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ARAB STUDENTS INSIDE THE SOVIET BLOC : A CASE STUDY ON CZECHOSLOVAKIA DURING THE 1950S AND 60S
European Scientific Journal June 2014 /SPECIAL/ edition vol.2 ISSN: 1857 - 7881 (Print) e
ARAB STUDENTS INSIDE THE SOVIET BLOC : A CASE STUDY ON CZECHOSLOVAKIA DURING THE 1950S AND 60S
Daniela Hannova 0
MA 0
0 Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Arts, Department of World History
The paper focuses on the phenomenon of students from the so-called less developed countries in communist Czechoslovakia, specifically Arab students in the 50s and 60s of the twentieth century. The first part of the paper focuses on a broader political and social context. Because it was the first wave of Arab scholarship holders supported by the Czechoslovak government to arrive at the end of the 50s, it is crucial to describe the shape of negotiations between the Czechoslovak and Arab sides. The second part of the paper emphasizes cultural agreements and types of studying in Czechoslovakia. Arriving abroad, preparatory language courses, everyday life of Arab students in Czechoslovakia and the conflicts they had faced are analyzed in the following subchapters. The problem of Arab student adaptation to the new environment and troubles caused by cultural differences are illuminated in the framework of these thematic sections. The final part of the paper outlines the Arab absolvents' fates and their contacts with Czechoslovakia after ending their university studies and returning to their homeland.
Students; universities; Czechoslovakia after 1948; Communism; everyday life; cultural history
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Introduction
The phenomenon of students from the so-called less developed countries in the Soviet
Bloc is a part of history, where a lot of topics and possible methodological approaches meet.
Beside the postwar course of divided Europe we have the reality of colonial decease in the
Third World. Both The Eastern Bloc and The West, obsessed with their Cold War rivalry
were trying to create a map colored according to their own interests. The postcolonial
countries balanced their options between the two big players. In search of a new national
identity these countries supported the idea of modernization and a boost of the level of
education. From there on we come to the topic of modernization as a western concept and
observe the importance of university education as a value for newly established systems. We
move methodologically from political history towards cultural aspects and social sciences.
Thanks to which we gain a whole new point of view at the social history of communist
countries. Our main focus is to present the everyday quality of Arab student life in socialist
Czechoslovakia.
I
Political and social context
The Czech foreign policy followed the Soviet one in all causes including the Middle
East. The short episode of Czechoslovakian military support for the newly established state of
Israel in 1948 characterizes the postwar tactics of Soviet foreign policy. The following shift
towards the Arab republics in the second half of 1950s was yet another move in the same
strategy. In this sense, the Soviet Union and its puppets signed many economic, military,
cultural or scientific agreements from 1955. (table 1) The signing of the well known contract
between Egypt and Czechoslovakia in 1955, guaranteeing Egypt army supplies created a
precedent and made an example for similar agreements signed with other Arab republics.
Cultural agreements followed not long after. In the 1960s we can detect an annoyed tone from
Soviet side toward Arab states. The result of these expensive contracts did not live up to
Soviet expectations.
This cooperation surely meant a start of a totally new relationship between the Soviet
bloc and the Middle East. Army supplies were included in the contract and completed by
military training which took place in Czechoslovakia. This could last from short term training
up to two years spent in the Military Academy in Brno. At the same time experts from the
Soviet bloc were present in Arab states: In 1956 there were 127 Czechoslovakians and 215
Russian advisers present in Egypt.47 This army support was not the only export. The
construction of entire factory complexes, particularly in Egypt, Syria and Iraq was not less
important. This was an important business for Czechoslovakia, which was to be
instrumentalized for propaganda purposes. Archive documents from this period show many
references about official military delegations in Czechoslovakia, mainly from Egypt.
Meanwhile there were Arab artistic groups visiting the International film festival in Karlovy
Vary and a football match between Dukla Prague and the Syrian military team in Aleppo.48
These examples show the wide variety of cooperation and ways how could Soviet bloc strove
to gain strategic positions in the Arab world. The focus of this paper will not lie on the failure
of these intentions. However, the Czechoslovakian perception of these visits should be
stressed well as the resulting presence of Arab students and soldiers.
By the 20th century the Czechoslovak (...truncated)