The President calls for mutual respect: Slovakia has set out on a path from which there may be no return – NEW TIME

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The President of the Slovak Republic, Zuzana Čaputová, calls for a rejection of hatred. He calls for decency to remain the norm in Slovakia. In recent weeks, according to her, the company feels that Slovakia has set out on a path from which there may be no return, because behind it are only physical attacks and rudeness in public space.

The head of state addressed the call to Slovaks together with more than 30 personalities from various spheres of social life. “We see that we are going too far when people who do their job to the best of their knowledge cannot feel safe even at home. Doctors, scientists, police, paramedics, politicians, MPs,” the president stated.

As she pointed out, the attempt to intimidate or punish opponents of opinion is leaving the territory of democratic rules. He talks about the attack on the cohesion of society and the risk of trying to establish an undemocratic or directly totalitarian regime. The President therefore called on Slovaks to respect each other. According to her, everything needs to be done to reach an agreement.

According to the president, the difference in attitudes should also be seen by people as an opportunity. “In society, what applies in families and in interpersonal relationships, problems do not escalate into a crisis as long as we can talk about them with mutual respect. For when we speak together, we not only hear a different opinion, but above all we see a man behind it“said Čaputová.

According to the president, cohesion in society is maintained through conversation and the exchange of arguments. “In human interaction, we grind the edges that appear. This is exactly what has changed in the last two years and personal communication is being pushed by shouts in the online space, amplified by social network algorithms,At the same time, however, she condemned the humiliation of the opponent or the use of lies as an argument.

According to the president, democracy today again needs an active, vibrant civil society. “Let’s have a dialogue in our neighborhoods, communities, in our cities and update our own arguments about who we are, where we belong, why we are democrats and why we value the values ​​we value.” she called. She declared that she would continue the dialogue much more intensively on her own.

The president also urged people not to lose hope. “Hope is a decision not to give up. It is a confidence in the potential we need to help fulfill. Hope is a determination to step up against a strong wind with the confidence that it will be better“she declared that she is in each of us. It lies in determination, perseverance, mutual trust and decency.