The seventh anniversary of the murder of Slovak journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée Martina Kušnírová was also commemorated on Friday by Slovaks living abroad. Several hundreds have gathered on Jan Palach Square in Prague. During the memorial event, the winner of the competition for the proposal of the Ján Kuciak Memorial in Prague was also announced, informs TASR.
Pieta began in the evening in the academic parish of the Sacred Salvátor in Prague, where the local priest Tomáš Halík spoke to the present. The sacrifice of John and Martina, in his words, is similar to the victim of Jan Palach, for whom there was a moral strength and not to be more important than his life. Friday’s Ecumenical Assembly described as a meeting of prayer and solidarity by all who sacrificed their lives in a similar way. “Let’s not be afraid and hatred, let’s be strong and firm,” Halík called for people.
After the end of the ecumenical meeting, the people in the candlestick moved to Jan Palach Square, where for example, the student forum of Slovaks abroad or the Platform for Democracy. “It is necessary to connect the nation in the active experience of freedom, the vision of a coup from violence to decency, from quarrels to understanding, passivity to activity. Only in this way can we face the challenges of tomorrow and try to move the country a step further,” Student representatives.
The Association of Prague Café, which organized a competition for the proposal of the Ján Kuciak Memorial in Prague, announced its winner. The Slovak sculptor Martin Piaček succeeded with his proposal. “As Slovaks living abroad, we feel responsible to commemorate and spread the legacy of Ján Kuciak. His courage and work inspire us, and this memorial will be a permanent symbol of his value legacy,” The project was commented on by the chairman of the Prague café Andrej Probst.
The ceremonial unveiling of the memorial is scheduled for 2025. The aim of the jury was, according to the Prague Café, to choose a work that not only commemorates the work and values for which Ján Kuciak fought, but also emphasizes the importance of free journalism and the fight against corruption.
The memorial event was also held in Brno. The organizers, according to his words, wanted to express concern about the political situation in Slovakia and the statements of the Slovak Government members to the address of the Slovak journalist and his partner. In addition to Prague and Brno, people also commemorated the memory of Kuciak and Kušnírová in Vienna, Budapest, Brussels, London, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Paris, Berlin and Aarhus, Denmark, Newbridge, Ireland, Oxford or Oslo.
Ján Kuciak journalist and his fiancée Martina Kušnírová murdered on February 21, 2018 in their family house in Veľká Mača in the district of Galanta. Three judgments are final. Murder executives Miroslav Marček and Tomáš Szabó received previously 25-year unconditional imprisonment, Zoltán Andruskó for 15 years unconditionally. In the case of murder orderers, the process has not yet been completed.
