International Students' Day 2013 ****************************************************************************************** * International Students' Day 2013 ****************************************************************************************** On Sunday 17 November, members of Charles University in Prague gathered to commemorate Int Students' Day. 17 November, also known as Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day, is a sta Czech Republic. It remembers two important moments in Czech history in 1939 and 1989. In March 1939, Nazi forces occupied the Czech lands, establishing the Protectorate of Bohe On 28 October 1939, the anniversary of the founding of the Czechoslovak state, Czechs in P protest against the Nazi occupation. German soldiers ended the demonstrations with force, of Charles University's Medical Faculty, Jan Opletal, was shot during the struggle. He lat wounds and his funeral, held on November 15, was widely attended by students and sparked a protest. In retaliation, on November 17, the Nazis forcibly closed all Czech universities they also sent hundreds of students to concentration camps, and executed 9 student leaders November 17 was chosen to mark International Students' Day by the International Students' On 17 November 1989, students of Prague were involved in a mass demonstration, celebrating Students' Day and remembering the 50th anniversary of Opletal's death. A large number of p continued to march down the streets of Prague after the demonstration's official end, unti stopped and beaten by riot police on Národní třída. The demonstration and its brutal repre sparked a series of protests and demonstrations over the following weeks; and rumours that died on November 17, although false, popularised anti-Communist sentiment among the Czech the end of 1989, the harsh Communist regime had been replaced, and Czechoslovakia began th democracy. An official observation of the date took place outside of the Hlávka Hall of Residence, ne Square, where Opletal lived as a student. Wreaths were lain on the sidewalk, and official including Jiří Rusnok, outgoing Czech Prime Minister, spoke about the importance of observ remembrance. "The death of Jan Opletal and the events of 17 November are of timeless signi said. "It is therefore our duty to pass this message on to those generations born to freed not been tested as have previous generations. It is only in this way that we can preserve Professor Václav Pavlíček, head of the Hlávka Foundation, and Professor Václav Havlíček, t Czech Technical University, were some of the other officials who spoke outside of the dorm described students as a constant element in the evolution of democracy, speaking about the some moments of Czech history. Professor Václav Hampl, Rector of Charles University in Prague, also attended the event. H speech by thanking those who took a stand against the Nazis 74 years ago, despite the dang their actions would put them in. "However much our times are, fortunately, far from as dra times marked by both anniversaries, I see a lesson for the present day being that the valu education and science is just as great for freedom and the development of society as a who greater, than it was in the past, " Hampl stated. Hampl and Havlíček also spoke and laid wreaths at a separate observation, organised by stu Street, at the site where Opletal was shot. A minute's silence was also held, to pay furth memory of Opletal. Natalie James is an undergraduate history student at U literature, politics, and current affairs. She joined likeminded Erasmus students.