1922- . Czech communist politician, a member
of the Politburo from 1981 and party leader
1987-89. A conservative, he supported the
Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. He
was forced to resign in Nov 1989 following a
series of pro-democracy mass rallies. Jakes,
an electrical engineer, joined the Communist
Party of Czechoslovakia (CCP) in 1945 and
studied in Moscow 1955-58. As head of the
CCP's central control commission, he oversaw
the purge of reformist personnel after the
suppression of the 1968 Prague Spring. In Dec
1987 he replaced Gustav Husak as CCP leader.
Although he enjoyed close relations with the
Soviet leader Gorbachev, Jakes was a cautious
reformer who was unpopular with the people.