The opposition’s left-wing parties are opposing everything that is saving us as a nation and are trying to bring down the Government the old Bolshevik way, by inciting hatred among the people. What convinced me that the left-wing capitalist ideologists, who have a tendency to try and take over the power, are behind all of this, are Miha Kordiš’s recent actions. The MP of the Levica party raised a fist and a banner through his apartment window, stating that Janez Janša’s Government would only rule until the coronavirus danger passes – so, just long enough to bring the country into a peaceful haven of normal life and work.
We can comment on the attacks by the left-wing MPs and the media outlets, who are calling Janez Janša’s Government “catastrophic,” only because a document on Slovenian journalism that was sent to the Council of Europe contained some verified facts.
To them, freedom means that they are free to write badly and hatefully about the SDS party and Janez Janša, even if what they write are lies. Whether the party is in the opposition or the coalition, it must always remain the number one enemy. Writing about historical events from the communist past, on the other hand, is an attack on democracy and journalism, according to the leftists. However, it is permissible to write badly about Catholicism and slander it, even if the writing is based on facts from centuries ago or even fabrication. The lie has always been a weapon of the leftist propaganda.
Whatever good is done for the country, no matter which political party does it, it must be attributed to the left-wing, and whatever bad happens, it is attributed to the right-wing politicians and Catholics. Surely, they are being funded by hateful foreign countries. This is the political legacy of the one-party system: fear of the influence from the outside world.
The world really is turned upside down
The politicians of the Levica, LMŠ, SD, and SAB parties are constantly talking about how the work of the current Government is bad, even though they gave up on their own coalition when COVID-19 emerged and (chaotically) demanded early elections. And according to them, anyone who believes that the current Government is doing their best and helping the nation and the country is destroying democracy and the rule of law.
We have Janez Janša, the SDS party, and the other parties who accepted the invitation to become part of the current coalition, to thank for the fact that early elections did not happen. We should also thank the President of the Republic, Borut Pahor, who, in spite of all the opposing, media pomp and the protests of certain political parties and prominent intellectuals, gave the mandate to Janez Janša. We cannot imagine what would have happened if we did not have an operational Government during the time of the crisis.
The politicians who gave up on leading the Government right before the COVID-19 “tsunami,” have comfortably settled in the parliamentary benches, from which they are now shouting about everything that the current Government is doing wrong, and what they would have done so much better in the current situation. The people would have once again enjoyed the prosperity of left-wing capitalism. And why are they not enjoying it? The proverb says that a farmer who has lost his farm will never be able to set it up or run it again.
The previous Government was brought down by fear
I am convinced that the leftists are particularly concerned with the fact that the current governing coalition is operating very smoothly. They are asking the left-wing parties of the current Government (DeSUS and SMC) to leave the coalition, and then they will be rewarded for overthrowing Janez Janša’s third Government. Of course, Šarec’s Government was brought down by their fear of responsibility; it did not need a “destroying tsunami” of the opposition parties to stop operating.
In my personal opinion, a left-wing Government would not have been able to do the work that the current ministerial team is doing. No Slovenian Government has so far been able to form such a politically diverse, professional and unified governmental coalition, as the current one has. This is why the coalition was able to implement a series of important measures against the spread of the pandemic over the span of their first month of work. Measures which, I believe, Šarec’s Government would not have been able to implement.
Of course, the media outlets which hate the SDS party and Janez Janša, attribute all the current success in curbing the spread of COVID-19 to Marjan Šarec’s Government, even though it gave up on leading the Government at a time when coronavirus had already spread across neighboring Italy and had already crossed the Slovenian borders.
Doing whatever it takes to reach the goal
The parties of the opposition are opposing everything that is saving us as a nation and are trying to bring down the Government the old Bolshevik way, by inciting hatred among the people. What convinced me that the left-wing capitalist ideologists, who have a tendency to try and take over the power, are behind all of this, are Miha Kordiš’s recent actions. The MP of the Levica party raised a fist and a banner through his apartment window, stating that Janez Janša’s Government would only rule until the coronavirus danger passes – so, just long enough to bring the country into a peaceful haven of normal life and work.
The past has shown us that the leftists have always exploited the hardships of the people, which are certainly very present during the current time of the epidemic. However, during this time, all of humanity is fighting against the pandemic, and not fighting for power and prestige. Distress is an inevitable part of the action; no Government wishes for it, but it is inevitable. Unfortunately, some people were complaining about how they were not able to go to the store in another municipality to buy the string for a handheld lawnmower, or how they were unable to visit a hairdresser. Because of the quarantine, they were unable to visit their relatives, who have been living in nursing homes for years. But in all the years before, they have barely had any time for them…
Are the journalists asking the right questions?
