’t stay around in the village. Perhaps they left a few people here and there. Everyone welcomed them. But these Germans waited for them there, so they wouldn’t fall into the hands of the Russians.”

“They locked Dad up [in Prague - ed.] and forced us out of our flat. Soldiers came with an army truck, they loaded us in and took us to Jičín. That was a place where we had no friends or anything. Nonetheless, the headmaster of the school welcomed me quite nicely. Although he was recommended not to let me study any more, he defended me because I was a dutiful, hard-working little girl with glasses. So I graduated [from business academy - ed.] with honours. Mum had to find a job because we were left without means. We were one of the few who could use our fixed deposits. Those were deposits saved under Germany and locked in 1945. But because we had no other means of income, they let us withdraw some of the money, just to stay alive.”