PZS Celebrates 120th Anniversary of SPD

The Alpine Association of Slovenia is celebrating the 120th anniversary of the founding of the Slovenian Alpine Society (SPD) this year, of which the Alpine Association of Slovenia (PZS) is the successor. Mountaineering, the jubilee, and especially the mountains and friendship united mountaineers and organizations at the PZS ceremonial event on Friday, April 12, 2013, in the princely town of Celje. The PZS organized the ceremonial PZS Assembly in Celje to honor the 120th anniversary of the SPD and the 120th anniversary of the Savinja branch of the SPD, established in August of the same year (1893) with its seat also in Celje among others. The PZS invited Slovenian and international organizations of which it is a member and with which it collaborates to the ceremonial assembly. 127 out of 278 mountaineering societies with voting rights (46%) attended the assembly.



The Ceremonial PZS Assembly in Celje was divided into three parts, with a cultural program in the introductory part featuring ceremonial speakers – PZS President Bojan Rotovnik, Mayor of the Municipality of Celje Bojan Šrot, and Minister of Defense Roman Jakič – as well as a heartfelt performance by young mountaineers from the mountaineering group of OŠ Braslovče under the mentorship of mountaineering group mentor Irene Kumer, and a musical performance by the vocal group Oktet 9, who also enhanced the assembly with their singing in the continuation. In the official part, the PZS Assembly unanimously approved the substantive and financial report of the Alpine Association of Slovenia bodies for 2012, the reports of the Supervisory Board and the PZS Honorary Court for 2012, the framework substantive and financial work program of the PZS for 2014, and authorized the PZS Management Board to adopt a detailed financial plan for 2014 by individual activities or cost centers and to monitor the financial plan. The assembly also discussed the Code of Honor of Slovenian Mountaineers, which is exactly 40 years old this year, and according to the assembly's resolution, a working group will prepare proposals for amendments and additions. It is not common in the sports sphere for individual sports branches to systematically engage with the ethical aspect of their activities, so in the mountaineering organization we are proud of its forty-year presence. PZS President Rotovnik chaired the Ceremonial PZS Assembly, and the vice-presidents of the PZS filled the positions of the presidium members.



Mayor of the Municipality of Celje Bojan Šrot first congratulated the delegates of the mountaineering societies, the PZS leadership, and the guests in the wonderful hall of the National Home of the Municipality of Celje, and as a former alpinist and great lover of mountains, dedicated welcoming words to all those gathered – also from his own experiences. He praised the spread of mountaineering in Slovenia, its tradition, the preservation of mountain nature, respect with love for it and the homeland, and great efforts for safe movement in the mountains, and at the end added: "The result of your excellent work and efforts is also the fact that Slovenian mountains are visited by around 1.4 million visitors annually, for whom you have arranged as many as 9000 km of hiking trails throughout Slovenia, which you also diligently and voluntarily maintain. Truly impressive figures. Dear ones, let the 120th anniversary be a reason for pride and an incentive for successful work in the future as well. I sincerely congratulate you and wish you many more unforgettable days where it is most beautiful – in the mountains."



The highest state representative at the ceremonial assembly, Minister of Defense Roman Jakič, congratulated everyone in the introduction for such a high anniversary of the organization, which "in its long period of activity fought for the Slovenian image of our mountains, was a realizator of visions, and made mountaineering so popular that it became one of the most popular sports activities and part of Slovenian identity." In addition to the praises, he also emphasized the tradition of Slovenian military mountaineering, which dates back to the Austro-Hungarian army, and mastering the mountain world was of strategic importance for Slovenia. "The Ministry of Defense with the Slovenian Army and the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Protection and Rescue is today connected in many ways with the Alpine Association of Slovenia. We are connected by common values such as patriotism and respect for the mountain world, as well as very concrete forms of cooperation. That Slovenian mountains are crisscrossed with marked and secured trails and beautifully maintained mountain huts is a great merit of generations of Slovenian mountaineers. The Ministry of Defense is aware that these important achievements must be preserved for future generations, so we will continue to provide helicopter transports of equipment for the renovation and marking of hiking trails and ecological sanitation of mountain huts," said Minister Jakič about concrete collaborations, and he also emphasized important cooperation in the field of mountain rescue, where the Ministry of Defense provides a highly professional on-duty helicopter crew of the Slovenian Army (SA) and thus contributes to saving lives in mountain accidents, as well as the cooperation of SA meteorological observers on Kredarica.