That is why I am surprised by the journalists who are asking someone who escaped from the responsibility, whether the governmental action for the limiting of the epidemic is appropriate. If I was a journalist, I would instead ask him why he did not convene the National Security Council in January, when coronavirus was spreading incredibly fast in neighboring Italy, as was suggested by the opposition and most of his advisers. And why, after resigning, had he proposed the early elections instead of a formation of a new coalition? We all know that before state elections, the Government is never really fully operational, as the parties are competing against each other for the voters and the prestige.
Is history still the greatest teacher?
It is interesting that in the past when asked about what our greatest values are (in different surveys), Slovenians put health and peace first. We also wrote that human life is priceless. But now, when humanity is being attacked by the coronavirus which is threatening us with its deadly consequences and demands a change of lifestyle, the most important thing for countless journalists, politicians, and many others, has become money: How much will protective equipment cost? How much will the testing for the coronavirus among the population cost? Who will pay for all of this?
We no longer care about the fact that foreigners are invading our country. A few days ago, we celebrated the Day of Uprising Against Occupation, even though its message was fake. We do not seem to be able to recognize today’s “occupier,” which is coming in on foot, with children and pregnant women, and is bringing foreign culture, habits, religion, illnesses with it. Have we really lost all sense of security for ourselves and our children that were once so highly valued? Today, however, if anyone mentions family, religion, or security as values that we have inherited and are bound to pass on to our descendants, he is ridiculed and insulted. We also once knew the saying that history is our greatest teacher; today, writing about historical truth is characterized as an attack on national values and individuals.
This is what I have been thinking about, ever since I saw the meeting of the committees on Foreign Affairs and Culture in the National Assembly. Do not hold this against me, but in my opinion, the President of the Committee on Culture had usurped the first and last words and, despite having the status of a cultural worker, attacked the Minister of Foreign Affairs and anyone who dared to speak the truth on the Government’s response to the Council of Europe, in a very non-cultured manner.
What was written about the Slovene media
It seems interesting that on March 23rd, only thirteen days after the Government was appointed, an “unknown” media outlet had sent an unsigned message to the Council of Europe’s Platform, writing about how terrible the current Government coalition is and how the SDS party with its President Janez Janša, is the worst evil there is. The message also states that the Prime Minister is using his political power to instruct the media on how to report on him and the work of his Government. Of course, they forgot to mention that even before the formation of the Government, protesters on the streets were calling for Janez Janša to be killed and for the DeSUS and SMC parties to give up their intention of entering a governmental coalition with Janez Janša. The media barely reported on any of this. The “righteous” members of the current opposition have nothing to say about all of this, as it has already passed. Their main task is to slander the coalition and the SDS party. They are trying to convince the left-wing coalition parties to leave the coalition and overthrow Janez Janša’s Government.
I made an effort to find the full response that was sent by the Government, but I was unable to find the anonymous letter which was sent by “anonymous?!” journalists. I read the Government’s response, which summarizes only the historical facts and the chronology, which describes the recruitment and management of RTV Slovenia. While reading the response, I wondered: is it forbidden to write about true historical facts and the actions of former rulers in today’s democracy that the successors of the communist party so often like to refer to?
They are even dragging the Constitutional Court into the matter
Since they were not satisfied with the distorted accusing of the SDS party and the ministerial team, more than ten anonymous initiatives for the assessment of violations of human rights have been submitted to the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Slovenia, regarding the measures that were implemented to help curb the COVID-19 epidemic by Janez Janša’s Government. This, instead of thanking the
parties of the new coalition, who, upon Marjan Šarec’s resignation from the post of Prime Minister, realized what was truly important and helped the SDS party form a Government, and are now saving the citizens of Slovenia from the worst, during this, the most difficult time.
Who does the current opposition serve?
Watching and listening to the debate in the National Assembly, in which the MPs talked about the Government’s proposal, which should help mitigate the consequences of the coronavirus, one cannot help but wonder, who does the current opposition serve?
The media outlets and parties of the opposition are shamelessly criticizing all governmental measures. The current Government is the first in the history of the Republic of Slovenia, which did not even have sixty minutes of peace, let alone a hundred days, which all past Governments were able to enjoy. Since all parties that have joined the formation of the new Government were aware of this before joining, they deserve our praise.
Journalists: I am not saying you should not write about the politicians and important persons of any political or elite body, be it individuals, groups, or the Government; just be objective and decent in your writing. Commenting on the news is not allowed, based on journalistic ethics. Do this in the comment section, that is why it is there.
Franci Feltrin/Časnik.si