We live so that the present times were considered a good history in future
Josef Škrábek was born on 23rd April, 1928 in Valeč near u Karlovy Vary was the only son in a mixed Czech and German marriage. In his native Valeč he attended German kindergarten and later a Czech minority one-class school. Since 1936 he continued studying at the Czech elementary school in Karlovy Vary, where the family moved. Following Munchen he was under pressure of the German majority and with his mother and granny returned to Valeč, but even there were not good conditions for a mixed family, so they left to Prague. In Prague-Hostivař the family got a rental apartment and the father got a job. After finishing the elementary school the witness continued to so call town (secondary) school and beginning of studies at the academy of commerce in Vinohrady. In 1944 the witness was deployed to force labout in a company Kameníček in Hostivař, where he learnt to work with lathe. In March 1945 he was deployed to trench work near Olomouc, from where he ran home with his friends at the end of April. During the days of May he joined the Prague Uprising. The family then moved to Valeč and he continued studying at he academy of commerce in Karlovy Vary, where he graduated in 1948. Against his own will forced by his father and environment he joined the communist party. In 1948 he began studying the High school of political and economic sciences. For his opinion disagreements and low engagement he was fired from the party and was not allowed to finish studies in a standard manner. He got married, did a two-year obligatory military service and worked as a planner in a repair service of airplane engines in Malešice and as an economist in a company Valivá ložiska in Dolní Měcholupy. In 1958 he was arrested along with his friends and sentenced for convicted of conspiracy to treason and imprisoned until amnesty in 1960. After release with a condition of ten years he could only work in manual professions. He got trained a locksmith. In 1968 - 1969 he worked as an editor of the magazine Obroda and during normalisation times in an advertising section of the publishing Lidová demokracie - Vyšehrad. After the velvet revolution in 1989 he worked in an international organisation Verga and in 1994 - 2000 in real estates. He raised two daughters, has four grandchildren, and lives with his wife in Prague. He is still publically active, writes articles, essays and published five books regarding an issue of Czech and German relations.