STA, 11 October 2021 - Slovenia will follow the recommendation of the national advisory committee on immunisation to use the Pfizer vaccine for those under 30 years old, Health Minister Janez Poklukar said on Monday. In general, the use of mRNA vaccines will be recommended over viral vector vaccines.

Viral vector vaccines can still be used for people with a contraindication to mRNA COVID-19 vaccines or at a special request.

The National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) is to send the set of new recommendations to vaccination centres tomorrow, Poklukar said.

He said the national advisory committee on immunisation decided for the move due to "data on the possibility of a slightly higher risk of inflammation of the heart muscle or pericardium".

Bojana Beović, the infectious diseases specialist who heads the advisory committee on immunisation, said that the age limit had been set at 30 due to potential side effects after vaccination with the Moderna vaccine that occur not only in people younger than 18 but also those younger than 30.

Under-30s who received the first dose of Moderna may get Pfizer when getting their second jab, she added.

This comes as the use of the single-shot Janssen vaccine in Slovenia was suspended at the end of September after a 20-year-old woman died due to brain haemorrhaging and blood clots a fortnight after she received the shot.

The only other vector vaccine in use in Slovenia is AstraZeneca.

Beović and Poklukar stressed the new recommendations were to restore trust in vaccination.

Asked what would happen with the supplies of viral vector vaccines Slovenia currently has, the minister said that the leftover vaccines should be distributed to parts of the world where they were needed.

Asked about the 100,000 doses of the Janssen vaccine Slovenia ordered from Hungary, he said the order had been suspended.

Beović also noted today that following the approval by the European Medicines Agency, Slovenia too recommended the third shot of vaccines Pfizer and Moderna for those aged 65 or more.

"This is the doze that people with a very weak immune system response receive, as we assess that the vaccination with two doses has not been sufficient. This shot is administered 28 days after the second dose or later."

Previously, the third shot was recommended for those over 70, but now the age limit was lowered following the example of other European countries. "We startedPOLNOČ! with 70, as this is the age that significantly increases the risk of severe Covid-19 disease," Beović said.

But since the epidemiological situation in Slovenia is relatively bad, the third shot can also be administered to anyone over 18 if they wish so six months after they were fully immunised, she added.

As for the use of the vector vaccines AstraZeneca and Janssen, she said that the national advisory committee on immunisation had recommended the use of mRNA vaccines over viral vector vaccines in the early summer, but these recommendations had obviously not been followed.

Both vaccines, AstraZeneca as well as Janssen, provide very good protection against severe Covid-19 disease while not protecting against infection so much, which is important for preventing the spreading of the virus, she said.

Beović said that accusations that the recommendations were constantly being changed were unfounded. "It's important to understand that things change during an epidemic. New research, new reports are coming out, and the approach to both non-pharmaceutical measures and vaccination is changing as a result," she said.

Addressing today's Covid-19 briefing, Poklukar advised all people aged 65 and over to consult their GP about a possible referral for an outpatient Regeneron infusion treatment if they get a positive PCR test.

The decision to give such a recommendation was made because of the higher risk of a more severe course of Covid-19 in older people, he said, noting that Regeneron, a treatment based on monoclonal antibodies, had been available in Slovenia since mid-summer.

"It's used for early treatment of patients with confirmed infection and for protection after contact with an infected person in case there is a risk of severe Covid-19," he said.

STA, 9 October 2021 - The opposition Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) adopted a new programme on Saturday. The 15-point platform revolves around the welfare state supported by a strong economy, democracy and respect for the rule of law.

"Everything we do, we do for the people and their future," Party leader Alenka Bratušek said in her address to the delegates.

SAB, which describes itself as a social-liberal party, has put youths and pensioners at the top of its agenda.

It says pensioners deserve decent pensions, good long-term care and free mobility.

For youths, they advocate housing assistance with 500 new flats nationwide annually, simpler renting, and a universal basic income for those aged 18-25.

Another major segment of the programme deals with public healthcare, which the party says must be accessibly to all under equal terms. They advocate a clear division between public and private providers.

