On Saturday, Robert Pešut – Magnifico also performed at the main Statehood Day celebration at Congress Square in Ljubljana. This shocked some legendary Slovenian musicians who could not help but wonder what is happening to this country.
Magnifico – a close friend of Ljubljana Mayor Zoran Janković, who has been burdened with several court cases and investigations – publicly admitted some time ago that he voted against Slovenia’s secession from Yugoslavia at the 1990 Plebiscite. However, on Saturday, the organisers allowed him to speak at the official Statehood Day celebration.
To complete the provocation, Magnifico performed the song “Moja dežela” – My Homeland, written by Dušan Velkavrh and originally performed by Oto Pestner. The fact that this was complete revisionism was pointed out by the independence leader Janez Janša, who said that by doing so, the current authorities and organisers of the celebration were showing everyone that Slovenia was now theirs. “It belongs to them, who were against it being created. Because it was never their preferred option. That is what they wanted to communicate with the choice of songs and Magnifico, who is otherwise a good musician, but him performing at a Statehood celebration is a contradiction.”
The latter shocked even the legendary musician Marijan Smode, known for his numerous hits that have practically become part of our folklore. On his Twitter profile, he reminded his followers that Magnifico voted against an independent Slovenia, but today, he is singing at a national celebration marking the country’s independence. He wrote: “Outrageous. A musician who was against independence is singing at the central celebration of the Statehood Day … What is happening to this country …”
Moja Dolenjska
