European Central: 30 Years After The Velvet Divorce
Often when people recall nations being split in Europe in the 1990s, the bloody war fought along ethnic lines in Yugoslavia is the first example that comes to mind. During the same time, however, Czechoslovakia also was divided, yet peacefully. This separation rightfully earned the title of Europe’s Velvet Divorce, similar to the name of the Velvet Revolution which led to the peaceful end of communism in Czechoslovakia. The separation is highly unusual as not only was not even a single shot fired, but there was also no referendum either for Czechs and Slovaks to voice their opinion on the matter. 74 years after Czechoslovakia came into existence, leaders agreed peacefully to end it. Besides the territory being divided, the national anthem was as well due to part of it being in Czech and the other part in Slovak. January 1st was the 30th anniversary of both nations becoming independent, making it an opportune moment to reflect on the Velvet Divorce.
The divorce of Czechoslovakia occurred shortly after the nation’s separation from the Soviet Bloc in 1991. Czechoslovakia needed to draft a new constitution, but this proved challenging due to disagreements between political parties along with Czechs and Slovaks. The nation was further hindered by disagreements between the Czech and Slovak premiers. The Czechs elected Václav Klaus, who was a member of Civic Forum (Občanské fórum) and led a center-right coalition. The Slovaks chose Vladimír Mečiar, a member of Public Against Violence (Verejnosť proti násiliu) which was the Slovak equivalent of Civic Forum. Despite both men being from similar political parties, the leaders had different beliefs that made it impossible to build a coalition at the federal level that would last. Mečiar and other members of Public Against Violence were very nationalist which made it impossible to select a new president after President Havel resigned. The president of the Czechoslovakian Federation was an important symbol of unity between the two nations, making it apparent that the separation was inevitable.
Both nations have done well economically after the fall of communism and have seen economic success, though both have yet to achieve economic convergence with nearby Germany or Austria. Wages in both nations increased significantly. In 2006, Czech had a median gross hourly wage of 3.56 euros which increased to 6.17 euros in 2018. In Slovakia, the median gross hourly wage was 2.52 euros and rose to 5.64 euros 12 years later. A key difference between the two nations is that Slovakia uses the euro currency meanwhile there continues to be a lot of skepticism towards the euro in the Czech Republic. Looking at a recently contentious issue in the quest for energy after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Czechia and Slovakia also both generate nuclear energy. Both nations have produced nuclear energy for decades through agreements they had with Russia, yet the Czech and Slovak governments have made it clear they are looking to end their dependence on Russia.
Despite both nations separating from each other, both treat the students of the other nation very well. Students can study at universities from either nation without having to pay tuition. More Slovak students typically study in the Czech Republic rather than Czech students in Slovakia due to Czech universities having a stronger reputation, yet nonetheless, the option is there for Czech students. This is possible due to the Czech and Slovak languages being mutually intelligible. A study on Southern and Western Slavic languages which studied Czech, Slovak, Croatian, Slovene, Polish, and Bulgarian found that Czech and Slovak were more mutually intelligible than any other language pairing between the six languages studied.
While both nations are no longer together in the same country, you can still find many examples of couples with one spouse who is Czech and the other Slovak. This differs greatly from the former Yugoslavian nations and can potentially be explained by their membership state statuses of the European Union. Both joined the EU in 2004 and joined the Schengen area in 2007. Being in the European Union ensures that Czechs and Slovak citizens have the right to live and work in the Czech Republic or Slovakia and the other 25 member states. Joining the Schengen Area meant that national borders are not a barrier to people. Passports are checked when people enter the Schengen Area rather than from within. This helps cement a close relationship between the Czech Republic and Slovakia as people can move freely.
Similar to other nations, however, relations between the Czech Republic and Slovakia are not perfect. Tensions rose when the Czech Republic temporarily closed its border with Slovakia on September 29th as a result of illegal immigration. Member states of the Schengen Area are allowed to temporarily restrict migration, yet Slovakia did not take this action lightly due to what an open relationship the two nations normally share. The dispute is still not resolved as the Slovakian government refuses to take back illegal migrants caught by the Czech government, despite this being considered reasonable under EU policy.
While two nations may have disagreements, most citizens from both countries have favorable views of their alliance. In November of 2022, 91 percent of Slovaks and 87 percent of Czechs considered themselves their closest allies. Both nations show that two nations can in fact separate peacefully and spare the violence that unfortunately typically accompanies the division of a nation. Due to each nation having its own history and values, it is unfortunately unlikely that this could easily be replicated elsewhere. The political will for a peaceful divorce has to exist in order to avoid violence.
