Slovaks mourn Pinoy beaten to death in street

BRATISLAVA – Thousands of Slovaks rallied in the capital Bratislava on Friday to pay tribute to a murdered Filipino expat, beaten to death by man believed to be a neo-Nazi.

Henry Acorda, a 36-year-old Filipino living in Slovakia, was assaulted in the heart of the capital on May 26 by 28-year-old Juraj H., whose surname has been withheld pending trial.

Five days later Acorda died in hospital from injuries he sustained in the attack.

Organizers told the local Dennik N daily that around 3,000 protesters, mostly in their 20s, turned out for the memorial rally that began with a violinist playing a mournful tune.

Some carried banners reading “Justice for Henry” and “Nazi brain burn in hell.” Others laid flowers and lit candles at an improvised memorial where the attack occurred.

CCTV footage made available to the media showed that Juraj H. hit Acorda, who then fell and became unconscious.

The attacker continued to kick Acorda in the head and used a mobile phone  to photograph him laying in the street.

Prosecutors have charged Juraj H. with manslaughter and placed him in pre-trial detention. If found guilty, he could face up to 12 years behind bars.

Police have neither confirmed nor denied that the attack was racially motivated.

Juraj H. said he “will be sorry for what happened for the rest of my life.

But I don’t remember anything,” while being escorted from court on Monday.

The Friday rally was organized on Facebook by four anti-fascist groups.

“The information that we have about Juraj H. makes it clear that he is inclined to support the far right,” they wrote.

“Let’s make sure this brutal murder does not go without consequences for  him.”

The organizers pointed to the fact that Juraj H. used his Facebook profile to post a white Ku Klux Klan robe captioned: “Ku Klux Klan outfit not bad.”

He also posted a photo of a Russian vodka bottle captioned “white power.”

Several Slovak politicians have also condemned the attack, including leftist Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini.

“These are very bad signals to our society. We must not have mercy on the murderer and justice must be served immediately,” he told the Dennik N daily.

However, his Smer Social Democracy party and its SNS nationalist coalition partner both campaigned on a staunchly anti-Muslim and anti-refugee platform ahead of the 2016 election that brought them to power, something analysts say paved the way for the extreme right Our Slovakia to enter parliament for the  first time.

Its leader Marian Kotleba is known for harsh anti-Roma and anti-migrant  views and for leading street marches with party members dressed in black  neo-Nazi black uniforms.

Meanwhile, the remains of Acorda are expected to arrive next week, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said yesterday.

Quoting Ambassador to Vienna Ma. Cleofe Natividad, the DFA said the repatriation of the remains of Acorda is tentatively scheduled on June 13.

Acorda, 36, died last week from injuries after he was brutally assaulted by a local man in Bratislava after he tried to stop him from harassing a Filipino companion.

The suspect is now in detention and is facing manslaughter charges.

Natividad said the Slovakian government has offered to provide an aircraft to carry the remains and personal effects of Acorda and his mother and two siblings.

The DFA expressed its appreciation to Slovakia for offering to bring home the remains of Acorda, who worked as a financial analyst there.

The DFA, quoting a report from the Philippine embassy in Vienna, said the family of Acorda has accepted the offer of the Slovakian government to repatriate his remains next week.

“We would like to thank the government of Slovakia for its kind gesture of offering to bring home our late kababayan and reuniting him with his loved ones here in the Philippines,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said in a statement.

Prime Minister Pelligrini has assured the Philippines that justice would be served for the death of Acorda. – AFP