Almost a half of Czechs say relations between Czechs and Slovaks have remained the same as before the split. Photo credit: Freepik.
Prague, Jan 3 (CTK) – Half of Czech people consider the split of Czechoslovakia 30 years ago as the right step, according to a poll conducted by the Public Opinion Research Center (CVVM). 39% of Czechs say it was wrong and the rest are undecided.
The poll also found that those who remember the so-called “Velvet Divorce” are slightly more critical of it.
The analysts who conducted the research wrote that the distribution of views remains more or less the same as in previous polls in 2012 and 2017. The amount of undecided respondents is slightly variable, however, as currently 11% cannot say whether the split of Czechoslovakia was right, compared to 10% and 18% in the 2012 and 2017 polls, respectively.
The Czech Republic and Slovakia came into existence as independent nations on 1 January 1993, following a deal between Vaclav Klaus and Vladimir Meciar, the Prime Ministers of the respective territories. The date is now celebrated as a national holiday in both countries.
Since then, the two countries have maintained close political, diplomatic, and cultural links, and both have joined the EU and NATO. Current and former political representatives of each country marked the 30th anniversary of the split at a concert in Prague’s Rudolfinum concert hall yesterday.
Almost a half of Czechs say relations between Czechs and Slovaks have remained the same as before the split; more than a quarter think they are better and 14% think they are worse. In the current poll, the share of people evaluating the relationship as better has increased by 6 percentage points compared to the 2017 poll, to roughly the same level seen in 2012.
The poll also found that most Czechs (61%) feel they have no problems understanding the Slovak language, and a further third understand it with only small difficulties. Compared to 2012 and 2017, the amount of people understanding Slovak has increased by 6 p.p.
The key distinguishing factor in understanding Slovak is age. While 79% of people over 65 say they have no problems understanding, this drops to just 25% of people between 15 and 19.
The poll was conducted between September 8 and November 8, 2022, on a sample of 821 respondents above the age of 15.
