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The leaders of the Civic Democrats, Christian Democrats, TOP 09 and the Mayors and Independents, gathered at the grave of the leading figure of the Velvet Revolution and later president Václav Havel in Prague's Vinohrady cemetery on Sunday.

TOP 09 leader Jiří Pospíšil said that the former dissident is a symbol of the return of freedom and democracy to Czechoslovakia, and stressed that Havel was also willing to suffer imprisonment for voicing his ideas.

Aside from honouring the former president, party leaders also commented on Saturday's demonstration against Prime Minister Andrej Babiš. Civic Democrat’s leader Petr Fiala said that he does not expect Mr. Babiš to follow the demands set out by the protesters and that the only way to change the situation was through elections.

At the opening ceremony of a new exhibition on Czech and Slovak history, including the Velvet Revolution, at the National Museum on Sunday, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš gave a speech in which he called the Velvet Revolution the “most important event in modern Czech history”. He also paid tribute to the former dissident and first president of Czechoslovakia after the revolution Václav Havel, admiring his bravery during the pivotal days of 1989. He also reflected on his Communist Party membership before the Velvet Revolution, saying he was “not proud of it” and that he regretted not being as “brave and engaged” as the former president.

Mr. Babiš also expressed his “thanks and humility” towards those who were “brave enough” to go into the streets in November 1989, but also highlighted that he is the democratically elected prime minister. Yesterday, an estimated 300,000 people came onto the streets asking for him to either resign or fire his justice minister and relinquish control over his former company Agrofert, which some believe he still has based on the results of a preliminary EU audit. However, Mr. Babiš denies this and his ANO party is currently far ahead of other parties in the polls.

The prime minister went on to say that Czechs “should be proud of what they have accomplished” and that they are currently living through “the best and most free” period in their 100 year history.

Mr. Babiš also paid tribute to the Poles, saying that it should not be forgotten that they were the first to achieve free elections.

His speech was followed up by the heads of government of Slovakia, Poland and Hungary, who are also attended the event. The President of the German Bundestag Wolfgang Schäuble was also present.

On Sunday, across the country, Czech politicians and the wider public marked the 30 year anniversary since the brutal crackdown by police on protesters passing through Národní třída in Prague sparked the beginning of the end of communism through the Velvet Revolution.

Leading politicians, including the prime minister, laid down wreaths at the revolution memorial on Národní on Sunday morning. In Prague, the largest celebrations took place in the centre around Národní street and Wenceslas Square, but special programs also took place in other cities and in many of the country's leading arts institutions such as the National Museum and the National Gallery.

Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš laid down flowers at the Velvet Revolution memorial on Prague's Národní třída on Sunday morning. The act was acompanied by loud whistling and verbal disagreement from onlookers. Flowers have also been laid down by other leading politicians including Minister of Finance Alena Schillerová, Prague Mayor Zdeněk Hřib and Social Democrat leader Jan Hamáček.

The move by the prime minister was not expected. Earlier in the week he had announced that he would give his speech related to the anniversary at the opening of a special exhibition at the National Museum. His public tributes to anniversaries connected with resistance to Communist rule have been repeatedly met with scorn from onlookers in the past years, who highlight the fact that he had been listed as an agent of the Secret Police in Slovak archives.

Thirty years ago Czechs took to the streets to demonstrate for freedom and democracy, for the chance to speak their mind without reprisals, to vote in free elections and shape their own future. Today they are taking stock of the country’s successes and failures, of how far they have come along the road to a liberal democracy and market economy and whether the ideals of 1989 are still alive in people’s hearts and minds.

Thirty years ago the communist regime in Czechoslovakia started to fall apart. The main demonstrations and events were taking place in Prague. But the key question was whether the regions would join in and support the not so numerous college students and actors in the capital who were calling for a protest strike. Vít Pohanka witnessed how the Velvet Revolution started in the Moravian city of Olomouc:

The date is November 17, 1989, eight days after the fall of the Berlin Wall. A cordon of Czechoslovak riot police blocks the path of thousands of university students staging a march through Prague, calling for democracy – and freedom. As police truncheons begin to rain down on their heads, they chant “We have bare hands” – we are unarmed. Hundreds are bruised and bloodied; one student reportedly dead. The Velvet Revolution, as it came to be known, had begun.

The 30-year anniversary of the Velvet Revolution culminates this Sunday, November 17. Aside from official state tributes, a wide range of commemorative events, including concerts, processions and debates, will be taking place in cities across the Czech Republic during the whole weekend. Meanwhile, opponents of the government are planning a massive demonstration in Prague.

As the anniversary of the Velvet Revolution approaches, we take you to places that are closely associated with the events that led to the collapse of the communist regime in 1989. In the fifth and last episode of our mini-series, we’ll take you to Prague Castle where Czechoslovakia’s first post-communist president, Václav Havel, was sworn in, starting a new era in the country’s history.

As the anniversary of the Velvet Revolution approaches, we take you to places that are closely associated with the events that led to the collapse of the Communist regime in 1989. In the fourth episode of our mini-series, we visit the former Czechoslovak Federal Assembly building, where some key political changes took place 30 years ago.