After Robert Ficoβs shooting, Slovakia is heading full throttle towards authoritarianism | John Kampfner
Since the attempted assassination of the prime minister, the far right has wasted no time in silencing its critics
Last Friday, I was sitting on the terrace of the cafe of the Slovakian parliament talking to an opposition MP about the governmentβs assault on independent media. The previous afternoon a law had been passed that puts the public broadcaster, RTVS, under the direct control of the Ministry of Culture.
βItβs part of a cycle. Thatβs whatβs so scary,β Dana Kleinert of Progressive Slovakia told me, pointing also to the abolition of a special prosecutorβs office looking at political corruption and plans to curb public protests. βHow far can they go? The answer is as far as they want.β She also noted the withdrawal of funding for LGBTQ+ groups, and the closure of a museum considered to be βputting the future of children in Slovakia in jeopardyβ.
John Kampfner is the author of In Search of Berlin, Blairβs Wars and Why the Germans Do It Better
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