Monument to November 1989 Unveiled in Bratislava

Bratislava, 17 November (TASR) – A Monument to November 1989 was unveiled on Monday at Freedom Square in Bratislava to mark the 36th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, in the presence of participants of the November 1989 events. The monument is intended to symbolise the power of people who united to overthrow the totalitarian regime. Its strength is represented by 407 cast footprints. They face in a direction suggesting that people are looking towards the nearby building of the Government Office, which Bratislava Mayor Matus Vallo sees as adding further symbolism. "It was a gradual process that came from the bottom up. Something that was not monumental, but modest at the beginning. Something that arose from the unity of many people who formed a single force capable of overthrowing the regime. The monument is also not a towering structure, but, on the contrary, a complete and inconspicuous part of the square," Vallo said. The monument has been built as a monumental pedestal measuring six by ten metres. It is placed inside a replica of the original 'anti-crowd' barrier formed by a raised flowerbed, which once restricted free movement opposite today's Government Office. It is slightly elevated in the form of a stage, intended to provoke the people to launch new protest actions when necessary. The shoe-sole casts are meant to authentically recall the protest that left such prints on all the raised flowerbeds of Gottwald Square, today's Freedom Square. The footprints also symbolise the way the revolution unfolded – a historic event that arose from the grassroots and succeeded because people united, stood together in one square, and with quiet or loud strength simply changed the history of the country. For Jan Budaj, one of the leading figures of the Velvet Revolution and the initiator of the monument, the footprints recall the story of the struggle for freedom. The monument also commemorates citizenship itself. "I believe that in this century, we will not be raising monuments to dictators, prime ministers or revolutionaries. This is a monument to citizenship, which stood here in this square, where the first mass demonstration took place," Budaj noted. mf