From left: the Obete varujú (Victims Warn) monument; a parachute at the SNP commemoration; guests in front of the stage in Banská Bystrica. (source: Facebook)
Under a vast concrete structure that some liken to a folk hat — the Slovak National Uprising Museum, crowned by the Obete varujú (“The Victims Warn”) monument — the country’s three most senior leaders gathered on Friday to mark the 81st anniversary of the failed but momentous 1944 resistance against fascism.
The Slovak National Uprising, known simply as the SNP, remains etched into the nation’s identity. Street names and squares bear its initials — reminders of an effort that faltered militarily but long symbolised defiance against occupation and collaboration, even if today it occupies only a modest space in Slovak history books.
On the stage beneath the memorial, each leader struck a familiar balance: paying tribute to the partisans and civilians who rose against Nazi forces and their Slovak allies, while also using the occasion to moralise, politicise and issue calls for vigilance.
“This was not a computer game played by today’s boys,” President Peter Pellegrini said, praising the modesty of surviving veterans. “You did not expect someone else to solve the situation for you. You were the ones who exposed yourselves to the very real prospect of death at the hands of the occupiers and their collaborators.”
This year’s commemoration was organised by the Defence Ministry at a cost of just over €600,000 — considerably less than last year’s €2.7 million, though still notable at a time when the government is struggling to consolidate public finances.
The 29th of August is a public holiday in Slovakia, and the speeches drew sharp lines. Pellegrini criticised sections of the media. The Speaker of Parliament, Richard Raši, turned his ire on social media, accusing it of too often uniting people through hatred.
Honour guard of the Slovak Armed Forces at the commemorations of the 81st anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising at the grounds of the SNP Museum in Banská Bystrica, Friday, 29 August 2025. (source: TASR)
