Dokumenty StB jako pramen poznání minulosti
Secret Police Records as a Source of Knowing the Past

Summary/Abstract: With this article, the author enters the public debate about whether the records of the former secret police of Communist Czechoslovakia (the State Security Forces or Státní bezpečnost – StB) should be made accessible and about how they can be used or misused. First, he brings in arguments to support the claims that these records cannot automatically be considered reliable and truthful. Whoever takes them to be so is ignoring the principles of criticism and interpretation used by historians when judging sources; such principles are especially important in this case. He then outlines the legislative framework for making StB documents accessible, lists the important provisions of the legislation, and points out the pitfalls they contain. On the one hand he appreciates that the Act on Making StB Files Accessible 2002 and the Archives Act 2004 are considerable steps in the right direction and have opened up a wide range of possibilities for research using these records. On the other hand, he notes that they contain serious contradictions. The wording of two subsections of the Archives Act, for example, allow for contradictory interpretations of whether sensitive private information about persons mentioned in the records is freely accessible or whether one needs the consent of the persons involved. If the relevant authorities adhere to the ‘liberal’ interpretation (which is in conflict with a provision of the Act on the Protection of Personal Data), these people, including those who may have been persecuted by the former régime, could be hurt. The author warns against the danger of discrediting people and manipulating facts owing to the irresponsible handling of sensitive personal information, and he also criticizes the growing practice of mass photocopying of StB records for private purposes, which is creating uncontrollable prerequisites for discrediting and manipulating.

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