Outspoken leader of the Slovak National Party (SNS) Jan Slota has hit back at the recent initiative to remove state symbols from classrooms that was backed by SaS, Most-Hid and SDKU members of parliament, led by Ondrej Dostal.
Slota referred to the motion as absurd, saying that the biggest tragedy of the Slovak nation was that people sitting in parliament who are supposed to represent the nation have no respect for either for Slovak statehood or its national symbols.
Slota also retorted that if anyone believed the Slovak republic to be a multicultural state, then they were mistaken. He backed this claim by pointing out that 85% of the country’s population was Slovak, while adding that this is something that Mr. Dostal should realise.
The law that deals with national symbols and other issues of patriotism was pushed through parliament by the SNS while in power during the last election term. At the time, it was met with harsh criticism as it forced schools and other public institutions to have state symbols on display in classrooms and offices.
Now Dostal’s initiative is trying to have these kinds of obligations removed from the law. Slota feels that it is sad that an MP believes the symbols of statehood should be removed from schools, as that is where the next generation is being raised.