November 1989 Monument to Be Unveiled in Bratislava on Monday

Bratislava, 14 November (TASR) - A November 1989 Monument will be unveiled on Freedom Square in Bratislava on Monday (17 November), the 36th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, Bratislava mayor Matus Vallo told a news conference held jointly with the monument's initiator Jan Budaj on Friday. "I'm very happy that both Slovakia and Bratislava finally have a proper monument to mark one of the most important events in our history, the Velvet Revolution," stated Vallo, calling it an important point in the capital. The winning proposal for the monument came from a public contest and was designed by Brano Lackovic, Emanuel Zatlukaj and Jakub Trajter. It has been built as a monumental pedestal and measures six by ten metres. It is placed in a replica of the original 'anti-crowd' barrier of a raised flower bed, which was supposed to prevent people from moving freely, opposite the current Government Office building. "It is slightly raised in the form of a stage to provoke citizens to initiate protests again when necessary," said Lackovic. Casts of the shoe soles are intended to be an authentic reminder of the protest that left such footprints on all the raised flower beds on Gottwald Square, today's Freedom Square. According to Lackovic, there are 407 footprints on the monument. Budaj said that the footprints remind him of the struggle for freedom. "The footprints should demonstrate that the street and power stand opposite each other. This state of affairs is completely normal and natural. Citizens monitor the power to which they entrust the republic, and power listens to the citizens who are hegemons in the state. That is precisely the change when compared to the time before November 1989," stated Budaj, one of the leading figures of the Velvet Revolution. Budaj pointed out that the November '89 monument was completed more than ten years after November 17 became a public holiday in Slovakia. As the state didn't act regarding building the monument, a civil initiative was put together, he noted. According to Lackovic, the whole process of building the monument took ten years, and at some points it was not clear whether it would be built at all. "It should have been unveiled on the 25th, then the 35th anniversary [of the Velvet Revolution]. Anyway, in a few years it won't matter which anniversary it was, the important thing will be that people will be able find the place where the first mass demonstration of '89 began," stated Budaj. The construction of the monument was co-financed by the Slovenska Sporitelna Foundation. ko/df