OCTOBER 28 is a national holiday in the Czech Republic, marking the emergence of the first common state of Czechs and Slovaks, the Czechoslovak Republic.
The post-World War I Czechoslovak Republic was founded on the ruins of the Austro-Hungarian Empire 95 years ago.
“The new state helped both nations to get established in the new conditions of Central Europe and become - as a whole - an equal subject of international law,” historian Roman Holec from the History Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences told the Sme daily.
The first common state of Czechs and Slovaks only lasted for a couple of decades before it broke up as part of the events that led to the outbreak of World War II. Despite its short existence, it is remembered by both nations as an important step in their development.
“The republic taught Slovaks about political culture and the art of politics, democratic mechanisms, but also about interest in public affairs,” Holec told Sme, adding that Slovaks grew into a modern nation with a complete social structure within the Czechoslovak Republic.
Every year the anniversary provokes a discussion about whether the day, October 28, should be marked as national holiday in Slovakia, as it is in the Czech Republic. This year, the opposition Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKU) submitted a legislative proposal to make the day a public holiday in Slovakia, the TASR newswire reported.
Source: Sme, TASR
Compiled by Michaela Terenzani from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information
presented in its Flash News postings.
