President Pavel awards high state distinctions on Czechoslovak Independence Day

At a ceremony marking Czechoslovak Independence Day on October 28, President Pavel handed out awards and high state distinctions to 62 people for outstanding services to the state. Addressing an audience of 700 guests in the historic Vladislav Hall of Prague Castle, President Pavel said the country had come a long way since the fall of communism in 1989 and was now firmly anchored in NATO and the European Union, which gave it the strongest security guarantees in the county’s history and good conditions for economic growth.

The head of state praised the fact that there is now consensus among the top constitutional leaders on the direction of the country’s foreign policy, which had long been lacking.

On a more critical note, President Pavel said that although Czechs have good reason to be self-confident and positive about the future, support for democracy in the country is weaker than in Western Europe, with many people feeling that their expectations of the country’s development post-1989 have not been fulfilled. Moreover, the war in Ukraine and the Middle East increased the feeling of insecurity and fear of the future, the president said, and in this connection warned against the rise of populism which promised simple solutions.

“The Czech Republic needs a new plan for the future, an educated and skilled society and an economy based on innovation. We must prepare for the challenges that the future will bring, including those linked to artificial intelligence or climate change,” the president said.

Among the people awarded high state distinctions were the co-founder of Czechoslovakia general Milan Rastislav Štefánik (in memoriam) , former foreign minister Karel Schwarzenberg, former prime minister Petr Pithart, former head of the Constitutional Court Pavel Rychetský, priest and theologian Tomáš Halík, singer Marta Kubišová, Zdeňka Mašínová, sister of the Mašín brothers, who was persecuted under the communist regime, soprano Magdalena Kožená, film director Olga Sommerová , president of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival Jiří Bartoška, illustrator Petr Sís and singer and choirmaster Ida Kelarová.