Minister of the Environment and Spatial Planning Janez Podobnik praised the people of Prekmurje for their love of Slovenia in his speech at Friday's ceremony to commemorate the region's reunification with the homeland in 1919. He promised that the perseverance of the region, which has since independence struggled to keep pace with the rest of the country, would pay off with a "development spurt".
Podobnik said in his speech in Murska Sobota that artifacts suggest that Prekmurje has the longest tradition of Slovenehood. According to him, the region, which had through the centuries been part of various Hungarian states, always remained faithful to this tradition. So after World War I, when Slovenia lost its western Primorsko region and parts of Korosko and Gorenjsko to Italy, the pain was alleviated by the gain of Prekmurje, he added.
He stressed that this "devotion to Slovenehood must not remain but a memory" and still had to be pursued, as nobody else would take care of Slovenian interests in the EU. In a reference to the border dispute with Croatia, Podobnik said that this devotion also meant that Slovenian politicians "are obliged to seek a fair border with its neighbours".
According to him, the border in Prekmurje always ran down the middle of the river Mura, so lands of the left bank always belonged to Slovenia, just as on the other side of the country the whole of the Piran Bay belonged to Slovenia.
Podobnik said that everything that Prekmurje achieved, it achieved on its own. He believes that its toil will now pay in a new "development spurt", which will be spearheaded by the construction of the motorway connecting the region to central Slovenia, as well as to Austria and Croatia.
In his address in the pouring rain, which failed to put a damper on the celebrations as people turned out in great number to attend, Podobnik pointed to the importance of agriculture in the region. According to him, the rain is welcome, as it will do much to alleviate the current drought.
He said Slovenia's efforts to achieve sustainable farming methods as part of EU schemes are extremely suited to the region, which also boasts natural resources for the future, including geothermal energy.
Podobnik also praised the special rights given to the Hungarian minority living in the region, saying this was an example to the rest of Europe, just as the integration of the Roma community in society in this region was an example to the rest of Slovenia. He said he hoped Slovenia's neighbours would take note of its minority protection standards in their dealings with the Slovenian minorities.
The ceremony was attended by a host of Slovenia's top politicians, including Prime Minister Janez Jansa and many members of his cabinet.
MPs from Prekmurje, who proposed that today's holiday be instituted in 2005, said earlier in the day they believed their proposal made sense as historical events of such importance needed to be marked in a proper manner.
According to Jozef Horvat of the ruling coalition New Slovenia; Jozef Ficko of the senior ruling Slovenian Democrats; and Feri Horvat of the opposition Social Democrats and Mitja Slavinec and Geza Dzuban (both of the opposition Liberal Democrats) said they filed the amendments because Slovenians never fully realised the importance of the reunification with Prekmurje after they lost the Korosko and Primorsko regions after WWI.
Jozef Horvat was meanwhile disappointed by the Slovenians' lack of awareness of their history. "I was on a trip in the region today and was disappointed to find out that there were not enough Slovenian flags on public buildings, let alone on private homes," he said.
Jozef Horvat said that knowledge of the history of one's nation is a "process that takes longer than just a year or two". He also believes that more patriotism should be included into the country's curriculum.
Slavinec said the holiday seemed to have caught on well with the inhabitants of the region, but, the same as others, opposed making the day a bank holiday. "We did not want to put stress on the economy but merely mark a historically really important event".
Feri Horvat meanwhile said that the holiday was marred by the complete lack of approval by the Hungarian-speaking community of the holiday, "my fellow MP even opposes it and I regret that". Speaking in reference to Maria Pozsonec, an MP of the Hungarian minority, Horvat added that her opposition was not justifiable.
Poszonec did not want to comment on the ceremony today, but only said that "everybody can celebrate what they want. A holiday is worthwhile if it comes from the heart. If somebody has a reason to celebrate, let him or her celebrate".
The holiday marks 17 August 1919, when the military handed over authority to civilian government of what was then the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenians. As a result, the Slovenians living in the region became unified with Slovenia after nearly 900 years of being part of Hungary.
The date became a holiday with the act on holidays and days off passed by parliament in September 2005. The act introduced three new national holidays - 15 September to mark the return of the Primorsko region to the homeland, 23 November as Rudolf Maister Day and 17 August as the day of reunification with Prekmurje.
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