National Day Message by H. E. Mr. Manuel Korček, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Slovak Republic to the Republic of Bulgaria

Ladies and gentlemen ambassadors,

Ladies and gentlemen diplomats,

Dear readers,

A year has passed and I have the opportunity to address you again on the occasion of our national holiday - the Constitution Day of the Slovak Republic. I sincerely thank Mrs. Ekaterina Pavlova, Editor-in-Chief of the Diplomatic Spectrum magazine, for the invitation, which I gladly accepted.

For 29 years, the Slovak Republic has been celebrating the adoption of its supreme law, the Constitution, on the 1st of September. This day marks the national holiday of Slovakia.

The adoption of the Constitution on September 1st, 1993 was preceded by an act related to the adoption of the Declaration of Sovereignty of the Slovak Republic, approved by the Slovak Parliament on July 17th, 1992, at a time when our country was still part of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic. At that time, numerous negotiations were taking place between Czech and Slovak politicians for the further settlement of the union between Slovaks and Czechs. The adoption of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic has significantly shifted this process towards a peace agreement on the partition of Czechoslovakia, thus building on the fundamental values ​​and principles of the common state. The Independent Slovak Republic was established on 1st of January 1993 as one of the successors in the Czech Republic and the Slovak Federal Republic.

The first constitution gave the Slovaks and our emerging young state a reliable value compass for a sovereign, democratic and legal state. Referring to the words of Mrs. Zuzana Chaputova, President of the Slovak Republic, it protects against possible arbitrariness.

The Constitution also has an international dimension, as its preamble expresses an interest in sustainable peaceful cooperation, and its first member states that the Slovak Republic respects the general rules of international law, the international agreements to which it is bound, and other international commitments. It also responded to Slovakia's accession to the European Union and the North Atlantic Alliance in 2004. However, the individual efforts of an individual country are not enough to meet global challenges, and that is why we think of our European integration and shared sovereignty within the EU as a contribution to greater stability, security and prosperity for Slovakia.

We intended, on the occasion of the national holiday - the Constitution Day of the Slovak Republic, to organize the traditional reception at our embassy in Sofia. However, in view of the current provisions in the context of the fourth wave of the pandemic in the Republic of Bulgaria, we abandoned this intention. However, I would like to sincerely thank all those who sent us kind wishes on the occasion of the holiday.

I am also pleased and grateful to the Municipality of Burgas for giving us the opportunity on this important occasion to present two interesting exhibitions to the Bulgarian public and visitors to the Center for Contemporary Art and Library.

They were prepared jointly with the Embassy of the Czech Republic and the Czech Center in Sofia. The common profiling denominator of these exhibitions is the field of human rights. One exhibition contains photographs illustrating the constitutions of Slovakia and the Czech Republic, the other informs about the contribution of famous Slovak and Czech women to history.

Regarding the first, I would like to say that every citizen knows about the existence of the constitution as the most important written document defining the relations between the state and the citizens. However, the truth is that not every citizen is familiar with this law in more detail. The purpose of the publications and the exhibition is to increase the interest in public issues. The illustrations and jokes aim not only to attract attention visually, but also to encourage people to think about their civil rights and social values. Just to note that the book with the illustrated Constitution of the Slovak Republic is among the finalists of the Slovak Design Award.

The second joint Czech-Slovak exhibition "Remarkable Women in Czech and Slovak History" and its Slovak part - "The First Women", tells the life stories of famous Slovaks, who managed to be "first" in history to establish themselves in various spheres of social and public life, during the twentieth century.

Both exhibitions have been installed in the exhibition halls of the Center for Contemporary Art and Library in Burgas from September 2nd and are open to the public, free of charge, until the 16th of September 2021. I cordially invite you to visit them.

Dear friends,

In conclusion, let me wish Diplomatic Spectrum success, loyal and avid readers. Separately, I congratulate the diligent students of International Relations and Diplomacy. I wish all of you, editors and readers, good health in the first place, but also a lot of strength, enthusiasm, creativity, personal and professional success.

With a friendly greeting,

Manuel Korček,

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Slovak Republic to the Republic of Bulgaria

The photo was provided by the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in the Republic of Bulgaria. On it: H. E. Mr. Manuel Korček, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Slovak Republic