Pellegrini: People Challenging SNP Belong to Dung Heap of History

Pellegrini: People Challenging SNP Belong to Dung Heap of History

Banska Bystrica, August 29 (TASR) – Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini, speaking at a commemorative event in Banska Bystrica on Wednesday marking the 1944 Slovak National Uprising (SNP) in WWII, said that he regrets that many of those who took part in the resistance have to listen to opinions challenging their efforts.


“You’re being offended by people who don’t know what happened in 1944. They want to revise history, but we’ll never allow them to do that. We’ll defend the freedoms that you fought for on our behalf. These people belong to the dung heap of history, and they don’t have any right to present themselves publicly. I’m grateful to people in Banska Bystrica region for ousting these people and their minions last year,” said Pellegrini in reference to the regional elections, which saw the defeat of far-right governor Marian Kotleba.

“None of us can imagine how terrible it must have been when the Gestapo knocked on your door, took away your father, grandfather and men from the village in order to murder them. We can’t imagine how terrible it must have been when a band of fascists stormed into a village in broad daylight and began murdering indiscriminately. I have a lot of humility towards people who experienced these atrocities,” said the prime minister, adding that “poor and humble people” nevertheless found the courage to assist the soldiers and partisans who fought in the uprising.

“We’ll always defend our traditions, culture and values, and we won’t allow anyone to trample our history, as the fascist regime attempted to do,” added Pellegrini.