This should be supported by a strong and innovative economy, a friendly business environment open to domestic and foreign investors, fair taxation, and better corporate social responsibility.

The platform says strategically important state-owned companies must remain in state ownership.

Outside their core policies, they advocate sustainable public finances and sustainable development, as well as a stable national security system that will "support a peaceful policy underpinned by neighbourly relations".

The party wants to develop the common European security and defence policy and plans to advocate the development of "additional collective-security mechanisms" in NATO. They say Slovenia should regain leadership in Western Balkans.

The chapter on foreign policy states Slovenia should advocate a "free, secure and just EU," a stronger common foreign policy making the EU a stronger global player, continued EU enlargement, and a common approach to border protection.

The chapter on democracy and rule of law singles out respect for the principles of rule of law and protection of human rights and freedoms.

Bratušek said the party was aware it is difficult to work in present-day circumstances, but noted that she had already led the government once.

"My experience shows that people understand the difficult situation and are ready to cooperate, to understand the government when it must take difficult decisions, but only if someone explains to them why a certain measure is needed."

The delegates - just over 300 - were also addressed by representatives of sister parties in Renew Europe including Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas and former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta.

What follows is a weekly review of events involving Slovenia, as prepared by the STA.

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FRIDAY, 1 October
        CHISINAU, Moldova - President Borut Pahor met his Moldovan counterpart Maia Sandu and PM Natalia Gavrilita as part of his official visit to Moldova. He expressed support for the president's and the government's reform efforts.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - European Chief Prosecutor Laura Codruta Kövesi again raised the issue of non-appointment of European delegated prosecutors from Slovenia. She told the European Parliament's Committee on Budgetary Control that after four months of operation this was one of the main challenges the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO).
        LJUBLJANA/BRESTANICA - European Commission Vice-President for Democracy and Demography Dubravka Šuica visited Slovenia to attend an international conference on smart villages. She also met Prime Minister Janez Janša in Ljubljana to discuss the Conference on the Future of Europe and demographic issues.
        LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša met senior representatives of the Identity and Democracy (ID) Group in the European Parliament to discuss topics related to the EU and the post-Covid situation in Europe. Janša's office said the meeting focussed on the Conference on the Future of Europe as well as the EU-Western Balkans summit.
        LJUBLJANA - Police Commissioner Anton Olaj appointed Janez Rupnik interim head of the Ljubljana Police Department, according to the website of police. He will replace Boštjan Glavič, who will become an assistant of the Police Academy.

SATURDAY, 2 October
        MILAN, Italy - Environment Minister Andrej Vizjak attended a Pre-COP meeting whose participants tried to bring their positions closer together ahead of the COP26 summit in Glasgow. He noted the importance of agreement being reached at the summit as the only way to limit heating of the atmosphere and negative impact of climate change.
        LJUBLJANA - A Walk for Life march by opponents of abortion brought together a few hundred people, including Archbishop of Ljubljana Stanislav Zore, who said the fundamental right to life must not be forgotten. A counter-rally was also held.
        KAS, Turkey - Slovenian freediver Alenka Artnik set a new world record in the double-fin discipline. The 39-year-old said on Facebook that she had improved her own mark in the discipline to 106 metres.

SUNDAY, 3 October
        LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša said the government would "not cave in to pressure" after Zoran Stevanović, the leader of the protests against the Covid pass mandate, called on the government to resign or face new protests. He called on the competent authorities to take action.
        LJUBLJANA - Interior Minister Aleš Hojs told commercial broadcaster POP TV that the possibility of an early election was completely justified. The ruling Democrats (SDS) are discussing this, he said, adding that going to the polls a few months earlier would make no difference as this government was practically at the end of its term.
        TEHARJE - An estimated 5,000 victims of war and post-war summary executions were commemorated at a memorial mass in Teharje. More than 600 unmarked killing or burial sites across Slovenia bear witness to these atrocities, retired Celje Bishop Stanislav Lipovšek said at the annual event.

