STA, 30 March 2021 - Igor Zorčič remains speaker of the National Assembly. The coalition failed with a motion to dismiss him Tuesday after he quit the Modern Centre Party (SMC) deputy group, as 45 voted in favour of the dismissal, one vote short of the required majority, and two votes were invalid.

The vote came after the opposition LMŠ, SD, Left and SAB, and the new deputy group formed by MPs who have defected from the SMC and DeSUS, walked out of the session and refused to pick up the ballots for the secret vote.

They argued that if the coalition wanted to unseat the speaker, they had to do it themselves. Some also suggested the new situation, in which neither bloc has a clear majority, was an opportunity for a grand bargain on a speaker.

Several opposition MPs framed the motion as an attempt by the government to subjugate the legislative branch.

The coalition, meanwhile, said it was normal that a new speaker be appointed given that the speaker has always come from the ranks of the coalition.

They argued the motion had nothing do to with Zorčič's record as speaker, which both the opposition and coalition said was exemplary, but was rather a reflection of a new balance of power in parliament.

The vote was closely watched as an indication of the governing coalition's strength given that some parties have called for a snap election with the formation of the new faction and the loss of three coalition MPs.

However, Zorčič himself poured cold water on this idea in his first statement after the vote, when he said the outcome "does not forecast that the government will not have a majority in the National Assembly in the future".

The vast majority of legislative motions require only a simple majority and the government has so far been able to carry the majority of laws with the help of the DeSUS and SNS, which are formally opposition parties but often vote with the government.

Danijel Krivec, the chair of the deputy group for the ruling Democrats (SDS), said the unsuccessful attempt did not mean the coalition would not give it another try.

Overall, Zorčič said that "reason prevailed" in the end and that the National Assembly remained independent and "does not let the government dictate" it.

Invoking certain foreign parliaments in which speakers have a different mandate than the other MPs, he said he planned to continue serving independently.

And while he agrees that he was originally appointed as a representative of the second largest coalition party, he said there was no new coalition today with such a party any more.

"We've got an old, disintegrating coalition which lost a party and a second party has only half the members," he said, a situation he described as "unprecedented".

STA, 30 March 2021 - A man attempted to enter the National Assembly building with a chainsaw Tuesday afternoon shouting "I've had enough of lockdown" before being tackled by security guards in front of the main entrance.

Incident pred Državnim zborom. Moški s psom in prižgano motorno žago je želel nad parlament. "Dost mam tega zapiranja," je vzklikal. Policisti so ga že obvladali. pic.twitter.com/bvc4Z80K8P

— Luka Svetina (@LukaSvetina) March 30, 2021

INCIDENT: Med razpravo o razresitvi @IgorZorcic na vrata #DZ nekdo kar z motorno zago!!! "Dosti imam tega zapiranja," je bilo slisati. Policija ga je takoj aretirala. Nihce ni bil poskodovan. Seja tece dalje. pic.twitter.com/KC3f59TqnF

— Anže Božič (@AnzeBozic) March 30, 2021

Social media footage from the scene shows the man, who had a dog in tow, being tackled by a security guard while another guard turned off the chainsaw.

Nobody was hurt and the incident did not affect proceedings at the National Assembly, which was just then debating the dismissal of Speaker Igor Zorčič.

Police said they had been informed of the incident around 7pm. A patrol was dispatched to the scene and brought the man into custody.

STA, 29 March 2021 - MEP Sophie in 't Veld (Renew/D66), chair of the European Parliament's democracy monitoring group, has rejected allegations of censorship by Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša. An impression that the Parliament is an opponent of Slovenia's is regrettable and far from the truth, she told the STA on Monday.

The MEP said that the group was willing to cooperate and would do all it could to help Slovenia avert a scenario that has been seen in Hungary and Poland.

She said that the group conducted its work in a neutral, calm and professional manner. The group's members regret that the recent developments had been made into a spectacle. "It almost seems as if the European Parliament was an opponent of Janša or Slovenia, which is very far from the truth," in 't Veld told the STA over the phone.

