By: Gašper Blažič
I have written about the Romanian story from 1989 several times before. And not without reason. Perhaps it was because I sensed something. You will probably say it is incomparable, since Nicolae Ceauşescu was a party dictator, while here we have elections and those in power are democratically elected. True, but Adolf Hitler, for example, was also democratically elected. At first, of course, until he suspended the German legal order. This does not mean that parliamentary democracy is worthless, but this system, the best of the worst, is extremely sensitive. Especially to abuses of power.
Let’s be clear: the problems with the Roma in southeastern Slovenia (Dolenjska, Kočevska, Bela krajina, and Posavje) are not so much about the Roma themselves, but about how the current government has treated them as a specially protected group, while imposing new levies and curbing freedoms for the majority population. There is now no doubt that this approach was linked to international drug cartels, known to be untouchable under “libertarian” governments, who use or exploit the Roma for their own purposes. Meanwhile, the authorities had to ensure that their criminal dealings would remain untouched. For the past three years, we have mostly heard about widespread public dissatisfaction with the Roma, witnessed numerous incidents, while government representatives mostly made promises to calm the angry public, repeatedly leading them on. Again, and again. Until October 25 of this year.
From that day on, Slovenia will never be the same. It became clear that security is the soft underbelly of Slovenia’s transitional left. This was already evident in the area of illegal migration, and in the repeated abuse of the intelligence agency SOVA. Back then, most people tolerated it, as it did not affect daily life. But when an innocent person falls under the blow of a cold weapon, after years of horrific problems that failed to move those in power, it becomes clear that people’s patience has run out. Even, and especially, among those who say they are “neither left nor right.”
The late afternoon and evening of October 28 were truly spectacular. We had never seen such a precedent. This time, instead of the National Assembly, we watched a debate in the Novo Mesto city council, the municipal parliament, so to speak. Mayors and councillors spoke very concretely. Even the leader of the Freedom Movement’s council group spoke respectfully, without shedding crocodile tears, unlike the national government. This time, Prime Minister Golob and his ministers were forced to listen. In the National Assembly, he usually speaks first and can leave immediately, this time, that was not possible. His speech clearly showed he was afraid. You could see it in how fanatically he promised harsh repressive measures. But Ceauşescu, for example, made similarly fanatical promises in his final speech (December 21, 1989), raising the minimum wage, pensions, scholarships, etc. But it was too late. The enraged people could no longer be calmed. His enforcers resorted to violence one last time, brutally attacking protesters, just like the Chinese authorities had done months earlier in Tiananmen Square. A few days later, the fleeing dictator was already facing a firing squad.
The crisis in Novo Mesto does not yet mean Golob is politically finished. In the coming weeks and months, we will face a hellish period of propaganda, obfuscation, manipulation, and smear campaigns. We must be aware that we are dealing with a wounded beast, very dangerous. They will try to convince people that all past governments are equally to blame and pour even more filth on the opposition. We will need to withstand this pressure. Until the elections. Then we can calmly send Golob to Africa. On an extended vacation with his bride. There, they can adopt monkeys and nutrias. But at their own expense, without taxpayer subsidies.