Not even the attempted assassination of Prime Minister Robert Fico has managed to calm an extremely aggressive political environment in Slovakia. Faced with the initial response of a radical sector of the populist coalition government that further inflamed the situation by blaming the press and the opposition for the tension, the president, the progressive Zuzana Caputová, in office until June, and the head of state elected, Peter Pellegrini, Fico’s ally, made a gesture. Both summoned all political forces to the presidential palace this Tuesday to promote political reconciliation and calm tempers. But the proposal has failed. At least for now, although Caputová does not give up: “I understand that the situation requires more time and patience. More important than the meeting itself is its objective, and therefore the appeasement of society, for which we have to continue striving in various ways,” the outgoing head of state wrote on her official Facebook account.
The president shared these words after meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister and Head of Defense, Robert Kalinák, this Monday. The number two of Smer, the prime minister’s party, is the one who reports on the progress in Fico’s health, which is improving. His life is now out of danger, but he will need at least several weeks before regaining normal activity. This Tuesday, Parliament recovers its agenda, suspended after the assassination attempt last Wednesday, when a man already detained shot the prime minister.
Caputová shared that Kalinák has also informed her of the “current security situation in Slovakia.” “The tense situation does not contribute to this.” [a la seguridad] in any way, and that is why it is very necessary that each of us approach our public communication with respect and consideration.”
This Sunday, Pellegrini already pointed out that “it is probably not the time for the round table of the political parties” in a message on the same social network and a statement collected by media such as Pravda. With a very fragile environment and some politicians “incapable of basic self-reflection, even after such a tragedy,” the president-elect asked citizens to “contribute to peace.” “Regardless of whether others do the same or the political party we support,” he stressed.
Kalinák is happy that Tuesday’s meeting will not take place. Just like Andrej Danko, leader of the Government’s third partner, the ultranationalist SNS, who immediately blamed the opposition and the media after the assassination attempt and declared the start of “a political war.” “It is false to think that a meeting will reconcile society,” Danko said. The far-right politician refuses to sit at the same table with Caputová and former Prime Minister Igor Matovic, a conservative liberal populist known for a provocative style that has also contributed to polarization in Slovakia.
Matovic has called for the resignation of the Minister of the Interior, Matús Sutaj Estok, due to the security failures that have emerged after the assassination attempt. Some experts question whether Fico’s bodyguard did not stand between the attacker and the prime minister, or whether the wounded leader was not immediately evacuated from the crime scene.
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Beyond the animosity between Danko and Matovic, the government’s far-right partner insists on reforming the legislation to determine what a politician must “tolerate” from the media. Among the most criticized measures of the Fico Executive are its plans to reform public radio and television and, according to critics, convert it into a propaganda organ at the service of the Government.
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Also controversial is the leak of a video of the interrogation of the attacker, Juraj Cintula, a 71-year-old amateur poet with connections to a pro-Russian paramilitary group, but who has also participated in anti-government demonstrations. In the recording, the detainee, for whom provisional detention has been decreed, admitted the crime and attributed it to his disagreements with the Government.
At first, the day after the attack, the Government assured that the aggressor had acted alone for his political motivations. Now, Minister Sutaj Estok has announced that an investigation group has been created that will also investigate whether the suspect acted as part of a group of people who had been encouraging each other to carry out a murder. According to the head of the Interior, the suspect’s internet communications were deleted two hours after the assassination attempt, but neither he—who was already detained—nor, probably, his wife did so. This indicates that “the crime may have been committed by a certain group of people,” said Sutaj Estok.
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