Monument to ’68 invasion “legitimiser” Bil’ak immediately vandalised

A monument to senior Communist Vasil Bil’ak, who sent a letter of invitation to the USSR that was used to justify the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, was vandalised just hours after being unveiled in his Slovak hometown of Krajná Bystrá, the news site SME.sk reported. A Slovak artist and an associate daubed red paint on a bust of Bil’ak along with the word sviňa (pig/bastard). Bil’ak, who died a year ago, was charged with treason in 1991 but the case was dropped for lack of evidence.

Author: Ian Willoughby