MONDAY, 4 October
        LJUBLJANA - The government decided to restrict movement in Ljubljana, the lakeside resort of Bled and around the Brdo pri Kranju conference centre on 5 and 6 October citing a high probability of severe violations of public law and order during the EU-Western Balkans summit. This is the first time that the legislative provision was invoked.
        LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor held talks with Zoran Stevanović, the initiator of recent protests against the Covid pass mandate who demands that the government step down. Stevanović wanted Pahor to endorse the calls but Pahor turned down the request.
        LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary interior affairs and justice committees urged the police and prosecution to immediately act against the organisers of unregistered rallies and against violent protesters. The session was requested by the ruling Democrats (SDS).
        LJUBLJANA - In its latest Financial Stability Review, the Slovenian central bank finds that general gravity of systemic risks to financial stability has been reduced as the economy has rebounded, but there are elevated risks stemming from the housing market and the long-term profitability of banks.
        LJUBLJANA - The Court of Audit found the Health Ministry and the Medical Chamber failed to set up a system in 12 years to establish how many doctors were needed in Slovenia and identify reasons for shortages of consultants, so they could not deal with shortages and work overload. The report covers the period from 2008 to September 2019.

TUESDAY, 5 October
        BRDO PRI KRANJU - The EU must strengthen its capacity to act autonomously in order to become more effective and assertive on the international stage, EU leaders agreed at an informal dinner according to European Council President Charles Michel. The office of the Slovenian prime minister said the leaders conducted a "strategic debate" on the EU's role in the international arena.
        LJUBLJANA - The Administrative Court sided with the two prosecutors picked to represent Slovenia on the European Public Prosecutor's Office as it overturned a government decision to annul the selection procedure. The decision means that the government must now re-examine the appointment of the two prosecutors, Tanja Frank Eler and Matej Oštir, who initiated the court proceeding.
        LJUBLJANA - Opponents of the government anti-coronavirus measures gathered in thousands in Republic Square in front of the parliament building, which the police protected and cordoned off after a similar protest turned violent last week. The police used a water cannon and tear gas. Several people were arrested, including the protest organiser Zoran Stevanović and the rapper Zlatko, one of the mainstays of anti-government rallies.
        BRDO PRI KRANJU - President Borut Pahor presented German Chancellor Angela Merkel with the Order of Merit for Distinguished Service, Slovenia's highest honour, for her personal contribution to deepening the relationship between the two countries and for her credible and trust-inspiring European leadership.
        BUDAPEST, Hungary - Interior Minister Aleš Hojs called for better control over who enters the EU as he took part in a meeting of the home affairs ministers of the Visegrad Group plus Austria and Slovenia. He said securing EU borders should remain top priority.
        STRASBOURG, France - Slovenia has failed to satisfactorily implement or address any of the 15 recommendations the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) made in its 2018 evaluation report. The country has partly implemented only one recommendation, the Council of Europe's (CoE) body said in its latest compliance report on Slovenia.
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's budget deficit in the first nine months of the year reached EUR 2.453 billion, mostly as a result of financing a variety of coronavirus measures. The figure represents 89% of the deficit planned for the entire year.
        LJUBLJANA - The Medical Chamber and GP Nada Hiti of the Domžale Community Health Centre have reached a settlement on the doctor's video in which she discussed a problematic heavy metal content in anti-coronavirus and flu vaccines. Hiti disowned her statements.
        VIENNA, Austria - Slovenian minority poet and writer Maja Haderlap from Carinthia, Austria, won the Christine Lavant Prize for her work, including a novel about the battle of Slovenians living in Carinthia against National Socialism in Austria.

