Minister Lipavský thus honored Adam Michnik's long-standing friendly relationship with our country, his support for the Czechoslovak dissidents, and his fundamental political stance in promoting democracy and human rights, for which he was repeatedly imprisoned.  

In August 1989, for example, Adam Michnik, as a newly elected member of the Polish parliament, proposed a resolution in which the Sejm apologized for Poland's participation in the invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968.  

"We also appreciate that in 1989, as a newly elected member of the Sejm, he proposed a resolution in which the Sejm apologized for Poland's participation in the invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. Today, it is once again clear how fragile democracy is, how it is once again threatened from the east, and how it needs to be protected. Adam Michnik is one of those who have always been able to speak out loudly and fearlessly against injustice," Minister Lipavský said in his speech. 

The award ceremony was also attended by several Czech friends of Adam Michnik, former dissidents with whom he had met regularly since the 1970s.