PZS President Bojan Rotovnik emphasized in his ceremonial speech the long tradition of mountaineering in Slovenia, the 120-year persistent expansion of mountaineering and the organization, which today ranks among the most numerous, most recognizable, and most substantive organizations of civil society in Slovenia. "The secret of our success is certainly volunteerism, which is also the basic orientation today, when times of strained social conditions are not most favorable to such a mode of operation. We are proud of the path walked so far by Slovenian mountaineering, which our predecessors have paved and maintained over the decades, and today numerous individuals involved in the work of the mountaineering organization continue their work with great motivation and characteristic mountaineering stubbornness." He also highlighted the results of numerous connections over 120 years: 1661 hiking trails with a total length of over 9000 km, 176 mountain huts, bivouacs, and shelters with over 6000 beds, over 5000 mountaineering trips, hikes, and tours annually, 25 professional training programs in the field of mountaineering, with which we significantly contribute to safety in the mountains; Slovenian alpinism at the top of world alpinism, excellent achievements of sport climbers, establishment of the Slovenian Mountaineering Museum … At the end, he added: "Although Slovenia is a small country on a global scale, this does not apply to Slovenian mountaineering. Great successes in various fields of mountaineering are also the result of the mass nature of the mountaineering organization, as with almost 60,000 members, which incidentally represents 2.8% of Slovenia's population, we rank among the 10 largest mountaineering organizations in the world. Unfortunately, however, the extensive work that we voluntarily perform for the benefit of Slovenian society is not adequately recognized by state bodies, as despite our rich tradition and successful operation, we must always prove ourselves again and again through various public calls, even though project work is only a smaller part of our program. But mountaineers are persistent people and we will continue to develop mountaineering regardless of social conditions and state support, strive for even greater safety for mountain visitors, and actively contribute to the protection of mountain nature. We are aware that the mountains are only one, so it is necessary that all stakeholders involved in the mountain world cooperate and coordinate and adapt to the weaker one, i.e., nature."



With their arrival and speeches, representatives of Slovenian and international organizations, where PZS is a member and with which we closely cooperate, honored the ceremonial jubilee of the Alpine Association of Slovenia: President of the International Mountaineering Federation UIAA (unites 82 mountaineering organizations, including PZS, from 57 countries of the world) Frits Vrijlandt, who emphasized the importance of work with youth and youth work and ice climbing in PZS and especially in the world; President of the Olympic Committee of Slovenia - Association of Sports Federations Janez Kocijančič, who highlighted above all the organization's holistic approach to nature preservation, care for mountain posts and trails, and top sports achievements and bold goals for the future. Podpredsednik Club Arc Alpin – Association of Mountaineering Organizations of the Alpine Arc Danilo Škerbinek also addressed the gathered, reminding of the year 1995 when PZS was invited to the initiative meeting of mountaineering associations in the Alpine area, and PZS today has representatives in all bodies and commissions of CAA. President of the Association of Mountaineering Organizations of the Balkans (Balkan Mountaineering Union, BMU, PZS is an associate member of BMU) Jovica Ugrinovski spoke about the importance of PZS organization for Balkan mountaineering associations and an excellent example as well as mountaineering as a way of life; he also addressed the gathered as President of the Mountaineering Association of Macedonia. About PZS involvement in individual organizations and joint cooperation also spoke mag. Martin Šolar, Director of Triglav National Park, President of the Slovenian Mountaineering Club Skala Gregor Gomišček, on behalf of OeaV (Oesterreichischer Alpenverein) President of the Carinthian regional mountaineering association Joachim Gfreiner; General Secretary of the Mountaineering Association of Croatia Darko Berljak, who is connected with PZS also through numerous joint expeditions; Member of the Management Board of the Mountaineering Association of Serbia Vladislav Matković, President of the Fishing Association of Slovenia Miroslav Žaberl, President of the Hunting Association of Slovenia Srečko Felix Krope, and elder of the Scout Association of Slovenia Jernej Stritih.

These Slovenian organizations are also united by joint action in the Non-Governmental Group for Environmental and Social Legislation, and with the Fishing and Hunting Association of Slovenia, PZS among others (together with the Tourist, Beekeeping, and Cynological Association of Slovenia) has signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of sustainable development and in joint efforts to protect and preserve biodiversity. Representatives of Slovenian and international organizations also presented the Alpine Association with numerous recognitions on this occasion for good cooperation and operation.



After the end of the ceremonial assembly, the delegates and high guests gladly lingered in pleasant conversation, socializing, reminiscing, and forging new connections.