Czech forum thrives on lack of plan, shuns power

PRAGUE, Czechoslovakia The only requirement for Civic Forummembership, the opposition group's spokesman Jiri Dienstbier said theother day, is a desire to be rid of the constitutional "leading role"of any political party.

By that standard, the entire, Communist-dominated CzechoslovakParliament became eligible when it voted unanimously this week toamend this country's basic law to eliminate the clause that for 41years has given the Communists a monopoly on power here.

That the vote came only 10 days after Civic Forum declared itsexistence is testimony to the effectiveness of what has, virtuallyovernight, become Eastern Europe's fastest-growing and most talkedabout democratic movement.

It's an amorphous movement, and its participants are not onlyproud of it but determined to keep it that way.

They talk about their objective being "not to be very specificabout our objectives." It keeps everybody on their toes,particularly the representatives of the system they're determined tooverthrow.

They claim to be political amateurs, but their tactics so farhave won nothing but praise, even from grudging admirers among theirCommunist Party adversaries.

"They're using the same strategies against us as we used in1948," when the Communists took over Czechoslovakia, a party activistmused to a diplomatic acquaintance the other day.

Not quite. As far as anyone knows, Civic Forum has not shotanyone yet.

When he announced its formation at a press conference in hisliving room barely 10 days ago, dissident playwright Vaclav Havelsaid that "perhaps something like New Forum in East Germany candevelop out of this," though he quickly added that he probably wasbeing too optimistic. In fact, the Czechoslovak group has farsurpassed its East German counterpart.

While in the broadest sense both Civic Forum and Poland'sSolidarity are social movements, Czechoslovak activists stronglyreject comparison with Poland.

"Solidarity had to struggle not for 10 days, but for 10 years,"Dienstbier said. "And today there are problems whether Solidarity isa trade union or a political party. This would certainly representan obstacle to our main objective, which is to establish a realplurality of forces."

Civic Forum's leaders genuinely appear uninterested in politicalroles for themselves. Their concern is to see the society energized.

Its members scold people who ask them what to do. "We are notyour superior body," the group said in a statement addressed toburgeoning local Civic Forum groups. "You yourselves know what mustbe done today and what should be done tomorrow."