On Wednesday, many public institutions, politicians, personalities and ordinary people commemorated the events from 45 years ago and paid respects to their victims. On August 21st 1968, Warsaw pact troops invaded Czechoslovakia to suppress or end attempts at reforming or democratising socialism. The then Czechoslovak government admitted a month after the occupation that altogether 90 people had lost their lives to it. There were many wounded and massive damages were done to houses and roads, amounting at that time to approximately 4.4 billion Czechoslovak crowns.
More than 160 victims of the 1968 Occupation were reimbursed for their loss between the years 2005 and 2008. Altogether they received more than €300,000, says information of the Interior Ministry. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Robert Fico opened an exhibition of the photographer Ladislav Bielik known mainly for his photographs documenting the events from August 1968.Many politicians used this opportunity to talk about sovereignty and freedom and how precious it is. Although we have it now, we should fight for it every day, stated SDKU chairman Pavol Frešo. And we should take more interest in public issues, called out chairman of the Freedom and Solidarity Party Richard Sulík. “The invasion was a violent breach of the project to reform socialism. And today, when we have a long lasting economic and social crisis we can say that this project is still open,” Boris Zala EP deputy for the SMER party stated. As he laid wreaths at the memorial to the victims of the Warsaw Pact Troops invasion he also noted that the 1968 events are not a mere history but also a memento and a challenge for today’s politicians, mainly those who favour the ideals of socialism.
