Gasparovic: Benes decrees shouldn't be discussed any more

Slovak President Ivan Gasparovic thinks there is no need for further discussion on the Benes decrees. If they were discussed, it would not be good for the Hungarian minority in Slovakia, he said on Monday. Gasparovic considers re-igniting these discussions to be a waste of time, adding that he thinks ordinary people are not interested in them either. The decrees played their role in the past when institutions were trying to defeat fascism, he said.

On Saturday in Budapest Christian Democrat MP Frantisek Miklosko apologised to Hungarians living in Slovakia for the persecutions carried out by the Czechoslovak state in 1945-1948 based on the collective guilt principle. Gasparovic said he considers this to be Miklosko's personal opinion.Gasparovic dismissed the Hungarian Party’s proposal to financially compensate the persecuted Hungarians as made by their leader Bela Bugar two months ago. The President does approve of compensation for Jews, who were killed in gas chambers, as well as Germans shot dead during deportation.

Gasparovic also gave his opinion on the EU Constitution, which was voted down by France and the Netherlands in referendums recently. He thinks a new treaty should be prepared where changes inevitable for the Union's future operation should be included. He does not think repeated referendums or parliamentary approvals represent a good solution for the countries that have already voted 'no'.