Protests ahead of Day of fight for freedom and democracy

On Saturday, November 17, Slovaks will celebrate the Day of the fight for freedom and democracy. On Friday, rallies of the civic initiative For a Decent Slovakia will be held in support of democracy not only in Bratislava and further cities in Slovakia but also abroad. People will gather a day ahead of the state holiday commemorating the start of the so called Velvet Revolution that led to the end of the communist regime in former Czechoslovakia. Almost 50,000 euros have been sent to the public account of the civic initiative For a Decent Slovakia over the past few days in reaction to the statements of the leader of the senior coalition SMER party and the former Prime Minister Robert Fico. Earlier this week, he accused the initiative of being supported financially by the US billionaire George Soros and reiterated the accusation that they were preparing a coup d'état.