By: Mitja Iršič
The final months of Golob’s government mark an important turning point in the history of Slovenian parliamentarism. From the very beginning of his term, it was clear that Robert Golob had a habit of telling untruths – even ones where it is obvious he knows he is spreading false information. But at first, he was just an eccentric leader – not the first, nor the last, to become known for spreading falsehoods. Gradually, however, the government itself began to adopt the same patterns.
Let’s recall the lie told by Golob and the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Nataša Sukič, when they repeatedly claimed that Janša’s second government in 2012 had reduced pension payments to retirees, saying it had lowered the pension assessment rate by 20 percentage points. Even when the general director of the Pension and Disability Insurance Institute (ZPIZ), Marijan Papež, clearly stated in parliament that the 2012 pension reform by Janša’s government did not lower the assessment rate – and in fact prevented it from dropping further – neither the government representatives nor the originators of the falsehood admitted their mistake. Instead, they continued repeating the lie as if it were the truth. Perhaps they can be forgiven here – after all, a politician’s career usually ends if they admit to intentionally lying. Just ask Gregor Golobič.
But then they lied about something far more serious – something that should not be joked about. From an official government social media account, they posted the unbelievable claim that financial incentives for conducting initial medical check-ups had led to a reduction in the number of people waiting, and those waiting beyond legally permitted limits, for a first doctor’s visit – alleging a 22.4% decrease. Naturally, users on the social platform X quickly corrected them via a Community Note, pointing out that the reduction in waiting numbers was due to a change in the regulations for scheduling and managing waiting lists, and adjusting the definitions of maximum waiting times. The actual waiting times for medical services have not changed. And this was not the first such Community Note received by the government’s account. Over the past six months, the government has received a whole slew of such corrections – public embarrassments where social media users exposed and debunked their falsehoods. Lying has become the government’s modus operandi. You could say that, just before its fall, the Slovenian government has descended into a kind of “Russian” style of lying – lying for its own sake, where everyone knows the lie was told, but it is already so embedded in the system that people, the media, and internet users treat it as an accepted formality.
In Russia, this type of state propaganda has a specific term: maskirovka (маскировка) – which translates as “camouflage” or “deception.” The term originates from Soviet military doctrine and was used as early as World War II, when the Soviets used deception tactics to mislead Nazi Germany. Later, during the Cold War, it was applied to the West. Gradually, the concept expanded to include domestic propaganda, diplomacy, and even geopolitics.
The key elements of maskirovka include spreading false or semi-true information, pushing fake narratives via the media, social networks, or official statements, creating distractions or fake scandals to cover up real events, denial and concealment – even in the face of clear evidence, and sowing doubt to create plausible deniability.
In modern times, maskirovka has become Russia’s primary form of communication – both with the outside world and with its own citizens. The Kremlin lies to its people about the heroism of Russian soldiers in Ukraine, about alleged Nazi atrocities by Ukrainians, and to Western audiences it sells Russia as a racially and religiously pure utopia, a moral counterpoint to a “decadent West.” To foreigners, they peddled claims that Russian troops were never in Crimea (later admitted), that they would never attack Ukraine – or now, that they will never attack other European nations. For future FSB agents, maskirovka is one of the core skills they learn.
The final gasps of Golob’s government are clearly turning us into a mini-Kremlin.