Velvet Revolution to celebrate its 26th anniversary

The Day of Fight for Freedom and Democracy, November 17, has been a Slovak national holiday since 2001. Around the world, November 17 is rather known as International Students' Day. It was coined in London by the International Students Association in 1941 to show solidarity with Czech students and to condemn the fascist terror against Czech universities and students from 1939. Just like in 1939, in November 1989 it was again students who played a significant role in Prague and Bratislava - providing a catalyst for all changes that were to come. At the beginning of November 1989 revolution, members of the Public Security beat students who had marched for the support of basic human rights in Prague. This caused public outrage and more and more students were demonstrating against the socialist regime, which resulted in the fall of the regime. Czechoslovakia as well as other central and eastern European nations demanded democracy, freedom, human rights protection and freedom of religion in 1989.