Albania was hit by a wave of violent unrest in January 1997 after the collapse of 'pyramid' investment schemes. At least two-thirds of the population had invested in the get-rich-quick schemes. Demonstrators took to the streets calling for the resignation of the Albanian President Sali Berisha. Soon protesters were clashing with armed police. Monica Whitlock speaks to Lorina Naci who was a schoolgirl in Tirana at the time.

(Photo: The Albanian capital Tirana in January 1997. Credit: Associated Press)

In January 1977 an opposition movement began in Czechoslovakia with a call for human rights. More than 200 writers and intellectuals signed the original Charter - many of them were then arrested. One of the leaders of the movement was Vaclav Havel, the playwright who went on to become President after the fall of communism. Louise Hidalgo has spoken to Martin Palouš who was one of the original signatories.

Photo: Vaclav Havel talking about Charter 77 in 1978. Credit: Getty Images.

Vietnamese veteran, Le Van Lang, remembers the war in the Viet Cong's underground tunnel network in South Vietnam. A resident of Cu Chi district, 20 km north of Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) he helped construct the tunnels and joined the insurgency against the South Vietnamese government and their American allies. The vast tunnel network became a key base and shelter for Viet Cong guerrillas and North Vietnamese units during the war,