We were recently shocked by the “legal opinion” of the Legal Network for the Protection of Democracy (Pravna mreža za varstvo demokracije), which, between the lines, endorsed the “direct action” of radical leftists who destroyed props of the anti-abortion protesters. This is not an anomaly. The entire Slovenian political-media-civil-society establishment expressed support for violence – as long as it is “socially just”. This is Slovenia in 2023.
The left-wing NGO the 8th of March Institute (Inštitut 8. marec), headed by the granddaughter of the communist censor Božo Kovač, the official mouthpiece of the Slovenian far left, “praised the activism of young girls”, saying that we are talking about a constant struggle for rights, and that we must check again and again whether the freedoms enshrined in the constitution are also available in practice. These women, they say, are “young voters, thinking people who demand a simple thing – that the public space, the park, be welcoming for young women returning from a night out…” What does that mean? The Slovenian version of the American concept of “safe spaces”, where any opinion other than the orthodox far-left one is forbidden. It is clear what the “research institute”, which is neither research nor an institute, actually wants. A total ban on any public expression of conservative worldviews.
The Institute made sure not to let down the coalition Left party (Levica), which, in reality, runs the whole of Slovenian politics with its divisive ideology. The Left party has, of course, also sided with the violent counter-protesters. They compared the young, violent girls to Rosa Parks and Mahsa Amina, adding that reducing direct action for the defence of women’s freedoms to “disrespectful communication” is a slippery slope – and following it, “we can also eliminate suffragettes as an attack on Victorian morality.” The Stalinist rhetoric is the same as that of the 8th of March Institute – the end justifies the means.
Violence with the support of the first man of executive power
Even Prime Minister Robert Golob, who usually acts as a kind of apostle of the Left party and follows it on every ideological point, has – scandalously – expressed his support for the young violent activists, writing: “Standing up for fundamental freedoms, such as deciding on the birth of your children, is an act of courage and a reflection of the understanding of democratic values in our society. Young people have their own ways of expressing their views, and it is only right that we support them in this.” Yes, this is the situation we are in. The Prime Minister supports violent actions that aim to silence dissent.
MP Miha Kordiš of the Left party was even more direct, as he makes no secret of his blatantly fascist tendencies: “Dialogue with opponents of abortion? Never. A woman’s right to her own body is inviolable. Period, end of story, not up for debate. Thank the socialists for winning it and adieu to the conservatives who would take it away.” He also criticised the President of the Republic, Nataša Pirc Musar, for recalling a young violent protester from her consultative body: “For the President of the Republic to debate with the opponents of abortion and sanction the defence of free childbirth is an unacceptable political message and action. Ni shagu nazad!”
The message is clear. Conservative opinions are not only unacceptable – they are even forbidden to discuss. Such appalling statements are reminiscent of Hitler’s famous quote: “I will provide a propaganda casus belli (reason for war). Its credibility is irrelevant. The victor will not be asked whether he has told the truth.”
The Legal Network legally covered the fascist activities
Barbara Rajgelj, an anti-capitalist entrepreneur from the interest sphere of the Legal Network for the Protection of Democracy, called for the streets, saying that she was “glad that Sara Štiglic is no longer part of the President’s consultative body, because this bodes well for activism. From the institutions to the streets!” Yes, one of the lawyers from the NGO that wrote the probably unconstitutional Radio-Television Slovenia Act is calling for the streets and welcoming the violence staged by the activists. Which means that when she calls for the streets, she is, of course, calling for further violence against dissenters.
Sara Štiglic herself has felt her 5 minutes of fame. If she had been hiding at first, because the popular resistance was quite concrete, she quickly realised that the political-media conglomerate of the far left would support her. Then she also came out very confidently, perhaps even hoping to replace the granddaughter of the old communist censor as the main Slovenian voice of the far left. First, she solemnly announced on Twitter that the dismissal was the President’s decision, and that her decision was that she would always, regardless of whether she might put her position, her job, her whole life at risk, stand on the side of women, human rights and oppressed social groups. And she added the death to fascism one-liner: “My body, my choice!”
It is obvious that the youth have been so filled with radicalism that they have literally convinced themselves that they are fighting for their lives and against the system (even though the powerful socialist conglomerate of media and politics is firmly on their side). Then she appeared on Pop TV’s show 24ur (which has been heavily promoting her lately) and practically made a fool of herself with her rigid arrogance against a young pro-life activist who completely ran her over.
Dangerous times
We live in times when the freedom to protest – and, more broadly, the freedom to express one’s own opinion – is under threat. An elite caste, closely linked to the former authoritarian regime, has come forward and told the conservative part of Slovenia to be quiet. But abortion is only the beginning. Today, we should not be discussing the killing of children who would never have been conceived if the young “my body, my choice” activists had known how to make more intelligent decisions. Tomorrow, we will no longer be discussing why we are being raped by solar panels and wind turbines when it is empirically proven that they increase the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The day after tomorrow, we will no longer have to debate the new reality that private rights are no longer constitutionally protected. History teaches us that it is not far from where we are now to the first terrorist attacks.
We can only look forward with trepidation to Saturday’s pro-life rally, where families and children will gather in support of life and its sanctity, while on the other side, the Antifa fascists will stand, driven wild by the authorities. A tragedy could quickly unfold.
M. I.
