Several of you have asked if there were celebrations concerning the fall of the Berlin Wall here (November 9th was the 20th anniversary). While this was celebrated, the even bigger holiday here is the 17th of November, when the students started demonstrating against the oppressive government in Prague. That eventually led to communism falling here too (Prague was the capital of the united Czechoslovakia.)
It was fascinating to hear the stories people had about what they were doing during those days. People started speaking out in one of Bratislava´s main squares on the 17th, too. My landlady said her job was near this square. One of her collegues came in and told them all what was happening outside. Everyone got up and left their desks and went outside to listen. Some famous actor was out there speaking against the government. A microphone and speakers were set up and, for the next six weeks, hundreds of people gathered each day to enjoy the freedom of speech they had been denied their whole lives. Apparently aware of their impending doom, communist government officials did little to stop the growing crowd out in the square.
Another of my friends was a college student in Bratislava during this time. She said classes were effectively cancelled when all the students refused to show up for the second half of November and through December. They went to these protests instead. Her mom called her from Kosice and begged her to stop attending the rallies, afraid her daughter would suffer the same fate as many of the students in Prague (many were beaten by police, although they were unarmed). Like any college student, Viera couldnt resist the excitement and attended almost every day from then until she went home for Christmas.
On November 28th, the Communist government agreed to dismantle the single-party state. A largely non-communist government was appointed, including a new president on December 28th, 1989, and the "Velvet Revolution" came to a peaceful end.
Several of the prominent figures who had spoken out against the oppressive government attended a panel discussion which was aired on national television on the 17th. My landlady was surprised that the current government had allowed this. "There are so many communists in the government again. Have people already forgotten what it was like?" I won´t pretend to know anything about Slovakia´s current government, but I want to thank you for keeping me--and Slovakia--in your prayers!
It was fascinating to hear the stories people had about what they were doing during those days. People started speaking out in one of Bratislava´s main squares on the 17th, too. My landlady said her job was near this square. One of her collegues came in and told them all what was happening outside. Everyone got up and left their desks and went outside to listen. Some famous actor was out there speaking against the government. A microphone and speakers were set up and, for the next six weeks, hundreds of people gathered each day to enjoy the freedom of speech they had been denied their whole lives. Apparently aware of their impending doom, communist government officials did little to stop the growing crowd out in the square.
Another of my friends was a college student in Bratislava during this time. She said classes were effectively cancelled when all the students refused to show up for the second half of November and through December. They went to these protests instead. Her mom called her from Kosice and begged her to stop attending the rallies, afraid her daughter would suffer the same fate as many of the students in Prague (many were beaten by police, although they were unarmed). Like any college student, Viera couldnt resist the excitement and attended almost every day from then until she went home for Christmas.
On November 28th, the Communist government agreed to dismantle the single-party state. A largely non-communist government was appointed, including a new president on December 28th, 1989, and the "Velvet Revolution" came to a peaceful end.
Several of the prominent figures who had spoken out against the oppressive government attended a panel discussion which was aired on national television on the 17th. My landlady was surprised that the current government had allowed this. "There are so many communists in the government again. Have people already forgotten what it was like?" I won´t pretend to know anything about Slovakia´s current government, but I want to thank you for keeping me--and Slovakia--in your prayers!
