Abstract:

The right to information is a fundamental right without which the existence of a genuine democratic establishment is not possible. It allows us to form an opinion on the whole society. Information is also called the oxygen of democracy. Access to truthful, timely and complete information is a prerequisite for making our decisions meaningful. However, our contribution examines the real right to information and public awareness in the period of non-freedom - in the years 1948 to 1989. From the point of view of systematic approach, the contribution is divided into three parts, in addition to the introduction and conclusion. Each of them pays attention to a certain period in the period of non-freedom. We have used several scientific methods for elaboration of the paper, especially description, analysis, synthesis, deduction, logic or comparison. The result of the paper is an evaluation of the overall state of information in Czechoslovakia in the period under review. In the end, we confirm or reject the hypothesis that the right to information was effectively withdrawn in the period under review.