18 December 2011 Last updated at 11:36 GMT Václav Havel, the dissident playwright who became the Czech Republic's first post-communist president, has died at the age of 75. The former leader, who suffered from prolonged ill-health, died in his sleep on Sunday morning, his secretary Sabina Dancecova said. As president, he presided over Czechoslovakia's transition to democracy and a free-market economy. He oversaw its peaceful 1993 split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Beginning in the 1960s, his work turned to focus on the politics of Czechoslovakia. After the Prague Spring, he became increasingly active. In 1977, his involvement with the human rights manifesto Charter 77 brought him international fame as the leader of the opposition in Czechoslovakia; it also led to his imprisonment. The 1989 "Velvet Revolution" launched Havel into the presidency. In this role he led Czechoslovakia and later the Czech Republic to multi-party democracy. His thirteen years in office saw radical change in his nation, including its split with Slovakia, which Havel opposed, its accession into NATO and start of the negotiations for membership in the European Union, which was attained in 2004. RIP Václav Havel , he was a great inspiration and symbol of hope for the Czech people. SJ