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Slovakia holds national day of mourning for 1st president of Slovak Republic

Xinhua, October 12, 2016 Adjust font size:

Slovakia has declared a national day of mourning on Thursday to commemorate the life of ex-president Michal Kovac who passed away on Oct. 5, said Marta Fabianova of the Slovak interior ministry's press department on Wednesday.

Kovac's state funeral will also take place on Thursday.

"State authorities and institutions, as well as regional and local government bodies, will use a special flag decoration. Slovakia's state flags will be flown at half-mast," said Fabianova. Black flags will be flown along with them.

Gambling will also be excluded in Slovakia in connection with the national mourning.

Kovac died last Wednesday night of heart failure at the age of 86. He served as the deputy director at Zivnostenska Banka in London from 1967 to 1969. After the velvet revolution in November 1989, Kovac was involved with the Public Against Violence (VPN) movement and served as Slovak finance minister from 1989 to 1991.

He joined former three-time premier Vladimir Meciar's HZDS party in 1991 and served as its vice-chair for economy until 1993, when he was elected the first Slovak president, a position he held from 1993 to 1998. Endit