On Saturday 1 January 2022, President Zuzana Čaputová gave her traditional New Year’s Address on public broadcaster RTVS.

The President began by recalling that New Year’s Day marked 29 years since the Slovak Republic became an independent state. The President observed that the last year was a difficult one, but also a year in which we learned a little about living in new conditions and adapting to change. It was a year in which we grew apart from some people but formed closer ties with others.  

“We are living in a difficult period, that demands clear thinking, discipline and sensitivity. We have children in nurseries who have never seen their teachers’ faces because they are hidden behind masks. We have schoolchildren who have had to get used to distance learning and who have lost two years of carefree youth that they will never get back. The situation has prevented senior citizens from enjoying the precious gift of spending time with their children and grandchildren. Many people have been barely able to support themselves. However, the saddest fact is that thousands of people felt the loss of their loved ones at Christmas dinner and when welcoming the new year.”

In her speech, the President praised how many people had outdone themselves in dealing with crises, making extraordinary sacrifices including that of their health or their lives to save others. She thanked all those who had not lost their humanity, who had shown solidarity and who had not lost their faith in the possibility of a united Slovakia. 

“It shows that we are strongest where we manage to be responsible, considerate and empathic for our own reasons, on our own conviction. On the other hand, when selfishness, grudges and even hatred are in charge, we are at our most vulnerable. The atmosphere in society in such moments is burdened not only by the pandemic but also contaminated by our own prejudices, mutual contempt and insensitivity.”

The President recalled the words of Pope Francis during his recent visit to Slovakia: “We are all vulnerable and we need each other. Nobody can isolate themselves, as an individual or as a country.” According to the President, the only way to get through the largest health crisis of modern times is for humanity to act as one society, which is a task in which all of us must play a part. 

“Each of us is important. It requires agreement on our aims and the basic principles on which we will be united, regardless of our differences of opinion on other matters. We all want to be healthy, and we all want to live our normal lives again. Please, let us try to find agreement on these key matters. My other wish is: Let us try to manage our own hearts, our own consciences and keep a human face. Let us not be provoked by expressions of hatred. Let us get back to verified facts – for example, let us not to do others what we would not want them to do to us.”

The President also referred to the words of the priest Martin Kramara, who said that the social atmosphere and our mutual relations could be improved if we freed ourselves from a vassal’s view of freedom and our relationship to power and society. 

“Vassals think of every limit placed on them as a done deal handed down to them from above. However, there is also a sovereign or mature citizen’s freedom based on the consciousness of acting self-confidently and freely, considering both our own interest and the interests of the society that we belong to. We freely choose some things and freely give other things up. If we accept responsibility, decency and consideration of our own free will, it does not feel like a dictate from a superior.”

Even democracy itself, according to the President, is not based on enforced directives but the natural authority of rules that emerge from social agreement. Therefore, we should think from the perspective of a sovereign and not a vassal. She reminded viewers that life is always subject to certain restrictions and our understanding and the way we react to circumstances largely determines our experience.

If we can put aside the sources of friction and the conflicts between us, the President believes our solidarity will be of immense value in overcoming the present crisis and our long-term efforts to make Slovakia a better place to live both for ourselves and for our children.

On the threshold of the new year 2022, the President wished for us all to keep our faith in humanity and kindness and for the ability to cooperate and combine our forces to fulfil the hopes that open before us in the new year.

“Let us therefore cultivate humanity, emphasising it also in schools. Let us cultivate relationships in our communities, in our families. Let us build solidarity and feel its value in our closest circles, so that we can make it our personal contribution to the country as a whole. So that Slovakia can be a strong, resilient, and sovereign country in dealing with all the challenges it faces."

The full text of the president’s speech can be found in the section on Speeches.