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CZECHS FEAR COMMUNISTS
WILL SEIZE CONTROL
__ . .
'Benes To Make
; Position Clear
| (Daily Mirror World Cables)
IONDON, Tuesday.— Prague, capital of Czechoslovakia,
was living in fear fast night that Moscow-controlled
| Communists might seize the country by force unless given
\ full governing powers by President Benes.
This is a result of. sudden moves against the non-
| Communist parties yesterday, when armed police
$ occupied the National Socialist Party headquarters,
1 and were posted outside Parliament House, radio
stations and foreign embassies.
j IT'ARLIER the Communist
| J Minister for the Interior
i (Vaclav Nosek) issued Prague
1 police with sub-machine guns
! and carbines.
I Czechoslovakia is virtually
| cut off from the outside world,
j which is watching developments
; | closely.
j Dr. Benes, who last week
refused to accept the resigna-
1 tions of 12 non-Communist
i Ministers in the Cabinet, said
j that he would make his posi-
j tion clear in a broadcast to
day.
1 As tension continued to in-
I crease, the Minister for the In-
I I terior announced that all exist-
i ing Czech passports had been
j cancelled.
I Crowds, ignoring the snow
1 and bitter cold, pressed against
1 the windows of newspaper of-
! flees trying to read the latest
details in the crisis.
j The British Govern ment
itakes a serious view of develop
ments. but like all other inter-
ested governments, is with
holding comment until fuller
details are available.
A Foreign Offlce spokesman's
only comment was: "Develop
ments are following a familiar
pattern."
Communists are making the
most of their opportunities.
It is expected that they will
try to make bargains with the
other parties only if it will serve
their own ends.
Among speakers protesting
last night against the armed
search of the National Social
ist Party offices was the sec
retary (Dr. Krajina), who had
wrongly been reported as ar
rested.
The man in custody is Dr.
Majanka, Chief of the Crimin
al Department of the Ministry
of Justice, who led the inquiry
into the attempt to kill three
members of Cabinet last sum
mer by sending them bomb-
letters.
Orders were received ay
every factory council in I
Czechoslovakia yesterday giv
ing instructions regarding the
one-hour general strike today.
The orders stressed, "Don't
tolerate strike breakers," and
"keep, calm."
Following the claim by the
Minister for the Interior that
the National Socialists had
planned a military coup, secu
rity measures are being in
creased throughout the coun
try.
Telephone and teleprinter
communications between
Prague and Bratislava have
been cut and frontier pa- !
trols have been increased. I
Thousands of people throng
ed Wenceslas Square in the |
centre of Prague during the j
afternoon and cheered stu- j
dents who shouted: "Come with !
Us and see Benes. Down with j
the Communists." |
Dr. Benes assured the dele- I
ation of students that a Par- |
liamentary Government would
be formed.
I Treason €Mmre Wmrrmnt
SEVERAL National Socialist
i Party members were ar
rested following Communist
?(ccusations of an armed rebel-
ion -plot against the Govern
ment.
j Police armed with tommy-
guns and rifles are patrolling
Prague streets.
I Parliament, which was- sup
posed to meet today, has been
postponed indefinitely.
! Dr. Benes conferred with
| the 12 Ministers who tried to
i resign last week, but no
statement was issued as to
Jany decision reached.
i The most direct action so far
Pas been the throwing out by
Communists of the non-Com -
?iunist members of the Council
f Ministers.
I A warrant was issued on a
<?harge of treason for the arrest
f Jan Ursiny. a former Slovak
Democrat Vice-Premier, who
Resigned late last year after his
Secretary was arrested.
J The People's Party stated
that the party's Youth Leader
(Felix Uhl) had been arrested.
<:3 Late last night, after a day
long meeting, the left-wing So
cial Democrats decided to re
gain in the Government and
;i
begin negotiations with the
Communists for Cabinet posts
and to support the Trade Union
Congress proposals for further
nationalisation and other Com
munist Party aims, and to par
take in the formation of a new
action committee.
It was the first definite vic
tory of the Communist Premier
(Mr. Gottwald).
Commenting on the position,
the Washington Post said that
if Czech Communists were pre-
pared to seize power, it was
probable that the professional
revolutionaries trained , in Mos- i ;
ccw had already infiltrated the j
country.
In that case the Czech
crisis would instantly become
a world crisis of "the first J
magnitude, it added.
$