Photo: Czech Television
In his New Year address to the nation President Petr Pavel underlined the need for strength and unity, saying it had been a difficult year from which he hoped to see the nation emerge stronger.
The president spoke of the tragic shooting at the Faculty of Arts and the senseless loss of life, which he said had caused great sadness, but also inner anger. He urged Czechs to overcome their fear, not be intimidated by this show of unspeakable violence and not to let this tragedy rob them of the joy of life. “We need to analyze what happened and why it happened. We can improve our laws, controls and measures, but we cannot give up our freedom because of fear” the president said.
Looking back on the past year, Mr. Pavel said he appreciated the government’s unity in undertaking unpopular measures to tackle the country’s debt, but criticized it for poor communication towards the public, which he said opened the door to populism.
He urged Czechs to go to the polls in this year’s European, regional and Senate elections, saying their voting right was “a great opportunity to influence the future direction of our country and the European Union”. He warned the public against populists and extremists, who offer unrealistic, simple solutions that would only exacerbate the country’s problems.
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Daniela Lazarová, Source:Český rozhlas