Message on the occasion of the Return of Primorska to the Motherland Day

Prime Minister Robert Golob

I believe, however, that all our compatriots elsewhere in Slovenia and around the world also celebrate it with pride - pride about our ancestors, who persevered during the most difficult times of foreign pressure and oppression and preserved their language, culture and national consciousness. It is precisely because of their determination and loyalty that we, the people of Primorska, have once again come to live in a common homeland with all Slovenians.

Primorska is not just a geographic part of our country. From Trenta to Piran stretches a space of openness and freedom, rebellion and creativity. Primorska is Slovenia's horizon, its view of the world. It is a landscape of bora, the wind that that brings fresh air as well as ideas, a place where the Alps meet the sea, where Mediterranean temperament intertwines with Slavic steadfastness. It is a meeting point of cultures and languages, where the value and pricelessness of our shared national identity is particularly evident.

That is why we are celebrating together today, because we know that as a nation we are strongest when we are united. We are celebrating because we believe that the future can only be built on the foundation of historical memory, respect for our ancestors and the courage to look ahead.

"Man without freedom is nothing," wrote Boris Pahor. We are also celebrating to show our respect for the struggle for rights and the importance of freedom, for our nation and for all the nations of the world.

When we remember the return of Primorska, we also honour TIGR members and other Primorska freedom fighters, who were the first anti-fascists in Europe and laid the foundations on which European democracy and the rule of law stand today.

Primorska is Slovenia today and forever. Europe today and forever. On this holiday, I pay tribute to all those who made it possible for the majority of Primorska residents to unite in a common Slovenian homeland, and to all those who continue to build Slovenia as a home of freedom, peace, and humanity.

Dear people of Primorska, dear Slovenians, I sincerely congratulate you on our national holiday, the Return of Primorska to the Motherland Day.

Robert Golob
Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia