Hlina: LSNS Must No Longer Be Treated with Kid Gloves

Bratislava, March 23 (TASR) – Slovakia should stop condoning the policies of the far-right LSNS party and its leader Marian Kotleba, as the party is not to be treated with kid gloves, Christian Democrats (KDH) chairman Alojz Hlina told a press conference on Thursday.

He went on to lambaste the governing coalition for what he believes is its failure to erect a bulwark against extremism.

Hlina also weighed in on the recent donation by Kotleba, who is also Banska Bystrica regional governor, of a cheque for €1,488 to a family with four children, including one child in a wheelchair. This is widely believed to be a thinly-veiled reference to an amalgam of two neo-Nazi symbols – 14 and 88. LSNS has rejected any notions of deliberately donating this specific amount of money.

“This should be met with zero tolerance,” said Hlina, calling Kotleba’s actions “abhorrent and cynical” He added that, in opting for this very number, Kotleba’s party pleaded their allegiance to fascism.

Hlina said that he’ll have none of it, and in order to counteract Kotleba’s actions he will screen a documentary called ‘Hitler’s Doctors – Deadly Reforms’. On April 3, the film is set to be projected on the facade of the building in Banska Bystrica where Kotleba has his office.

“That’s to make people see the atrocities and what’s behind the number 1488,” said Hlina. LSNS should have been outlawed a long time ago, Hlina noted, decrying the fact that LSNS receives state funding based on their result in the general election.

He also bemoaned the fact that the donation ceremony also involved a priest. While not disclosing his name, Hlina said that he’ll talk to the clergyman in person.

Further to this, he lamented the possible leanings of some priests towards LSNS, but stopped short of commenting on the position of high-ranking Church officials vis-a-vis the issue. “This is too early to assess,” he said, calling it “a most sensitive issue”.