Commemoration of the Velvet Revolution

Traditionally and symbolically, on the 17 November 2010, the Centre for European Studies, in cooperation with the Institute for modern Slovakia organized a one day event with the title ‘Commemoration of the Velvet Revolution’. This was the third year that such an event was organized and it was held in the historical building of the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava, where important events of the revolution in Bratislava took place.

The leaders of today’s coalition parties met at the stage, including the Slovak Prime Minister Iveta Radičová, Mikuláš Dzurinda, Chairman of the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ-DS), Ján Figeľ, Chairman of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH), Béla Bugár, Chairman of Most-Híd, and Richard Sulík, Chairman of the Party for Freedom and Solidarity (SAS), and each of them gave a speech.

Roland Freudenstein, the CES Deputy Director and Head of Research also addressed the audience, reminding them of how it was 21 years ago, however encouraging them to look at the present and the future.

The special guest was former President of Poland Lech Walesa who as well gave a speech during this ceremony. The Velvet Revolution commemoration attracts every year hundreds of participants from all walks of life. It serves as a true celebration of freedom and democracy, and a reminder that it was centre-right forces that brought these principles back to Slovakia and protect the values of the revolution-in the past, the present and the future.