According to experts, the assassination attempt on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico will change Slovakia. While such incidents should unite society, Slovak political scientists believe they will radicalize society even further.
Fico was reportedly shot by a critic on Wednesday after a government meeting in the city of Handlová. The Slovak government saw a political motive behind the crime.
“I think it (the attack, note) will lead to an even greater radicalization of society than before. I do not expect that the political elites will be able to send a signal that this cannot continue, that this is not the right path,” said Juraj Marušiak, political scientist at the Institute of Political Science of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAV). ), told the daily “Pravda”.
It is in the hands of politicians
According to Radoslav Štefančík, political scientist at Bratislava University of Economics, the situation depends on how the attack is perceived by opinion-forming politicians. “This could be the moment when society realizes that politics only fights small wars and that there is no reason to sow hatred against each other,” he told Pravda.
However, some members of the governing coalition reacted very sharply. They blamed the media and the opposition for the attack. For example, Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ľuboš Blaha of Fico’s left-wing nationalist party Smer expressed his “deep outrage” at the political opposition and the liberal media which, in his opinion, have spread hatred.
Nationalists talk about ‘war’
The leader of the nationalist SNS party, Andrei Danko, also blamed the attack on journalists, describing them as “dirty pigs”. He said that at this stage a political war started for the SNS.
“After the first hateful reactions from some politicians from Smer and SNS, I assume that polarization in Slovakia has not yet reached its peak,” Štefančík assessed. He expects that “attacks on the media and NGOs will increase,” Marušiak added. The political scientist said this would lead to an escalation of the already great tensions in society.
Slovakia is deeply divided
Slovakia is a highly polarized country, and the divide often cuts across friendships and families. A section of society is very critical of the government and accused Fico of pushing the country increasingly towards an authoritarian, Russia-friendly course, following the example of Viktor Orbán in Hungary. Since the end of last year, anti-government protests have taken place in all major cities in the country.
Fico cut military aid to Ukraine, replaced the leadership of the police and key government agencies, and initiated controversial judicial reform and media policies. At the end of April, the Slovak government decided to dissolve the public radio and television company RTVS.
Marušiak pointed out that the attack so far looked like the action of one “crazy person.” “Nothing can protect us from crazy people, even in a situation where society is not in such a state of confrontation as it is now.”
Source: Krone
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