By: G. B.
The President of the Republic, Nataša Pirc Musar, is continuing the third round of consultations with parliamentary groups regarding candidates for the new Human Rights Ombudsperson. So far, the coalition remains united in its support for candidate Katarina Bervar Sternad, an activist from left-wing non-governmental organisations.
The opposition, whose support is crucial due to the required two-thirds majority, has not publicly taken a stance on the candidates. After the third round of consultations with the president, SDS and NSi stated only that they would wait for the president’s official proposal in the National Assembly before presenting their position.
SDS commented today that the president’s task would become easier once the coalition itself reaches full agreement. NSi emphasised that they have not made a final decision yet and pointed out that despite the coalition’s unity, they are still far from the required 60 votes.
However, Katarina Bervar Sternad is known as a left-wing activist, whom Pirc Musar awarded a human rights distinction two years ago – an act that can be seen as clientelism, given that Bervar Sternad, as the head of the Legal Network for the Protection of Democracy, had business ties with the law firm Pirc Musar & Lemut Strle.
And that is not all. Bervar Sternad is also a strong supporter of illegal migration, allegedly assisting migrants in crossing the border while simultaneously filing criminal complaints against the police. More details on this topic have been covered here:
WHY KATARINA BERVAR STERNAD IS NOT SUITABLE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSWOMAN
Additionally, it is well known that Bervar Sternad filed a criminal complaint against former UKOM director Uroš Urbanija, accusing him of allegedly harming the Slovenian Press Agency.