By: Dr Vinko Gorenak
In the work programme of Golob’s Coalition, officially “Coalition Work Programme 2022-2026”, it was stated: “By the end of the year (2022, note), we will remove razor wire and all other technical barriers at the border, as they have proven to be ineffective and inhumane. In the field of migrations (not illegal, note), it is necessary above all to prosecute organised criminal groups engaged in human trafficking.”
However, today it is the year 2024, and they have still not done this. But something else is more important; it is a symbolic message to both smugglers and illegal migrants that Slovenia, after Golob’s Coalition took power, is a friendlier environment for them, which both smugglers and illegal migrants naturally exploit immediately.
This has indeed happened. Let’s look at some official figures from police statistics. In the year 2000, the police in independent Slovenia recorded around 35,000 illegal border crossings, which was by far the highest number up to that point. The year 2015 is not comparable, as it involved state transport of illegal migrants from Croatia to the Austrian border.
However, the developments following the assumption of power by the Golob’s Coalition are more interesting. If the police dealt with 16,252 illegal border crossings in 2019, in 2020 (during most of the year of the third government of Janez Janša), they handled 14,592 illegal crossings, and in 2021 (third government of Janez Janša), there were 10,198 illegal border crossings. In 2022 (during most of the term of the Golob’s Coaliton), the police dealt with 32,024 illegal border crossings. The trend logically continues, as in 2023, the police dealt with 60,587 illegal border crossings. From January 1st to February 29th, 2024, there were 6,415 cases of illegal entry into the country (compared to 5,234 in the same period last year).
The trends are clear. The Golob’s Coalition is effectively inviting illegal migrants into Slovenia. When we add data on how many illegal migrants continue their journey north and how many wish to remain in Slovenia, the need for additional capacities in asylum homes throughout Slovenia becomes even more understandable. Additionally, we cannot ignore some facts. Golob recently stated: “Integration of foreigners is one of the key tasks of this government.”
THE DECISION TO ESTABLISH ASYLUM HOME WAS MADE WITHOUT THE CONSENT OF THE LOCAL POPULATION. DOES ANYONE STILL WONDER ABOUT THE PROTESTS OF THE LOCAL POPULATION, WHICH CAN BE THE ONLY ONES TO STOP THE ARBITRARINESS OF THE GOLOB’S COALITION?
And two undeniable facts remain. According to official statistical data from Slovenia, in 2023, 17,627 children were born, 1,357 fewer than the previous year. However, 22,492 people died. The situation is clear. In 2022, the Golob’s Coalition abolished the Office for Demography, which was supposed to deal with the issue of higher birth rates in Slovenia, a practice successfully practiced by some countries such as Poland, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. The tactic of the Golob’s Coalition is transparently clear. They want to attract as many illegal migrants to Slovenia as possible, grant them citizenship, and thus secure an additional voter base.
In this case as well, the Golob’s Coalition has indeed achieved a milestone on a global scale. As the Asylum Centre in Ljubljana, along with its branches, is bursting at the seams and will become even more apparent, they have decided on two new locations for its branches. The first is supposed to be at the border with the Republic of Croatia in Brežice, and the other likewise at the border with the Republic of Croatia in Središče ob Dravi. At least for Brežice, it is evident that Mayor Ivan Molan is a long-time mayor of the SDS. Could this decision of the Golob’s Coalition government be possibly a retaliation against him? Who knows.
However, what truly constitutes an achievement of the Golob’s Coalition, even on a global scale, is the following. I am practically unfamiliar with any country that establishes asylum centres or their branches at the part of the country where illegal migrants enter. The usual practice is quite the opposite. Transit countries for illegal migrants, which Slovenia predominantly still is, establish asylum centres or their branches where illegal migrants are leaving the country, not where they are entering.
In this context, it would be logical for Slovenia to establish branches of the asylum centre in its own facilities, particularly on the northern or western border, i.e., at the border with Austria or Italy, and not on the border with Croatia. Such a decision by the Golob’s Coalition government directly encourages illegal migrants to decide to stay in Slovenia. Additionally, they completely overlook the fact that asylum centres or their branches are not typically established near kindergartens, schools, hospitals, or similar facilities.
Lastly, we cannot overlook the ignorance of the Golob’s Coalition towards the local population. The decision to establish branches of the asylum centre was made without the consent of the local population. Does anyone still wonder about the protests of the local population, which can be the only ones to stop the arbitrariness of the Golob’s Coalition?