If Janša thinks that a wrong impression has been created, he could always contact the group, she added.

Janša fell out with in 't Veld last Friday at the group's public debate at the Parliament on the situation in Slovenia.

The prime minister had a video about attacks on media and journalists which he insisted should be screened as part of the debate before questions time, whereas in 't Veld refused to allow that. She did say, however, the video could be shown at the end of the debate.

Janša responded by accusing her of censorship. Over the weekend he then wrote on Twitter that Slovenia owed nothing to Brussels. Some Slovenians have been paying the price of freedom and democracy for 35 years and "overpaid bureaucrats who were born into prosperity will not preach to us about freedom and democracy", he said.

He went on to say that Slovenians will never agree " to be censored by self-proclaimed ombudsmen. We did not allow [Slobodan] Milosevic to do that, nor will we allow @SophieintVeld or @CiolosDacian to do so."

Today, in 't Veld dismissed the censorship allegations again, noting that the Parliament was not obliged to show any content. She explained that Janša's video was part of a vast volume of material that had been sent to the group, including statements by individuals, journalists, NGOs and other stakeholders.

The group is also gathering information by itself and is the one to decide when and how the collected items will be used.

The MEP said that the group had conducted talks with EU prime ministers before Friday's incident and until then she had never experienced anything like it. She would not say whether she expected such a turn of events.

So far, she has watched only a part of the video and before commenting on it she would like to watch everything Janša sent to the group and discuss the response with her colleagues in the group.

Asked whether the group will attempt to talk with Janša for a third time, in 't Veld said that its door was always open. However, given that the prime minister cancelled once and left the debate prematurely the second time, it seems there is no will to discuss the matter, she added.

She also highlighted that the monitoring was a process and that the group was no tribunal. It will continue to monitor the situation in Slovenia. In line with standard practice, written questions are expected to be sent this week to Janša and Culture Minister Vasko Simoniti, who did not attend Friday's debate.

In a month or two the group will report its findings to the Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs. It is possible the Parliament will then prepare a resolution.

The group's chair believes that there is serious cause for concern over the situation in Slovenia, but Article 7 proceedings are not close yet as Slovenia is not yet at the point where Hungary and Poland are currently.

Regarding contact with Janša, she added that the prime minister would have to face the Parliament when Slovenia takes over the EU presidency.

Janša calls on MEP in 't Veld to resign as chair of EP group

STA, 29 March 2021 - Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša has called on Dutch MEP Sophie in 't Veld (Renew/D66) to resign as chair of the European Parliament's democracy monitoring group. The move comes after Friday's incident during the group's public debate and censorship allegations.

Janša urged in 't Veld to step down on Monday, accusing her of damaging the reputation and credibility of the Democracy, Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights Monitoring Group irreparably.

"The Slovenian government takes freedom of speech and media freedom very seriously and therefore we do not accept censorship," reads a letter that was sent to in 't Veld by Peter Šuhel, Janša's chief of staff. Memories of times when newspaper articles had to be approved by the Communist authorities are still very vivid in Slovenia, it adds.

"Your censorship is dangerously reminiscent of that time. However, I am pleased that you did this in front of the European public.

"Since I believe that you have irreparably damaged the reputation and credibility of the Group with this action, I call on you to step down as Chair of the DRFMG, in order for it to regain the trust of the Members of the European Parliament and citizens of the EU through new leadership and through its credible work," writes Šuhel.

The letter is addressed to in 't Veld, but a copy of it was also sent to Manfred Weber, leader of the European People's Party (EPP) in the Parliament.

The EPP, of which Janša's Democrats (SDS) are a member, has not commented on Friday's developments which saw Janša falling out with in 't Veld at the group's public debate on the situation in Slovenia.

The prime minister had a video about attacks on media and journalists which he insisted should be screened as part of the debate before questions time, whereas in 't Veld refused to allow that. She did say, however, the video could be shown at the end of the debate.

Janša responded by accusing her of censorship. Over the weekend he then wrote on Twitter that Slovenia owed nothing to Brussels. Some Slovenians have been paying the price of freedom and democracy for 35 years and "overpaid bureaucrats who were born into prosperity will not preach to us about freedom and democracy", he said.

He went on to say that Slovenians will never agree " to be censored by self-proclaimed ombudsmen. We did not allow [Slobodan] Milosevic to do that, nor will we allow @SophieintVeld or @CiolosDacian to do so."

MEP in 't Veld strongly rejected Janša's allegations of censorship earlier today, highlighting that the group's door was always open.

She finds it regrettable that an impression has been made that the Parliament is Slovenia's opponent. That is very far from the truth, she said, noting that the group would do all it could to help Slovenia avert a scenario that had been seen in Hungary and Poland.

STA, 29 March 2021 - The Janez Janša government enjoys support of 31.1% of those polled in the latest poll Mediana carried out for private broadcaster POP TV. This is the lowest in a POP TV poll since the government took office over a year ago and down from 36% in the previous poll, the only time when its approval rating improved.

Over 57% of those polled do not support the government, whereas 11.3% are undecided.

The ruling Democrats (SDS) remain in the lead with 18.7% support, up 0.5 percentage points, followed by the opposition Social Democrats (SD) with 10.9%, down from 11%, and the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) with 9.6%, up 1.7 points.

If elections were held last Sunday, 8.3% would vote for the opposition Left and 4.6% for the coalition New Slovenia (NSi).

All the other parliamentary parties enjoy support of less than 4%, with the opposition Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) and the coalition Modern Centre Party (SMC) doing the worst among them, as both received less than 1.5% support.

A total of 16.5% of the respondents were undecided, whereas 11.9% would not vote for any of the parties.

The most popular politician is Health Minister Janez Poklukar, who appeared in POP TV's poll for the first time.

NSi's MEP Ljudmila Novak (EPP) placed second, overtaking President Borut Pahor, who is now third.

NSi leader and Defence Minister Matej Tonin lost his third place to end up ninth, while Prime Minister Janša slipped from 14th to 16th.

The respondents were also asked about their interest in Covid-19 vaccination, with over 45% saying they intended to get vaccinated.

A third of a total of 713 polled persons will not get vaccinated, almost 13% are still undecided, and around 9% have already been vaccinated.

A fifth assessed Slovenia's vaccination campaign as successful, whereas 38.1% believe the country is neither successful nor unsuccessful.

A total of 35.6% meanwhile believe it is unsuccessful, of whom almost 33% blame it on the government's inappropriate response, almost 21% believe the vaccines are not adequately checked, over 11% blame it on the producers' low production capacities and 8% cited low trust in vaccination.

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

If you’d like to keep up on the daily headlines then follow those here, or get all our stories in your feed on Facebook.

FRIDAY, 19 March
        LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor, Prime Minister Janez Janša and speakers of both houses of parliament, Igor Zorčič and Alojz Kovšca, got vaccinated with the AstraZeneca Covid-19 jab to boost the public's confidence in the vaccine following a brief suspension of its use in Slovenia.
        LJUBLJANA - The motion to oust Labour Minister Janez Cigler Kralj, brought by four centre-left opposition parties, was defeated by 44 votes to 38, following a 17-hour debate that focused on the minister's handling of the Covid-19 outbreak in care homes.
        LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša met representatives of the Islamic Community to discuss interreligious and intercultural dialogue "as a pillar of trust-based relations among members of different religions and cultures" and the community's activity during the epidemic.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium/THE HAGUE, Netherlands - Interior Minister Aleš Hojs listed a comprehensive EU migration policy, stronger Schengen zone, high degree of security in the bloc, and Western Balkans as the top priorities of Slovenia's presidency of the EU after two days of meetings with senior Belgian, Dutch and EU officials in preparations for the presidency.
        LJUBLJANA - The government included military projects worth 170 million into the development plan, including modernisation of the military communication and information system, overhaul of the Ljubljana barracks, purchase of a tactical-transport aircraft and upgrade of the Bell helicopter fleet.
        LJUBLJANA - Bernardin Akitoby, chief of the IMF mission for Slovenia, said the institution's forecast for Slovenia's economic growth for 2021 was being downgraded from 5.2% to 3.7%, in 2022 the economy is to grow by 4.5% to return to the pre-pandemic growth level.
        LJUBLJANA - Energy company Petrol reported a 30% decline in sales revenue and net profit for 2020, at EUR 3 billion and EUR 72.3 million, respectively, a deterioration blamed on the Covid-19 pandemic.
        BERLIN, Germany - Slovenian composer Petra Strahovnik, a graduate of the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, won the Art Prize for music from the Academy of Arts in Berlin. In her work, Strahovnik discusses themes from social margins, such as autism, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and ADHD.

SATURDAY, 20 March
        LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor spoke over the phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to mark ten years since the countries signed a strategic partnership agreement that they said had accelerated economic cooperation and deepened political dialogue. They also discussed EU-Turkey relations with Pahor urging "dialogue and a constructive resolution of issues in the East Mediterranean".
        MARIBOR - Five and a half months after resigning as the leader of the Pensioners' Party amidst an ethics scandal, Aleksandra Pivec, a former agriculture minister, founded a new party, Our Land. The inaugural congress heard the party would pursue a policy of "forging ties, dialogue, cooperation and higher level of political culture".

SUNDAY, 21 March
        NIZHNY TAGIL, Russia - Nika Križnar won silver in the women's Ski Jumping World Cup event to reclaim the yellow bib of the overall leader.
        LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland - Meta Hrovat placed third in the women's giant slalom at the World Cup finale in her second podium of the season to end 9th in the overall giant slalom standings and 25th in the overall standings as Slovenia's best female skier this season.

MONDAY, 22 March
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - Slovenia and five other EU member states presented at a session of the EU foreign ministers a non-paper on Bosnia-Herzegovina urging the EU to retain a focus on the country.
        LJUBLJANA - Appearing in questions time in parliament, Prime Minister Janez Janša argued it would make little sense for Slovenia to opt to register the Russian Sputnik V vaccine past the European Medicines Agency because the local regulator's procedure would take longer than EMA's. He also noted that the Russian vaccine was in short supply.
        LJUBLJANA - Commenting on the stalled appointment of delegated EU prosecutors, Prime Minister Janez Janša told MPs the government was considering changing the appointment procedure because it relegated the government to the role of a "mail carrier".
        LJUBLJANA - Hospitality establishments in the Primorsko-Notranjska were allowed to serve customers outdoors after the region joined Posavje and South-East Slovenia in yellow tier of coronavirus restrictions.
        LJUBLJANA - World Water Day was headlined by calls by experts and officials against rash solutions that could jeopardise the constitutional right to clean drinking water, in the light of amendments to the waters act that would loosen the rules for water protection areas. An amendment allowing construction of manufacturing facilities which use hazardous materials in water protected areas was later withdrawn, but not the one allowing construction of public infrastructure in coastal areas.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek told an informal session of EU ministers for competitiveness Slovenia was in favour of the concept of strategic autonomy in the EU as an opportunity to reduce the bloc's reliance on third-country suppliers, but it must be balanced against the need for an open economy and compliance with the rules of free trade.
        LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor met representatives of the Slovenian minority in Italy to discuss the progress in the restitution of National Hall in Trieste to the minority and the minority's efforts for political representation at the national level.

TUESDAY, 23 March
        LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly endorsed a declaration on Slovenia's activities in EU institutions in 2021-2024. The main topics are improving the resilience of the EU to crises, green transition and the rule of law, which match the priorities of Slovenia's upcoming presidency of the Council of the EU. The opposition criticised the document for being too generalised.
        LJUBLJANA - Meeting the ambassadors of EU countries, President Borut Pahor said that the EU perspective had been the engine of Slovenia's efforts for democratisation and independence and was thus woven into the country's history. Today, the EU should be more united, efficient and closer to people, he said.
        LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly unanimously passed changes to the pension legislation allowing for faster increase in pensions. The pension rate for persons with 40 years of pensionable service will be increased to 63.5% of the long-term average wage for both men and women.
        LONDON, UK - Ascent Resources announced it would initiate arbitration proceedings against Slovenia in a dispute over permits for the extraction of gas by means of hydraulic fracturing in Petišovci, after the state had failed to put forward a damages proposal. The company estimates the damage to be in excess of EUR 100 million.
        LJUBLJANA - Senior officials marked the 30th anniversary of Premik'91, a major military exercise that displayed a high level of organisation of the Slovenian Territorial Defence ahead of the declaration of independence. President Borut Pahor said the exercise had marked the true transformation of the Territorial Defence into the SAF, which had defended Slovenia's independence.

WEDNESDAY, 24 March
        LJUBLJANA - The government shortened the curfew from between 9pm and 6am to between 10pm and 5pm, and imposed a ban on movement into and out of Obalno-Kraška, Goriška and Koroška regions, which have the highest coronavirus infection rates. The government also decided that only negative PCR test result will be accepted to avoid quarantine on entering Slovenia, save for exceptions. Further restrictions are to be imposed following a cross-party meeting hosted by President Borut Pahor. This was after Slovenia entered a third wave of coronavirus with infections rising fast, with the 7-day new case count average rising to 882 and hospitalisations topping 500.
        LJUBLJANA - The government amended once again the national vaccination strategy, moving higher up on the list the age group of 60 and older, as well as the national Olympic team bound for Tokyo in the summer. The national coordinator of vaccination logistics, Jelko Kacin, said it was realistic to expect that 70% of Slovenia's population, or all adult residents, would be vaccinated by summer.
        LJUBLJANA/BRUSSELS, Belgium - The Foreign Ministry summoned Chinese Ambassador Wang Shunqing in response to sanctions imposed by China in retaliation for the EU's sanctions for its treatment of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang. The ministry described China's measures as unacceptable and expressed concern about human rights violations in Xinjiang and about the legislative changes affecting Hong Kong's autonomy. In Brussels, Foreign Minister Anže Logar said China's actions contradicted the EU's fundamental values, and would not contribute to an EU-China partnership to boost investment cooperation.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - Addressing reporters after a two-day meeting of NATO foreign ministers, Foreign Minister Anže Logar said Slovenia supported NATO's ambitious vision until 2030 as proposed by Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. As for the proposed strengthening of the common-funded budget, Logar said Slovenia shared the view of some other allies that detailed data should be obtained first.
        LJUBLJANA - The government extended until the end of June several measures to mitigate impact of Covid-19 on the population and businesses, including the universal basic income and partial reimbursement of a lost income for the self-employed during quarantine or inability to work due to force majeure or child care.
        LJUBLJANA - The Institute of Macroeconomic Analysis and Development (IMAD) upgraded its economic growth forecast for the country for this year to 4.6% from 4.3% in winter, to be followed by a 4.4% growth in 2022 and 3.3% in 2023.
        LJUBLJANA - The government endorsed an initiative for Slovenia to nominate beekeeping for the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list.
        LJUBLJANA - The national football team defeated Croatia 1:0 in a spectator-less opening qualifier for the 2022 World Cup in what was Slovenia's first ever win against the neighbouring country's side. Meanwhile, the under-21 team lost to Spain 0:3 at the outset of the he UEFA European Under-21 Championship co-hosted by Slovenia.

