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Slovenian President Janez Janša: »Anti-democracy rhetoric and politics«
Photo: Jure Makovec / AFP
Leading German European parliamentarians are warning of Slovenia's EU Council Presidency, which will begin at the beginning of July under the right-wing conservative Prime Minister Janez Janša (read a portrait here).
EU Parliament Vice-President Katarina Barley (SPD) called on all those responsible at European level in the »Welt« - »the Member States, the European Commission, Parliament and the media« - to offer Janša »no stage for his anti-democratic rhetoric and politics« .
She is afraid that Janša will disappoint the hope that "even difficult heads of government will become more supportive of the state in the Council Presidency."
Barley: It's going to be a "challenging time"
The politician compared Janša with the controversial Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán: "He proceeds very similarly to Orbán to subordinate himself to the state." Janša deprives "media donations that he does not like and intimidates journalists personally - especially women." Slovenia's six-month EU presidency will be a "challenging time," said Barley.
The FDP politician Nicola Beer, who, like Barley, is Vice-President of the EU Parliament, also warned: "Prime Minister Janša must be ready to negotiate European solutions, not to be a European problem herself," she said. She accused Slovenia's Prime Minister of not wanting to cooperate with the newly created European Public Prosecutor's Office and of insulting critical media. "Anyone who denigrates the Slovenian state news agency as a› national disgrace ‹endangers the freedom of the press and creates unacceptable pressure on journalists and bloggers."
Janša must "be prepared that we will take a very close look during the EU presidency and will not hesitate to openly criticize such behavior as intolerable," said Beer.
She added: "The EU Council Presidency is no reason for false consideration."
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