WEDNESDAY, 6 October
        BRDO PRI KRANJU - The leaders of EU and Western Balkan countries confirmed the Western Balkans' EU perspective and their commitment to enlargement as they met for a summit in Brdo pri Kranju. However, the summit brought no major progress for Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Kosovo.
        BRDO PRI KRANJU - PM Janez Janša disagreed with the claim that Slovenia is setting a poor example to EU candidates by suspending the funding of the STA, but European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was clear that current STA funding is a must, as she spoke to the press after the EU-Western Balkans summit alongside Janša.
        LUXEMBOURG - EU environment ministers adopted a joint EU position for the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, which includes an agreement on a five-year time frame. Slovenia's Andrej Vizjak said this was the first time in many years the European delegation was going to the climate conference with a clear position on time frames.
        LJUBLJANA - President of the European Federation of Journalists (IFJ) Mogens Blicher Bjerregaard warned that media freedom was deteriorating in several European countries, including Slovenia. He called on the European Commission and EU leaders to take a stand and call on their counterparts to support media and journalist freedom.
        LJUBLJANA - The police and Interior Minister Aleš Hojs rejected the allegation that excessive force was used to disperse 5 October riots against coronavirus measures, as NGO The Legal Network for the Protection of Democracy urged MPs to open a parliamentary inquiry to look into the matter.
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenian energy group Petrol completed the acquisition of an outright stake in Croatian fuel retailer Crodux after having fulfilled all suspensive conditions. The purchase consideration was EUR 191.7 million and Petrol will also assume net financial liabilities to banks in the amount of EUR 19.2 million.
        LJUBLJANA - The European Investment Bank (EIB) will provide the Slovenian Regional Development Fund with a EUR 30 million loan to help secure a new line of credit intended for facilitating the recovery of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), mid-caps and municipalities post-Covid-19.

THURSDAY, 7 October
        BRDO PRI KRANJU - PM Janez Janša accused the European Commission of exceeding its powers and of political abuse of the rule of law in an interview with Euronews, saying in its efforts to get member states to comply with the EU's fundamental values the Commission was "close to breaking the rule of law" itself.
        LJUBLJANA - After a court reversed its decision to annul the original procedure to appoint Slovenia's two European delegated prosecutors, the government asked the Justice Ministry to publish yet another call for applications arguing that the court's decision could not be implemented as the procedure the government was supposed to re-examine had been concluded with the publication of a new call for applications on 9 July.
        LJUBLJANA - The SPS police trade union called on the human rights ombudsman to open an inquiry into the clampdown during the 5 October protest in Ljubljana. Police Commissioner Anton Olaj defended the action, denying allegations of political interference in the force's decisions.
        LJUBLJANA/KRANJ - The home of Zoran Stevanović, one of the principal initiators of protests against the Covid pass mandate, and the headquarters of his party Resni.ca (Truth) were searched after Stevanović was detained by police after the 5 October riots. Stevanović was released from custody.
        LJUBLJANA - The government adopted an integrated border management (IBM) strategy to better manage illegal migrations. The strategy is binding for all EU member states under the EU law. The document aims to contain illegal migration on Slovenia's EU external and internal borders and to effectively implement bilateral agreement on return of migrants.

STA, 8 October 2021 - The Supreme Court has ruled that issuing penalties for the failure to wear a face mask in enclosed public spaces during the Covid-19 epidemic as a minor offence has no legal basis.

The decision announced on Friday relates to an appeal on the point of law against a final decision of a local court to issue warning to a person over a minor offence under the communicable diseases act.

The Supreme Court assessed whether it is possible to recognise the failure to wear a face mask in enclosed public spaces as a minor offence by taking into account the fundamental principles of criminal law.

The court noted that it did not have to take position on whether it is reasonable to order face mask wearing or regarding the constitutional and other aspects of such an order.

The decisive question was whether a violation of the order to wear a face mask in enclosed public spaces can be defined as a violation of the measures that "prohibit or limit movement of people in infected or directly endangered areas" under the communicable diseases act.

As government decrees cannot be considered as regulations that determine the content of minor offences, the Supreme Court looked for answer in interpretation of the legislative provision.

It thus supports its decision on an assessment of the encroachment on the freedom of movement and systematic interpretation of the wording of the communicable diseases act.

The court senate established that the order to wear a face mask decisively differs in its content from encroachments on the freedom of movement.

This order cannot be understood as a form of prohibition or restriction of movement of people in certain areas, but more so as an independent encroachment on the freedom to act, which required an independent legal basis.