THURSDAY, 25 March
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - Prime Minister Janez Janša and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen discussed preparations for Slovenia's upcoming presidency of the Council of the EU, both labelling the discussion as good and constructive.
        LJUBLJANA - Seven EU leaders, including Prime Minister Janez Janša, addressed a letter to the European Commission, voicing their concern over what they see as little room for member states' individual policy making, including in nuclear energy development, left by the bloc's efforts to reach climate targets.
        LJUBLJANA - The motion of no confidence in Culture Minister Vasko Simoniti, brought by four centre-left opposition parties fell three votes short of the required outright majority to pass. The debate, stretched to two days, focused on his response to the Covid crisis in culture and his attitude to the self-employed in the sector and to public media.
        LJUBLJANA - National Assembly Speaker Igor Zorčič and head of the deputy group of the Modern Centre Party (SMC) Janja Sluga gave a miss to a session of the party council in a clear indication of an imminent split. The reason was the appointment of the head of the Greens as an aide to Economy Minister and SMC leader Zdravko Počivalšek, which they see as his forging new alliances.
        LJUBLJANA - Former Health Minister Tomaž Gantar quit the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) after the plan to consolidate the party failed. Agriculture Minister Jože Podgoršek is no longer party member for failing to resign as minister after DeSUS quit the coalition.
        LJUBLJANA - Head of the Slovenian Hoteliers' Association, Gregor Jamnik, described the situation in the industry as disastrous, warning that the bulk of businesses were not generating any revenue and would depend on state aid for a while longer as the industry would not fully recover in a decade.
        NOVO MESTO - The Renault-owned car assembly plant Revoz suspended production of all of its models for two days due to shortages in electronic parts or chips, a global problem due to an increase in the use of electronic devices during the Covid-19 pandemic.
        PLANICA - Japan's Ryoyu Kobayashi won the first event of the Ski Jumping World Cup finals in Planica, ahead of Germany's Markus Eisenbichler and Karl Geiger. The best local was Bor Pavlovčič in fifth.

The covers and editorials from leading weeklies of the Left and Right for the work-week ending Friday, 26 March 2021. All our stories about coronavirus and Slovenia are here

Mladina: Govt increasingly relying on repressive apparatus

STA, 26 March 2021 - Mladina says in its latest commentary that, as ever more people are losing trust in the government, the latter is increasingly relying on the repressive apparatus in exercising its power, adding that, in terms of repressiveness, Janez Janša has exceeded "his role model from Budapest" Viktor Orban.

"Life in Slovenia may become dangerous for many people in the coming months. And we are serious about the word 'dangerous'", the left-leaning weekly says in the commentary headlined Dangerous Times.

On behalf of the Democrats (SDS), Interior Minister Aleš Hojs continues to install political staff in all senior positions in the police, with one of the purposes being to intimidate police officers into shelving certain cases.

"The second reason is worse. It is a clear intention to use the police for political purposes," Mladina says, noting that the government adopted a decision last week that the police investigate Slovenian Press Agency (STA) director Bojan Veselinovič.

It has meanwhile been reported this week that criminal investigation has also been launched against Court of Audit president Tomaž Vesel, and the goal is the same - to make him nervous, to make him stop auditing their work, to step down, or at least withdraw from public.

"Against the disobedient and those who do not agree with it or are not willing to be subjugated to it, the government is using the repressive apparatus, i.e. the police," the weekly says, adding that this is not surprising at all.

Slovenia has arrived to a point where comparisons with Hungary are no longer appropriate, as "Janša has surpassed his role model from Budapest. There are realistic reasons for this: if Orban is convincing for the majority of Hungarians, for Slovenians Janša is not."

Actually, in selecting his methods, Janša is becoming increasingly similar to Vladimir Putin, Mladina says, concluding: "It is unbelievable what is happening in Slovenia. Reality has become worse than a nightmare."

Demokracija: Judiciary should be overhauled

STA, 25 March 2021 - You don't exactly have to be Einstein to see through the deep state's plan to undermine Janez Janša as legitimately and legally elected PM and harm him with a show trial when Slovenia presides the EU in the second half of 2021 and affect the outcome of the 2022 super-election year, Demokracija says in its editorial on Thursday.

