By: Andrej Žitnik (Nova24TV)
President of the Republic Nataša Pirc Musar is increasingly showing signs of taking a stance on injustices and extrajudicial killings during the communist revolution that resembles the approach of former President Danilo Türk, for whom these issues were unimportant and secondary. It is becoming increasingly clear that she has inherited shoes that are too big from Borut Pahor.
After more than half a year since taking office as the President of the Republic of Slovenia, Nataša Pirc Musar’s direction in her political leadership is becoming increasingly clear. It increasingly resembles the approach we have seen before – that of “second-class” Danilo Türk and her mentor Milan Kučan. Predictable, narrow-minded, unenlightened, and divisive.
What they all have in common is that they never wanted to become presidents for everyone but rather promote values that were discarded with the declaration of independence in 1991. In contrast, former President Borut Pahor has already shown and established the path to a different approach – being a president for all.
A president without a moral compass
When we asked Pirc Musar about her opinion on the government’s decision to abolish the Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Communist Violence, she replied, “today is the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia…” This response is reminiscent of how Türk was asked about his opinion when the mass grave at Huda Jama was uncovered, and he replied, “I am here today for a top-priority issue, so I will not speak about second-class issues.”
The President was absent from Kočevski Rog on June 4th at the memorial mass for the victims, and former President Pahor had to step in on her behalf. She also did not lay a wreath on August 23rd, which is observed at the European level as a day of remembrance for the victims of totalitarian regimes, including the criminal communism. When Borut Pahor was the President, he used to lay a wreath every year in front of the monument for all war victims and victims related to wars, accompanied by representatives of religious communities. Pirc Musar’s absence at the mass for the homeland on the Statehood Day also stirred controversy, as traditionally, all senior politicians used to attend this event, regardless of their ideological or religious affiliation.
However, the President did make an appearance on Holocaust Remembrance Day and attended an exhibition dedicated to the Holocaust, which is appropriate. Yet, this also highlights incredible hypocrisy on her part. It shows that the President has double standards. It is not right that she does not speak up or attend commemorations that would remind us of the criminal nature of the ideology of her mentor, Milan Kučan.
Pirc Musar also attended a memorial ceremony on the Croatian island of Rab yesterday, marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of prisoners from the Italian concentration camp in Kampor and the island of Rab. In her speech, she emphasised the importance of preserving historical facts and testimonies of the atrocities of fascism and Nazism. She reminded us that the concentration camp on Rab should serve as an eternal reminder of the unacceptable nature of wartime horrors and fascist violence. According to her, it is necessary to continuously highlight the “horrifying slips towards disrespect for fellow human beings”, which are indecently displayed by a few but loud individuals and extreme political parties everywhere in the world, including Europe. Pirc Musar believes that it is essential for our future not to “forget the suffering of our ancestors, especially historical facts and testimonies of past events and the cruel actions of fascism and Nazism”.
The ceremony was also attended by Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon and the President of the Association of Veterans for the Values of the National Liberation Struggle of Slovenia, Marijan Križman. As Fajon stated on the X network, “we must and will not forget the horrors of fascism”. According to her, this is the ultimate commitment that we must follow in respecting human dignity.
As noted by analysts Miran Videtič and Peter Gregorčič in the programme “Ura moči”, Nataša Pirc Musar appears to struggle with her presidency, as she is always overshadowed by her predecessor Pahor, who has long since rid himself of Kučan’s influence. If Pirc Musar wants to successfully complete her term and be re-elected, she will also have to rid herself of her chief advisor, according to Gregorčič. He described this advisor as transparent and disconnected from reality. His bitterness stems from the fact that his political vision did not come to fruition, his influence is waning, and his biological life is running out.