According to the court, this conclusion is also supported by interpretations of other provisions of the communicable diseases act, with which the legislator specifically envisaged the use of protective equipment.

However, this applies to the protection of healthcare workers and other staff in healthcare institutions in order to prevent and manage infections, and not for the entire population.

The decision was not made unanimously, with judge Barbara Zobec providing a dissenting opinion, in which she said that the ruling was a "wrong message to all that they can take off and throw away face masks," reported the MMC web portal.

STA, 8 October 2021 - The Covid-19 vaccination task force at the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) has decided to recommend priority use of mRNA vaccines over vector vaccines, according to unofficial information obtained by the STA.

According to the task force led by infectious diseases specialist Bojana Beović, vector vaccines would continue to be used, but only at explicit individual request.

The decision adopted on Thursday was made on the basis of data on rare adverse effects of vector vaccines and the higher efficacy of mRNA vaccines.

A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that efficacy of the Moderna vaccine is 93%, of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine 88% and of the Janssen vector vaccine 71%.

The study conducted between March and August involved 3,600 hospitalised adults whose immune systems had not been weakened prior to hospitalisation.

The public broadcaster TV Slovenija reported that the task force recommends that vector vaccines be used only if the person to be vaccinated provides written consent. This would also apply to the Moderna vaccine for persons under 18.

While the official minutes from the session of the task force is not yet available, the Health Ministry told the STA that Minister Janez Poklukar had called Beović today, who had informed him that consultations were still under way.

"When the conclusions are known, expectedly at the beginning of the next week, Poklukar and Beović will inform the public," the ministry added.

This comes as the use of the single-shot Janssen in Slovenia was suspended at the end of September after a 20-year-old woman died due to brain haemorrhaging and blood clots a fortnight after she received the shot.

The move was proposed by the task force and the suspension is in place until all the circumstances of the woman's death have been cleared up, Minister Poklukar said.

At the moment, Slovenia uses the mRNK vaccine produced by Pfizer and Moderna and the vector vaccine by AstraZeneca.

According to the NIJZ, the country has in stock more than 537,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine with expiry dates between February and April 2022 and 125,900 doses of the Moderna vaccine with expiry dates between December 2021 and March 2022.

Also available to Slovenian residents are 13,300 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine with expiry date on 30 November, while 45,600 doses of the Janssen vaccine with expiry date in June 2023 are in quarantine.

STA, 7 October 2021 - The police caught 7,031 illegal migrants in the first nine months of this year, down by some 41% compared to the same period in 2020. The bulk of them, almost 6,200, came from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The police said there was an upward trend in illegal migration, but the uptick was smaller than expected.

As is usually the case, most illegal crossings of the border have been detected by the Koper Police Department (3,421). The number of such incidents decreased or roughly stayed level across Slovenia, except for the area patrolled by the Maribor Police Department, mainly due to those seeking to avoid Covid border control measures or traffic at border crossings.

The total of illegal migrants who requested international protection rose in the past month, particularly among Afghan citizens, but it was down for the entire nine-month period, from 2,775 to 2,449.

STA, 7 October 2021 - The home of Zoran Stevanović, one of the principal initiators of protests against the Covid pass mandate, and the headquarters of his party Resni.ca (Truth) were searched on Thursday after Stevanović was detained by police after Tuesday's riots on suspicion of incitement to resistance.

Criminal investigators appeared at Stevanović's home on Thursday morning, according to reports by TV Slovenija, and the investigation continued at the headquarters of his party Resni.ca in the centre of Kranj.

The investigators, along with Stevanović and his lawyer, left the building after an hour and a half, according to media reports. He was released today after the house searches ended.

The police explained to the STA that they were unable to disclose precise information due to the protection of personal data.

However, they did confirm that the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) carried out two house searches today.

Criminal investigators from Kranj, the Criminal Police Directorate and the NBI, who had taken charge of the investigation on Wednesday, were all involved in the procedures.

