Opposition Says EU Rule of Law Report Shows Slovakia's Decline
Bratislava, 17 July (TASR) - The opposition views the European Commission's (EC) report on the state of the rule of law as evidence of the coalition's dismantling of the rule of law in Slovakia.
The Progressive Slovakia (PS) highlighted that the EC identified continued shortcomings in the fight against high-level corruption. The 'For the People' party also pointed to deficiencies in the transparency of the legislative process, the protection of journalists and weak rules on asset declarations. The parties' statements were provided to TASR by their media departments.
"The EC has issued another report card for Fico's government, identifying its biggest failures in the area of the destruction of the rule of law. The prosecution of corruption, or its detection at the highest levels, has practically come to a halt, which was clearly the aim of Fico's fourth government through its major criminal law amendment. Public-service media, journalists and non-governmental organisations are also under pressure; even the public ombudsman has faced a wave of hatred fuelled by politicians' comments. All of this is the result of the government of Robert Fico (Smer-SD), whose outcome is only the erosion and crushing of the rule of law," said MP Zuzana Stevulova (PS).
For the People chair and MP Veronika Remisova stated that she believes the report confirms that the current government is systematically undermining institutions responsible for protecting justice, investigating corruption and overseeing those in power.
"This is not an assessment by the opposition. The EC clearly states that Slovakia's ability to detect, investigate and prosecute major corruption has continued to deteriorate. The number of charges, indictments and convictions in corruption cases has dropped significantly. This is another extremely serious piece of evidence of the breakdown of the rule of law and justice that Robert Fico's government is carrying out step by step," she said.
According to Remisova, the opposition must immediately present a plan to restore justice. She called for immediate dialogue and coordination among opposition parties.
The EC published its annual rule of law report on Friday. It stated that Slovakia had made progress in some areas of the justice system. At the same time, it pointed to continuing shortcomings in the fight against corruption, the transparency of the legislative process, the protection of journalists and the independence of public service media.
The Slovak government took note of the report. It welcomed the fact that the document positively assessed the implementation of several recommendations from last year's report and acknowledged progress in a number of areas. The cabinet said it plans to address the identified shortcomings and adopt measures to remedy them. However, it rejected the EC's assessment regarding the prosecution of high-level corruption, arguing that the report was biased and lacked objectivity in this area.
