Brief biography of the witness
Karel Hájek was born in January 1920 in Olomouc. His original name was Kuneš Heim. After the occupation and the establishment of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, he managed to escape and joined a group of illegal immigrants to British Palestine. At that time, the Gestapo and the Protectorate authorities still allowed Jews to emigrate, provided, of course, that they left behind all their possessions.
When, after considerable hardship, he finally arrived in the Middle East, he immediately enlisted in the Czechoslovak army and was sent to Agde, France, where Czechoslovak troops were being trained. When France surrendered, he had to flee again. With false documents, he hid in Marseille, and was briefly interned in the Vernet concentration camp.
In 1942, before the deportations to his death began, he escaped from the camp and joined the French partisans, still under a false identity. After the liberation of southern France, he joined a Czechoslovak unit operating within the British Army.
After the war he returned briefly to Olomouc, but settled in Prague, the memories too painful.
The interview was filmed on 23 October 1996 in Prague.
Think about the content of Mr. Hajek's testimony. How does he describe his identity? Why do you think his parents gave him the name Kuneš in 1920? Answer in the box below this text.