The NBI, which normally deals with the most serious cases of white-collar crime, took over the investigation due to "the large amount of unreviewed footage, a short time frame, and providing enough police officers to carry out the required investigative actions".

Incitement to resistance is a crime punishable by up to three years in prison.

According to media reports, Stevanović turned himself in to the police on Tuesday.

Resni.ca said after the protest that Stevanović had been "under constant threat from the police that he would be arrested for the duration of the protest".

In the same message, they also distanced themselves from Tuesday's events, while Stevanović said at the rally that he was not using the protests for political campaigning.

Today, the party said it would no longer organise rallies because that would "jeopardise Zoran's liberty".

STA, 7 October 2021 - The centre-left opposition boycotted Thursday's parliamentary plenary session where MPs were presented budget documents for the next two years, protesting against the government and calling on Prime Minister Janez Janša to step down. Janša said the reasons for the boycott were unconvincing.

The walk-out is one of the ways in a democratic society to protest against the government and the prime minister, "who is violating the rule of law and tarnishing Slovenia's reputation abroad", said Brane Golubović, the head of the deputy group of the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ).

He highlighted that the opposition would boycott the address by Janša, who, he said, had been flouting the law for a year and a half and using the epidemic to undermine democratic norms. "We will not be at the session; we will use a democratic tool to show our disagreement with the destruction of our country," Golubović said.

The Social Democrats (SD) agree that the current situation in the country is unprecedented, which raises concerns and is also very dangerous as seen in recent days.

There is a sense of fear and great disappointment among the people "behind the barricades", said SD deputy group head Matjaž Han, adding that the responsibility for this lied largely with the Janša government and the calculating individuals and parties that support it.

The Left also believes that the government no longer has any legitimacy and should resign. Left's Matej T. Vatovec accused the government of being able to govern only by force and violence.

This, he said, was also evident during the Tuesday rally, which coincided with the EU-Western Balkans summit, when the government "hosted foreign guests and fumigated its own people". Vatovec pointed out that the government was taking it out on various institutions and media, highlighting the case of the Slovenian Press Agency (STA).

The Alenka Bratušek Party's (SAB) Maša Kociper also warned about the financial draining of the STA, noting that the agency has been providing public service without payment for 280 days even though the government was required to fund the agency as stated by the law and the Supreme Court's opinion.

Janša, she said, does not want to hear what the opposition has been telling him for a very long time, nor does he listen to people "who are not satisfied with the direction our country and our democracy are taking".

Janša said a boycott was one of the instruments at the opposition's disposal, but added the reasons for the boycott were "unconvincing" and occurred "before you even hear the frameworks against which you are protesting".

As for the call that he should step down, Janša said he was being called upon to resign "because we have good macroeconomic data".

STA, 7 October 2021 - Prime Minister Janez Janša has accused the European Commission of exceeding its powers and of political abuse of the rule of law in an interview with Euronews, saying in its efforts to get member states to comply with the EU's fundamental values the Commission is "close to breaking the rule of law" itself.

"We have the UN Charter of Human Rights. We have a European charter of human rights, but in political language, especially in the European Parliament, everyone can add to this list whatever he or she wants. So it's politically abused term and used for political battle," Janša said in the interview on the sidelines of the EU-Western Balkans summit at Brdo.

He said that while the European Parliament is a political body, the European Commission should under the EU treaty stay out of political battles. This had been the case until the Commission was led by Jean-Claude Juncker, but it changed as Ursula von der Leyen took over, he said, adding: "I think this is close to breaking the rule of law because the Commission has to be an honest broker."

Janša also took aim at Commission Vice-President Vera Jourova, who alongside Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders, has become the most public face of the Commission's effort to ensure compliance with the rule of law.

He accused Jourova of "issuing statements which are a clear violation of the treaty. But she's supported by the European press. So she is continuing with this. If this would have happened 15 years ago, I think she wouldn't stay as a member of the Commission for one week. At that time, the rules were clear," Janša said.

Commenting on the EU's relations with Western Balkan Countries, Janša noted that the EU is not the only investor in the region, but has competitors such as China, Russia and Turkey.

