Jaroslav Žilák

Born on 15 October 1927, he was a political prisoner convicted in a fabricated political trial in the 1950s. His father and mother were convicted along with him. He is an active member of the Confederation of Political Prisoners of Slovakia, whose honorary chairman was A. Srholec.

After completing his studies in 1934, Jaroslav Žilák began working in his father's shop, where he was responsible for administration. He was an ardent democrat, and in 1947 he joined the Young Democrats' branch in Rimavská Sobota. In 1949 his father, Ján Žilák, temporarily suspended his business but retained his trade licence. The gradual liquidation of private businesses began, and with it the Žilák family lost their shop. In 1950 Jaroslav Žilák and his father were arrested and, by court decision, convicted of black-market trading, endangering supplies and failing to pay tax on the shop, despite having submitted proof of payment.

He was imprisoned in Leopoldov, Piešťany and Handlová, where he worked in a mine and nearly lost his life. For failing to pay a fine imposed by the court, he began serving a sentence in the Regional Prison in Nitra, from which he was subsequently transferred to Ilava. As his father Ján was also held in this prison, he was moved to Pankrác in Prague, where he met the convicted Gustáv Husák. In 1956 Mr Žilák was transferred to Bytíz in the Příbram area. After his release from prison, Jaroslav returned to his family, and in 1956 he married Elena, with whom he has two children, Jaroslav and Jarmila. The Žilák family house in Trnava was confiscated under Action B, and Mr Žilák sought the return of the confiscated house, which he eventually achieved after many vicissitudes. Jaroslav and his wife ultimately decided to move to Bratislava. Despite his past as a political prisoner, his diligence and skill enabled him to find work.

In 1989 Mr Žilák applied for rehabilitation on his own behalf and on behalf of his late father. The court, however, rejected his application. He tried to appeal, but the unavailability of documents relating to his and his father's trial stood in his way. In an effort to prove the injustice, he wrote to the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court and the Prosecutor General's Office, since they had been convicted under a law that was no longer in force in 1951. Mr Jaroslav Žilák was eventually compensated for the years of his life lost in prison.

He currently lives with his wife in his house in Trnava. He continues to take an interest in politics and in events at home and around the world. He is secretary of the Trnava regional branch of the Confederation of Political Prisoners of Slovakia.

The President of the Trnava Self-Governing Region confers the Anton Srholec Freedom Award on Jaroslav Žilák for his persistent struggle for justice and his unbroken longing for freedom. Despite the burden of great injustice inflicted by the regime, he did not give in to his difficult circumstances; he is a model of perseverance for us all and proof that it is worth fighting for the truth.