Events 2024

On May 11, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia, Mr. Karl Erjavec, and the Mayor of the Municipality of Tolmin, Mr. Uroš Brežan, unveiled the prestigious European Heritage Label (EHL) which the European Commission awarded to the Memorial Church of the Holy Spirit in Javorca at the end of last year for the important role it played in the European history and culture. Javorca received the highest European award for common heritage because of the core values it expresses – peace, human dignity and equality through the respect of different cultures, religions and nationalities. The church is dedicated to the soldiers who lost their lives on the Isonzo front, regardless of their origin and culture. It expresses a call for peace and reconciliation and the unifying force of joint artistic creation and construction during a difficult period.

The Mayor of the Municipality of Tolmin, Mr. Uroš Brežan, exposed that the European Commission acknowledged the importance of Javorca as the place of European memory because Europe if fully aware of the importance of peace – that it is cannot be taken for granted and that it requires constant effort. He also emphasised that the receipt of the European Heritage Label for Javorca also represents a symbol of good cooperation between the Tolmin Museum, Zavod za turizem Dolina Soče and the Municipality of Tolmin as the owner of the monument at the local level and a symbol of the support received by the Ministry of Culture and the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia. He hopes that in the future, Javorca and the other World War I heritage along the Walk of Peace from the Alps to the Adriatic Sea will become a UNESCO monument because The Walk of Peace is currently already placed on the UNESCO’s tentative Heritage List. The Mayor of the Municipality of Tolmin also invited the well-meaning to continue meeting in Javorca by saying: »I would like to see more similar events organized here, where members of different nationalities, religions and worldviews would be able to meet – and that we shall leave this place with the awareness that when a common goal is found and when our first and highest value is peace we can continue building our community in the same constructive manner as the founding fathers of the European Union imagined more than 50 years ago.«.

Yesterday’s esteemed speaker, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Karl Erjavec, also believes that by awarding the EHL to Javorca, the European Commission made an exceptional gesture. In his speech, he pondered about how an individual would think that after a million of soldiers fallen in World War I such tragedy would never happen again, and that he believes the month of May is the reminder of what men are capable of doing in order to achieve their selfish goals. World War II also happened, and then the Victory Day on May 9, 1945. »All these events convinced us that peace requires constant effort and on May 9, 1950 the French Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Robert Schuman prepared the Schuman Declaration with a goal to connect all European nations. It all started with six countries. Later, more countries joined and 14 years ago, the Republic of Slovenia also joined the European Union. European Union is the guarantee for peace, which is why it must be cultivated. We are working diligently to accept other countries of the Western Balkans into this European family. Europe is our future. It is currently facing various challenges. It did not expect that life in peace will not be self-evident. I am holding the office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs since 2012 when it seemed that peace is self-evident, however, everything has changed all of a sudden. I believe that it is very important to cultivate symbols of reconciliation between different nations, such as Javorca. When you are standing here and ponder about what happened in the past and how people suffered during a certain period you realize that peace is the highest value, because if there is no peace, there is no development, future or perspective for the youth. Moreover, the European Union provides also other opportunities in the economic and scientific field and especially exceptional opportunities for the young generation,« continued Minister Erjavec.

The cultural programme of the ceremony of unveiling the label in Javorca was co-prepared by the younger generation – First violinist of the Vienna National Opera and the Vienna Philharmonic, Mrs. Petra Kovačič, internationally successful girls’ choir Pueri Cantores from Tolmin lead by Mrs. Barbara Kovačič and a student of Grammar School Tolmin Žiga Taljat.

In 2016, the 100th anniversary of the church was accompanied by an exhibition of the Tolmin Museum entitled The Memorial Church of the Holy Spirit in Javorca – One Hundred Years of the Basilica of Peace prepared by the Director of the Tolmin Museum, Mrs. Damjana Fortunat Černilogar M.Sc. In the Year of the European Cultural Heritage, the exhibition will visit several European countries.

Source: Municipality of Tolmin, www.tolmin.si