While they are not setting conditions for investment, the EU does, Janša said, listing European standards, rule of law reforms. Such conditioning "is OK, if there is a light at the end of the tunnel".

"There is one big advantage on our side: the EU membership [...] But if this perspective is not real, then we are losing momentum and we are at a crucial moment."

Discussing the EU's strategic autonomy and its global role, Janša argued for continued partnership with the US, including within NATO, but also said that NATO and the US "will not solve the problems and conflicts in our backyard, in our neighbourhood," that is the Western Balkans, the Mediterranean and Africa.

He believes the bloc should be more focused on securing its own external borders instead of "sending money and humanitarian aid, which is then finishing in the hands of the terrorists or the warlords".

About Afghanistan he said: "Our obligation is to help those who helped us", but added that "there is no place in Europe for 10 million Afghanistan people," and asserting that the EU "will not repeat the mistake some member countries made in 2015".

STA, 6 October - President of the European Federation of Journalists (IFJ) Mogens Blicher Bjerregaard has warned that media freedom is deteriorating in several European countries, including Slovenia. He has thus called on the European Commission and EU member state leaders to take a stand and call on their counterparts to support media and journalist freedom.

Speaking at a press conference in Ljubljana on Wednesday as the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) delegation wrapped up its visit to Slovenia, Bjerregaard said "it is not only about Slovenia, but about Europe."

Considering the deterioration of media freedom in some European countries in the last 15 years, and the expansion of the trend to an increasing number of countries, it needs to be noted how important it is to stop this, he added.

"It is thus important for Europe what is going on in Slovenia, Hungary and Poland," Bjerregaard said, adding that political leaders should be aware that free media were the fundamental pillar of democracy, as they provided relevant information.

"We don't need state leaders to tell us how journalists should work and how they should behave. We need leaders who will protect freedom of media and freedom of speech," he said.

Bjerregaard welcomed the European Commission's plan to overhaul legislation on media freedom. "So far, letters were coming from the Commission, there were a lot of words, which has not helped. In Poland, in Hungary the media are still in the same situation and the situation in Slovenia will deteriorate if nothing happens."

According to the IFJ president, the planned measures would allow the EU to intervene in a member state where media freedom would be breached, which has not been possible so far.

One of the practical possibilities for implementing such measures would be, for instance, a special fund at the EU level from which media who found themselves in a situation like the Slovenian Press Agency (STA) could draw funds for survival.

Bjerregaard noted that words uttered by leaders had weight. "We have seen in many countries that state leaders created an environment of intimidation of journalists with their rhetoric."

He thus called on the European Commission and the leaders taking part in the EU-Western Balkans summit in Slovenia to issue a joint call to their colleagues to support media and journalist freedom.

He said when the countries that used to be under the influence of the Soviet Union joined the EU there was a clear plan that the state media there would become public media. But now we see in some countries public media returning into state media, he said.

When that happens, such media are no longer free or independent, but instead leaders use the media outlet for their propaganda, he said, but added that he did not claim this was the fate of the STA or RTV Slovenija, but there was a risk.

Jamie Wiseman of the International Press Institute said the state of the media freedom in Slovenia, Poland and Hungary differed, but there were key elements linking those three countries.

He listed smear campaigns against professional and critical journalists, attributing ideological and political bias to media, polarisation of media and journalists, attacks on independent journalists at press agencies, and advertising manipulation by the state and state companies.

These are different forms of pressure, they are happening in all three countries and the model was established by Orban and his Fidesz party.

While it is still a long way for Slovenia to come into the situation that Hungary or Poland are in now, Wiseman said it was cause for concern to see the patterns and pressures repeated in Slovenia.

Despite the pressure, Slovenia still has a lively independent media scene and places high in media freedom rankings and there is great support and solidarity of the Journalists' Association and Trade Union. But just because the media landscape is on a such a high level in Slovenia it means that if attacks happen here, they can happen anywhere, warned Wiseman.

MFRR REPORT: Press Freedom Deteriorating in Slovenia under Latest Janša Government