Petr Sobíšek

* 1944

  • „Nám tady vtloukali do hlavy Dědu Mráze, jolku a 7. listopad. Ale náš státní svátek? [myšlen 28. říjen] Když dnes mluvím s nějakým komunistou, ptám se: ‚Víš, že jste nám zrušili státní svátek? Vezmi si kalendář před rokem 1989, tam je napsáno pracovní den. A to vy jste udělali? Na den založení státu?‘ Já mám doma pověšen obraz Masaryka… Ale oni by zapřeli i založení státu!“

  • „Nastoupil jsem trest a muzika byla zase se mnou. Když byl silvestr 1971 až 72 [má na mysli 1970 až 71], na Borech chtěli vězňům uspořádat zábavu v kinosále. V té době tam byl Antonín Gondolán. Tonda Gondolán hrál na basovou kytaru, spolupracoval se Štaidlem… A s ním jsme společně odehráli silvestra. Já jsem hrál na bicí, on na basu, ale ostatní spoluhráče už si nepamatuji. Vězni hráli vězňům na silvestra na Borech.“

  • „Že něco udělám, bylo moje osobní rozhodnutí. Dvacátého srpna [pamětník má na mysli 19. 8. 1970] jsme dělali na plynárně tzv. fenolové tanky, které se vytáčely do výšky po rolnách. A já jsem vzal mastek a napsal jsem na ně: ‚Vzpomeňte výročí okupace ČSSR SSSR.‘ Velkými písmeny, která byla vidět z dálky. Druhý den pracujeme, jako by se nechumelilo, a najednou přišla ochranka asi ze Staliňáku [Stalinovy závody, dnes Chemické závody.] a říkala: ‚Co to má znamenat?‘ A abychom to smazali. Já říkám: ‚Proč se to bude mazat? Zítra je výročí, nic se mazat nebude!‘ Tlačili na nás, protože nevěděli, kdo to psal. Pak řekli: ‚Za hodinu přijedeme, tak ať je to pryč!‘ a odjeli. Když se vrátili, ta půlmetrová písmena tam byla pořád. ‚Tak vy jste to nesmazali?!‘ Já říkám: ‚Ne, nesmazali.‘ Zase odjeli. Asi si ale zjistili, jaká jsme firma. Najednou k nám volá kolega a říká: ‚Máte jít za vedoucím montérem.‘ Tak jsme se sebrali a říkali si: ‚Co nám chtějí?‘ V montérkách, jak jsme byli, jsme šli přes vrátnici a tam stáli… teď už nevím, jestli StB. Prostě policie. ‚Vy jste z Chemontu Brno?‘ – ‚Ano.‘ – ‚Tak půjdete s námi!‘ Já byl aktivní a ptám se: ‚A kam? My jsme v montérkách.‘ – ‚Jdete k výslechu do Mostu.‘ – ‚Ale já mám na parkovišti auto.‘ – ‚Vaše auto nás nezajímá.‘“

  • „Když přišel vedoucí údržby, nějaký pan Říha, a potřeboval lidi na přesčas nebo na noční, pokaždé se mu hlásilo pět šest dobrovolníků. ‚Kluci, děkuju, mně stačí jen dva nebo tři.‘ Ti lidé měli opravdu kladný vztah k práci a na přesčasy se hlásili. Když jsem se ale v roce 1972 na plynárnu vrátil a přišel vedoucí: ‚Kluci, potřebuju dva kluky na noční, máme havárii,‘ nikdo se nehlásil. Za Husáka to bylo: ‚Já musím do školky‘, ‚Já mám nemocnou manželku.‘ Bylo vidět, jak národ přestal fungovat.“

  • “I heard even in the halls, that they´ve beaten up somebody there. For example they were throwing out of the window and they knew which one. There were fourteen people in the cell so you could hear that they were rushing in the hallway, opened a cell and dragged someone out beating him with a baton for throwing messages. That was quite loud. That was quite common. We communicated over the wall using the Morse code: ‚Who is new, who is not new.‘ The first days in custody everyone asks: ‚What have you got?‘ When I said: ‚I wrote the occupation anniversary.‘ ‚They will let you go.‘ All of those fourteen they were petty criminals, thieves or spongers, but there was Petr Týle from Česká Lípa, that his guns were unfit and he was getting ready for the anniversary. I was in contact with him there. I got a list of people, who I was with in Litoměřice and I would like to meet them. Usually they were just petty criminals.”

  • “When I got in trouble in Košice, they escorted me to Štúrov and back again to Košice. Then finally, so that they did not have to escort, they took my mattress and sent me to a single room; for example when someone was out for too long. So I went to play at the wedding and came two days later and the major, I can still see him as if it was yesterday: ‚Sobíšek, where have you been?‘ I say: ‚At the wedding, I played at a civil wedding. – And I did not know that there was a wedding for two or three days here. In Ústí the wedding only takes from Saturday until the next morning, and that´s it. ´He locked me up immediately. As I had this musical stuff I was punished for that during serving in the army.”

  • “And then it was getting released somehow, that we could play any music even rockandroll. Especially then, when I came back from the army, some English names, you know them from the LPs, they were the Greenhorns, the Rangers, but then during the presidency of Husák that had to be renamed. The same applied when we were playing, so we could not have just a list of English songs, for example from the Beatles. The band conductor also risked, when he wrote down Vejvoda, Kmoch, the committee went through the list and agreed. Surely it was getting freer in 1960s: 1964, 1965, 1966 and 1967. The peak of course was in 1968.”

  • Full recordings
  • 1

    Děčín, 24.10.2017

    (audio)
    duration: 
    media recorded in project Stories of 20th Century
  • 2

    Ústí nad Labem, 04.11.2021

    (audio)
    duration: 
    media recorded in project Stories of 20th Century
Full recordings are available only for logged users.

Freedom should come first

Petr Sobíšek in an archive picture
Petr Sobíšek in an archive picture
photo: Archiv pamětníka Petra Sobíška

Petr Sobíšek was born on 1 October, 1944 in Český Brod in the manual worker family. Later the family moved to Hynčice near Krnov and finally to Ústí nad Labem. His father worked in an Association for chemical and metallurgic production. The family lived in Předlice, where the witness attended eight-year basic school. After graduation he apprenticed in the North-Bohemian armature, where he also continued working. In December 1966 he started work in the pressure gas station Úžín and later in Chemické závody, n. p. Záluží (supply company of Chemont Brno), where on the night before the occasion, he wrote two signs remembering the second anniversary of the Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia on 19 August, 1970. Then he was arrested and kept in custody in Litoměřice. In October 1970 he was sentenced to eight months unconditionally served in prison. The regional court in Ústí nad Labem confirmed the sentence in November 1970. He served his sentence in Pilsen prison na Borech. He was released on condition in February 1971. Then he worked in the pressure gas station Úžín and after moving to Děčín he worked as a school keeper in the basic school. He is married with four daughters. Currently he lives in Boletice nad Labem (a part of statutory town of Děčín) and he is a member of Děčín branch of Confederation of political prisoners of the Czech Republic.