By: Gašper Blažič
Anyone who has ever read the biblical passages about how Moses tried to convince the Egyptian pharaoh to let the people of Israel go, could be convinced that the pharaoh had a hardened heart and only on the night when the firstborn of Egypt (among them the pharaoh’s son) died, he yielded to Moses’ request. And not for long, because he quickly sent his mighty army to catch up with the Israelites. And then drowned in the Red Sea.
And whoever followed the speeches at the fourth protest rally of pensioners yesterday, may have found a parallel with what happened in Egypt almost three thousand years ago. Pavel Rupar, the head of the October 1st Institute, repeatedly recalled unfulfilled promises in his speech, regardless of the fact that he even managed to reach the Prime Minister. But apparently the rulers now do not intend to meet with him again, as he is said to have crossed all boundaries of good taste with his speech. And what is the problem? Rupar publicly reminded the President of the Republic, Nataša Pirc Musar, that she has taken the former president of the notorious Srebrna nit association Biserka Marolt Meden, who supports euthanasia, among her advisers. Apparently, the rulers were stung by the words that “only Adolf Hitler would take such an adviser (like Meden Marolt)”.
The first reactions followed yesterday, when the President of the National Assembly, Urška Klakočar Zupančič, cancelled the already announced meeting with Rupar (for May 16th), saying that Rupar’s statements also had signs of a criminal act – whatever that might mean. It is not even excluded that the police and criminals would be sent over Rupar, which would be a typical politically motivated repression.
Today, however, President Nataša Pirc Musar spoke up, saying that she will not allow such attacks on her colleagues. “Biserka is a fighter and I know that today’s events do not affect her too much. But I cannot allow such a reckoning with someone whom I highly value and respect, who moves mountains in the fight for human rights. Therefore, I strongly condemn the calls for her “removal” and even the comparison with Nazi methods, which defies all logic and is completely inappropriate and utterly dismissive. These are brutally hateful words directed by someone who has a long history of doing this kind of thing. Also, legally proven. And it is also about substantive deception and lies. I will not allow such attacks on my colleagues and on the Institute of the President of the Republic. The call for “removal” has a significantly broader and dangerous picture. It is an intimidating message to everyone in Slovenia that they should be careful what they say and what positions they represent, because otherwise – and in the event of a certain election outcome – they will be dealt with. And that is what should worry us the most about what is happening today. I would expect that some other state institutions and individuals would also come forward with today’s brutal attack.”
In other words: Pirc Musar even misled, saying that Rupar was talking about “removal”. At the end of her recording, she said quite frankly that she supports euthanasia. With this, she showed not only that she does not respect life, but that she clearly serves the same godfathers who also set up the government.
She was also supported by the Minister for a Solidary Future, Simon Maljevac, with the following words: “I strongly condemn the words of the self-proclaimed retired leader, otherwise jaded politician Rupar, about the work of Biserka Marolt Meden. They point to his primitiveness and chauvinism, the man is a mockery of civilised society, harms pensioners’ movements and exploits them for the breakthrough of his political party. Hilariously, the self-proclaimed leader of the elders also proved that he is the loudest elderly himself. This kind of fallout creates discord between people and destroys what the solidary part of society is trying to build: an inclusive and connected society.”
Everyone should judge for themselves the level of Maljevac’s response.
Even Prime Minister Robert Golob responded, saying that the government supports the public and free expression of opinions and the right to peaceful protests. “In the light of yesterday’s rally, we emphaside that the Government of the Republic of Slovenia has zero tolerance for the spread and promotion of hate speech in society, and we strongly condemn it. Political propaganda based on manipulating and misleading the public through the use of inappropriate visual elements and hostile rhetoric is inappropriate and undermines democratic dialogue in the country. This type of practice is harmful and unacceptable for the social climate, so the government will not engage in dialogue with such individuals and groups,” they wrote in the response.
Of course, they did not comment on what was hostile at yesterday’s rally. They obviously count on the public to take their word for it.
But apparently the crux of the problem lies in the fact that someone has publicly linked the convinced “anti-fascists” who rule us with Hitler. And there is a lot of truth in this, because the Nazi party saw to it that “useless” people began to be physically removed: the sick, the elderly, the disabled… Of course, it is clear that the current advocates of euthanasia will reject any connection with the infamous ideology at all costs of National Socialism, but in fact it is essentially the same problem: no one can guarantee that euthanasia will really be a matter of one’s own decision, but of selected legal murders.
At the same time, it is also worth remembering the fact that the problem of the C0 canal in Ljubljana (or the so-called shit distribution system) is also connected with euthanasia, since the Municipality of Ljubljana is the municipality with the largest population, and possible water poisoning is the most dangerous especially for the elderly and seriously ill. The current legislation actually allows passive euthanasia (for the patient to refuse treatment), but it should be noted that the ruling coalition also undermined the law on long-term care.
Of course, it cannot be overlooked that Rupar’s speech caused panic in the ranks of the government, as a result of which some are already “grinding their claws” and counting on repression in the style of the Belarusian regime to suppress any attempts to influence politics. At the same time, they forget that this very month marks the 35th anniversary of the beginning of the JBTZ process. Hysteria and hardened hearts in the style of the Egyptian pharaoh is therefore a good indicator of what is happening at the top of Slovenian politics. And perhaps this is an indication of how much weight is attached to euthanasia, which is apparently one of the life projects of Golob’s government…