Katarína Csefálvayová and Simon Panek

November 13, 2019

30 Years of Czech and Slovak Freedom

Katarína Cséfalvayová & Simon Panek delivered the 2019 Czech and Slovak Freedom Lecture on November 13, 2019. This special double-lecture event lecture was entitled “30 Years of Czech and Slovak Freedom,” commemorating the 30^th Anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, which saw the return of freedom and democracy to both countries on November 17, 1989. Katarína Cséfalvayová, who was a young child in 1989, provided a perspective as an important legislator who was in a position to look back and assess the legacy of the Velvet Revolution in the context of current challenges to democracy in Slovakia and Central and East Europe generally. Simon Pánek then provided a first-hand perspective as a key leader in the overthrow of the communist regime in Czechoslovakia. He discussed the historical events of the period and assessed the accomplishments of the Velvet Revolution and the challenges democracies have subsequently faced. The speakers were introduced with remarks by Slovak Ambassador to the U.S., Ivan Korčok, and Czech Ambassador to the U.S., Hynek Kmoníček. After the Lecture, AFoCR President Tom Dine presented the speakers with certificates of appreciation and FOS Chairman Scott Thayer presented the speakers with the FOS Medal commemorating Milan Rastislav Štefánik and the friendship of the Czech and Slovak nations.

Katarína Csefálvayová and Simon Panek

Katarína Cséfalvayová is a Slovak politician and academic. She currently serves as the Chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Committee and Vice-chairwoman of the European Affairs Committee of the National Council of the Slovak Republic. As a strong advocate of Slovakia’s pro-Atlantic and pro-European foreign policy underpinning, she has frequently voiced criticism of populist and extremist politicians and movements that question Slovakia’s membership in the EU and NATO. Prior to joining the National Council in 2016 she served as Vice Dean for Foreign Affairs at the Faculty of International Relations at the University of Economics in Bratislava. Katarína Cséfalvayová is a graduate of the Faculty of International Relations of the University of Economics in Bratislava (2009), where she also received a PhD in International Relations (2012). Since 2012 she has been an Assistant Professor at the Faculty. She speaks Slovak and Hungarian as a native speaker, and is fluent in French and English. Simon Pánek is the co-founder and executive director of People in Need (PIN), one of the largest non-governmental organizations in Central and Eastern Europe. Pánek is a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations and a founding member of the Board of the European Partnership for Democracy. From 2004 to 2010, Pánek was the Chairman of the Board of the Czech Development Cooperation Forum called FoRS. From 2011 to 2013, Pánek served as the Supervisory Council President of Alliance 2015, European NGO. Since 2016, Pánek has been the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of Prague Civil Society Centre. Pánek’s activism goes back to 1989. As a student activist in the Velvet Revolution, he was a leader of the anti-regime occupation strike and a member of Václav Havel’s team for negotiations with the communists. He is a recipient of the 2002 Czech State Medal of Merit, European of the Year 2003, and Memory of Nations Award 2009.