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BRIDGES FOR THE COMMON GOOD INSTEAD OF WALLS
First session of the new Parliament
Address by the President of the Republic of Slovenia, Milan Kucan
Ljubljana, 28 November 1996
"The fundamental values of our state are recorded in the Constitution. They are rooted in the united will of Slovene men and women, and of all the citizens of Slovenia who gave voice to this will in the plebiscite of December 1990, and in the constitutional charter of the Slovene parliament on the declaration of independence in June 1991."
Honourable deputies,
The Constitution charges me with the right and duty to call your first session.
You have been elected in the second democratic parliamentary elections in the sovereign state of Slovenia. The people have chosen you according to their conscience and their free judgement. Now, in accordance with their will and our common responsibility to the historic interests of the Slovene nation, you will be entrusted in your term of office with administering the state.
The fundamental values of our state are recorded in the Constitution. They are rooted in the united will of Slovene men and women, and of all the citizens of Slovenia who gave voice to this will in the plebiscite of December 1990, and in the constitutional charter of the Slovene parliament on the declaration of independence in June 1991.
At that time all Slovenia expressed the clear, common will, hope and expectation that we would harness our combined powers to fulfil the historical aspiration of the Slovene people to create our own state with its place in the democratic world; a state with democratic, legal and social order, which would protect people's political, social and other rights; a state which would provide for current and future generations a safe, pleasant, respectful, tolerant and creative life in our homeland. The past, present and future administrators of the state are irrevocably bound by this will.
The expectations are therefore justified that you, honourable deputies of this newly convened National Assembly, will between yourselves and together with your fellow citizens seek solutions, agreements and consensus for the state to flourish, and for a stable, secure and globally respected Slovenia. There are justified expectations that the administrators of the state will bring together the citizens of Slovenia in common efforts towards successful and accelerated economic, political, legal and social transformation, and towards the secure, recognisable and sovereign establishing of Slovenia in European and worldwide economic, political and defence links; that in patient dialogue, and in mutual respect, through joint and positive work and with respect for what we have already achieved, we will guarantee a secure future for the Slovene identity and the Slovene state; that we will respect diversity and eliminate the barriers of mistrust, rejection and exclusivity; that we will prevent injustice and illegal or improper behaviour; that we will protect our cultural and national identity, our land, our sovereignty and our living environment, as well as our cultural and natural heritage; and that we will not set up walls in place of the bridges established for the common good of the people of this country.
In expectation that this newly convened National Assembly will, through the positions and approaches you adopt, fulfil the common will of the Slovene people, I congratulate you on your election. In performing your responsible and challenging function for the benefit of the state, and for the dignity and welfare of all its inhabitants, I wish you every success and personal satisfaction, as well as the benevolent support and confidence of the citizens of Slovenia.
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