NEWS

Slovenian Prime Minister at the 20th anniversary of reconciliation ceremony: "Let us take the bright sides of our history as an example and motivation and the dark ones as a sad memory and admonishment."

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, today attended the 20th anniversary of the reconciliation ceremony in Kočevski Rog, where he briefly addressed the participants. Before the ceremony, he laid a wreath at the mass grave of the Pod Krenom cave. Then, he left for Smrečje pri Turjaku, where he laid a wreath at the monument to the killed activists of the Liberation Front at Turjak.

 

(Photo: Matej Leskovšek/STA)

 

In his address in Kočevski Rog, Prime Minister Pahor first recalled how two decades ago, the then Archbishop, Dr Alojzij Šuštar, and the former President of the Presidency of the Republic of Slovenia, Milan Kučan, had in this symbolic place expressed their determination that from then on, our time should be seen as the time of tolerance, mutual understanding and common future. "In many aspects we have succeeded in this respect. In my opinion, also regarding the reconciliation. I am not only talking about legal redressing of injustices, but rather about our ability to identify historical truths. Particularly as regards the reasons for a deep national rift between and after World War II," emphasised Mr Pahor.

 

"I am standing here in front of you because I am not indifferent to the past, neither to the one wreathed in glory nor to the one burdened by guilt and sin. I am here mostly because of our common future," said Prime Minister Pahor and stressed that it is our moral duty to build the future on that "what in our national past was good, courageous and just, and to evade that what was bad, cowardly and unjust. Let us take the bright sides of our history as an example and motivation and the dark ones as a sad memory and admonishment."

 

At the close of his address, Mr Pahor also stressed that potential fateful ordeals which our nation might experience in the future should never again be characterised by a tragic ideological and political rift. "Let such fateful times never again be seen as an opportunity for a predominance of the ideological over national goals. Let there be no more situations, in which one would seek an apology for collaborating with foreign intruders or an excuse for a bloody revenge of victors for such a deed", said Prime Minister Pahor and concluded that we must not forget any past event, in particular, if it inspires or reminds us as to our future aspirations. "We are here because we do care. We do care about the past and, in particular, about our common future."