NEWS
Prime Minister opens the Prešeren Fair
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Alenka Bratušek, opened the 12th Prešeren Fair, traditionally held on the Slovenian cultural holiday, Prešeren Day, in the old town centre of Kranj to commemorate the greatest Slovenian poet, who lived in the 19th century. At the main event in front of the Prešeren Theatre, the Prime Minister laid a wreath at the statue of France Prešeren and delivered an address. She took a stroll around the Prešeren Fair and visited different cultural stands, where she chatted with local craftsmen.
In her address, she stressed that despite the many disappointments in his life, France Prešeren symbolised the virtues of justice, the love of peace, tolerance, and, above all, the love of the Slovenian nation, and that today we should pay tribute to these virtues, be it through recitals of the works of our great writers or through the good work of good-hearted people. She regarded the latter as particularly important and needed, as this year’s cultural holiday was marred by a natural disaster, and thanked once again all those who are dealing with the effects of sleet and snow. She expressed her wish and gave assurances that inhabitants affected by the disaster would return to normal life as soon as possible
"We pay a symbolic tribute to our greatest poet by trying to come close to his creative talent and by encouraging creativity," stressed the Prime Minister, recalling that the circumstances in which Prešeren worked were complicated and that his poems testify to the sharp stratification of society at that time. "This very fact should remind us, and strengthen our belief, that we must remain a welfare society where everyone has the same rights and opportunities," she said, adding that the Government is committed to achieving this aim. She went on to quote France Prešeren: "His words might kindle thoughts that would remind us of lost pride of race; discord would cease; our people in one nation then combined!"
At the close of her address, the Prime Minister congratulated all Slovenians and our fellow Slovenians abroad on the Slovenian cultural holiday, thanking "all those who work in culture and contribute, each in their own way, to the cultural mosaic of our nation – because culture is the highest achievement of civilisation, shaping aesthetic and moral values, which give true meaning to our lives".