The covers and editorials from leading weeklies of the Left and Right for the work-week ending Friday, 22 May 2020. All our stories about coronavirus and Slovenia are here
Mladina: No one dares question govt's economic policy
STA, 22 May 2020 – The left-wing weekly Mladina says in its latest commentary that there are many questions for the government to be asked about its economic policy during the coronavirus epidemic, but the problem is that economists and executives do not dare ask them because they are afraid of being blacklisted by Prime Minister Janez Janša.
While all sorts of conflicts are being produced in Slovenia left and right, there is no serious debate about the government's economic measures. "Well, there is no debate because many do not dare utter a word," the weekly's editor-in-chief Grega Repovž says.
The business sector remembers that the current PM likes to be praised, and absolutely hates to be criticised. This is why a majority of business representatives are publicly praising him, as no one wants to be blacklisted, or put entire industries on his black list.
The questions that the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which is silent, should be asking are, for example, "how Slovenia can afford to lead a conservative monetary and economic policy while all others in its neighbourhood act differently?".
Another question is how Slovenian companies will compete in the common European market if their competitors will have huge liquidity funds at their disposal, and Slovenia's will not, the commentary adds.
Repovž argues that Slovenia has never had such a weak government when it comes to economy - the finance minister is extremely weak, but he is a good friend of prime minister's, while the economy minister has no breadth and is politically weak.
"But we have the same problem the Americans have: we have no time for these actual problems. Because while others are salvaging the future of their countries, we need to defend the foundations of democracy. We need to deal with freedom of the press. With corruption. Forceful replacements."
There is new madness every week - this week it is paramilitary units, private guards which intimidate police officers, while the government takes no measures.
"We all know that these paramilitary phenomena are actually encouraged by the main party in the coalition, and that they are something most dangerous for society. Such units were deniers of the bloody Balkan wars and heralds of Nazi terror."
What is interesting is the delusion of the coalition partners, who are convincing themselves that these dangerous incidents by the Democrats (SDS) will somehow be overshadowed what they believe are good economic measures, concludes the commentary headlined Economy and Guardsmen.
Demokracija: Govt bearing cross, rift with communists persists
STA, 21 May 2020 – The right-wing weekly Demokracija's Jože Biščak expresses in the weekly's latest editorial joy for "the determination of the new government" and gratitude the epidemic has been weathered. He also remembers the 1945 communist reprisal killings in Kočevski Rog, speaking of "probably the biggest massacre on the old continent in the 20th century".
"We are joining in prayer those who are raising their humble hands to God in gratitude that the crisis turned the way it did and we are happy for the determination of the new government, even though the cross it has to bare because of far-fetched 'scandals' involving PPE purchases and invented accusations about some kind of dictatorship will leave it with bloody shoulders," Biščak says.
He then turns to the Kočevski Rog summary killings, in which historians assess up to 30,000 people were killed, saying that "even though some of those with blood on their hands (were) are still alive and could have been easily identified and sentenced, all of them remained completely untouched".
Biščak says the blame for this also lies with the judicial authorities that continued to serve after independence and enjoyed "the unconditional support of [former President] Milan Kučan and the left".
Much was lost in those years and never made up for and the "traces of the tragedy never really found their way to a public cleansing", Biščak says in Death Becomes Nobody.
He then expresses disappointment with the "postmodern world, which is reminiscent of the last days of the retarded Western Roman Empire, and is far from the heritage of the spirit and honour of the time in-between".
"Also belonging to this spirit are those Slovenians who managed to resist the devastations of communism. Communism - an evil that is recognised today in cultural Marxism - continues to rip out the guts and all that used be the heart and that our forbearers cared about. This is the life that mothers carry in them and bring to the world."
"Crimes happened and bad things happened (and continue to happen). Many of them, too many. We are being pushed into them time and time again from the left, which is trying to convince us that we on the right are bad. Ignore these accusations. Be happy to be subjected to them. Be grateful you have experienced this. Sometimes bad things need to happen to make room for good ones. This provides reason for hope."
All our posts in this series are here
