Exhibitions Prepared by the Nation´s Memory Institute in Bratislava

August 1968: Hopes and Disenchantment

The topical exhibition called ´August 1968: Hopes and Disenchantment´ organised by the Nation´s Memory Institute in Bratislava presents a complex view on the causes, course and consequences of the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact troops in August 1968. It aims to bring the events of this dramatic year closer to the wide public in a broader chronological context and with geopolitical interconnections. The exhibition underlines the role Slovakia played in the democratization process in 1968 and the participation of Slovak representatives in the key events of that time. The exhibition is aimed at the wide public, especially at students who often have very few opportunities to get acquainted with significant historic milestones of modern Slovak history, to which 1968 surely belongs.

The individual panels present the world divided into the democratic West and the communist East, the rule of the communist regime from the bloody fifties through the process of de-Stalinization and the events preceding Bratislava spring until 1968. Visitors can learn what ´Socialism with a human face' meant, what was the reaction of the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries to it, who collaborated with the communists, what was the course of the military invasion and what were its consequences like. There are special panels dedicated to the invasion victims, the issue of federalization and the position of August 1968 in the memory of the Slovak nation. The overall image of the exhibition is complemented by little-known photos of the occupation troops taken in various places throughout Slovakia.

https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/vystavy-v-slovenskom-rozhlase-pripominaju-invaziu-vojsk-varsavskej-zmluvy/
https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/vernisaz-vystavy-august-1968-nadeje-a-vytriezvenia/

Candle Manifestation on 25^th March 1988

This is the first exhibition dedicated to the Candle Manifestation that provides a complex view. It shows not only the course of the manifestation and the brutal security forces crackdown, but also a broader perspective of the time in which it took place, including social context. The exhibition depicts the social and political situation in the second half of the 1980s, as well as the persecutions of the Catholic Church by the communist regime. There are special panels dealing with the activities of Slovak emigration and of the clandestine church which was the core of dissent in Slovakia. Attention is paid also to those who organised the Candle Manifestation and the visitor can also get acquainted with the faces of those representatives of the communist regime who played a part in crushing the manifestation. On top of all the texts the visitors can also see interesting exhibits from that time - for example collections of samizdat or smuggled literature, a typewriter that was used to type samizdat documents/pieces of literature and information broadcasted by the Voice of America, the manifesto of Swiss Slovaks used at their demonstration in April 1988, medals used to award members of the National Security Corps, or a member uniform of an Anti-riot National Security Corps Unit with a helmet, shield and a rubber truncheon. The exhibition also has an audio-visual part, where the visitors can see testimonies of leading persons involved in the manifestation, police records concerning its attacks against manifestation participants and the film Sviečková manifestácia (Candle Manifestation) created by the Nation´s Memory Institute.

https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/vystavu-o-svieckovej-manifestacii-25-marca-1988-si-mozete-pozriet-na-univerzite-komenskeho/
https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/vystava-svieckova-manifestacia-25--marca-1988/

Top Secret! History of State Security in Slovakia

The exhibition called ´TOP SECRET!´ is the very first complex exhibition on the State Security (ŠtB). It is made with both professionals and laics in mind. For those who experienced the methods of the State Security first hand, but also those who were behind countless destroyed human destinies, either as communist functionaries or secret police members. The exhibition aims to remind the younger generations of the true value of freedom and democracy. It is a contribution to the discussion about our recent past and a warning of the traps of totalitarian regimes and non-democratic practices - as the one who does not know his past is doomed to repeat it. The exhibition describes the origin, organisation structure, personal staff and activities of the State Security in the years 1945 - 1989 in Slovakia. With the help of archive documents, photos, contemporary objects and professional texts it brings details on the political situation in the country after WW2, the beginnings and organisation of the State Security in Slovakia, its working methods, the development of its staff and network of agents, as well as the cooperation between the State Security and the Soviet KGB and other secret services of Eastern European countries. Visitors will also learn about the work of the State Security in the so-called normalization period and during the events of November 1989. Its brutal methods are shown on examples of concrete actions carried out by the State Security. Visitors can listen to (and watch) the testimonies of ŠtB victims recorded by the Nation´s Memory Institute (ÚPN) which serve as a memento of ŠtB's practices. The faces of high ranking functionaries of the ŠtB appear here, the leaders who managed its operation. Documentary films made by the NMI are also a part of the exhibition. Contemporary instruction films that used to serve as educational aid to ŠtB members and authentic records from the monitoring of demonstrating citizens in 1969 and 1989 and the interventions against them provide an interesting perspective on the internal functioning of security units.

https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/prisne-tajne--vystava-o-dejinach-stb-na-slovensku/

Anti-Communist Resistance

The exhibition presents the issue of the anti-communist resistance in Slovakia for the first time in such a detailed way. Using texts and pictures, as well as audio-visual components, it presents various types of resistance and rebellion of citizens against the totalitarian communist regime throughout its development, from the moment it seized power in the second half of the 40-ties until its fall in November 1989. At the exhibition, the visitors can get acquainted with various forms of resistance and rebellion against the Communist regime - the activities of resistance groups in the fifties, the production and distribution of samizdat literature, the smuggling of forbidden books from abroad, the activities of the clandestine church and also methods used by the communist regime, including the State Security, in its struggle against the resistance.

https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/vystava-protikomunisticky-odboj-na-slovensku/
https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/vernisaz-vystavy-protikomunisticky-odboj-na-slovensku-v-rajeckych-tepliciach/
https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/otvorenie-vystavy-%E2%80%9Eprotikomunisticky-odboj-na-slovensku%E2%80%9C-v-trencine/

Be Careful When Taking Pictures! August 1968

This exhibition presents the invasion in August 1968 through photographs, documents and examples of contemporary press. The heart of the exhibition lies in authentic photos taken on 21st August 1968 in the streets of towns in Slovakia occupied by enemy tanks and Warsaw Pact troops. Besides the photos from the Archive of the Nation´s Memory Institute, visitors can also see photos and documents of the East German secret police Stasi related to 21st August 1968, especially protest posters and graffiti writings in the former German Democratic Republic.

https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/otvorenie-vystavy-prazska-jar-pod-hradom-matusa-caka/

10 Years of Nation´s Memory Institute

This exhibition presents the first decade of the Nation´s Memory Institute's existence. It provides information on the conditions the Institute was created in, on its bodies, changes in its organisational structure, documents administered by the Institute, its scientific projects, organised conferences, audio-visual works and international cooperation.

https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/ustav-pamati-naroda-si-pripomenie-10--vyrocie-svojho-zalozenia/

European Network of Official Authorities in Charge of Secret Police Files

The exhibition presents the European Network of Official Authorities in Charge of Secret Police Files encompassing partner institutions from seven Central European and Eastern European countries. Its panels provide brief information on the activities of all the individual institutions associated in this network.

https://www.upn.gov.sk/sk/vystava-o-cinnosti-upn-a-europskej-sieti-uradov-spravujucich-pisomnosti-tajnej-policie/