President Zuzana Čaputová (source: TASR)
"It was an exceptional and hard year, perhaps the hardest I can remember in my life," President Zuzana Čaputová said during her New Year's address on the public-service television RTVS shortly past noon on January 1. She noted that 2020 brought good things too, and gave rise to many heroes and heroines.
On the first day of 2021, which is also the first day of a hard lockdown in Slovakia following another steeper surge in the number of COVID infections, hospitalisations and deaths, the president wished the people of Slovakia a "more successful and safer year."
She described 2020 as a year of important changes and hopes, as well as disappointments. It has forced all people of empathy to kneel down and bow their heads, she said. At the same time, 2020 demonstrated the force of insurmountable human effort, cooperation, creativity and professionalism in the quest for a remedy and vaccine.
President Čaputová also described the remedies in the justice system and the achievements in the fight against corruption as good news Slovakia experienced in 2020.
At the same time, she mentioned the drawbacks, including manipulation, lies, and egotism that have plagued society. She expressed her sympathy with those who lost their loved ones in 2020, and acknowledged the economic hardships some have faced due to the pandemic.