The weekly affiliated with the ruling SDS comments on what is known as the Trenta case, which revolves around a piece of land in the Trenta Valley Janša bought in 1992 and sold in 2005 for nearly nine times the price he paid, and for which an indictment against him was filed last year over abuse of office.

The magazine recalls the Patria case, "a witch hunt which the deep state dragged over a period of three elections and thus indirectly influenced the election result, while nobody was held responsible for their base doings and Janša's unfair judgement, for which he spent 176 days in jail".

It says it the Patria case was an obvious fabrication and a political trial directed against SDS leader Janša, while those who are still able to think critically recognise the same pattern in the Trenta case, which Demokracija says could amount to another election fraud.

"If the indictment in the Patria case was absurd, the one in the Trenta case is also bizarre," the editorial runs, adding that in a free and democratic world buying a property and later selling it at a profit would be a normal transaction worthy of no attention, let alone of the prosecution getting interested in it.

"But if you are Janez Janša, enemy No.1 of the deep state, the case is dragging on only to end with an indictment - because you sold the property at a higher price than you bought it (true crime, right?) and you were prime minister when selling it. So you have automatically abused office."

Demokracija says that "suitable" judges have been engaged in Trenta proceedings to make sure that the unjustified criminal procedure continues, adding that "the deep state has woven a tapestry of abuse of power and fraud while its monstrous octopus is after all who dare oppose it".

"This is no conspiracy theory as the media mainstream would like to picture it. It is heavily materialised organised crime, the implementation of ideas of Antonio Gramsci and Saul Alinsky how to come to power and rule past democratic procedures and institutions."

The two-tier justice system where everything is safety packed as "independent" must be reformed, because it could grind anyone. "Just think how the deep state sent Janša, the leader of the largest political party and a public figure, to prison on the back of a judicial construct before your eyes."

All our posts in this series are here

STA, 26 March 2021 - Prime Minister Janez Janša's appearance in front of the European Parliament's democracy monitoring group was overshadowed by a row with chair Sophie in 't Veld over a video alleging journalists are biased. After In 't Veld refused to play the video during the time allotted for his statement, Janša disconnected from the videoconference.

This was the second debate of this parliamentary sub-committee about the freedom of media in Slovenia. While being invited, Janša and Culture Minister Vasko Simoniti did not take part in the first debate, and were both scheduled to appear today.

Appearing in front of a background with a number of images depicting expressions of criticism of the government and himself, Janša said that the debate was staged for the purpose of internal political affairs because it was likely of no interest to anybody outside the country.

He said that journalists in Slovenia had been beaten to death and fired while on their deathbeds, and proposed that the group watch a video about attacks on media and journalists.

This was followed by a long exchange with In 't Veld, who did not allow the video to be shown instead of Janša delivering his statement. She said the video would be forwarded to all group members to view. Janša, on the other hand, accused her of refusing to play the video because of its content.

Simoniti was scheduled to talk after Janša, but appeared to be offline and the group started the discussion. Following a question from German MEP Katarina Barley about alleged censorship at the newspaper Delo involving an opinion piece critical of the government, Janša's connection was also lost.

Janša then tweeted a link to the video and accused In 't Veld of censorship. Several sub-committee members expressed support for her decision during the debate, expressing the position that the purpose of the session was to interact with speakers and not watch videos.

Of course any material may be submitted for consideration and #DRFMG will study it at its earliest convenience. But the European Parliament is not obliged to do streaming on demand.

— Sophie in 't Veld (@SophieintVeld) March 26, 2021

The video, as shared by Janša on Twitter, lists a series of incidents targeting journalists in Slovenia. It opens and closes with the question of who really threatens democracy and the media in Slovenia.

It wonders whether journalists were truly unbiased, providing examples of journalists-come-politicians and journalists becoming spokespersons for political parties or the government. It also lists political officials who worked in the media.

It says that a big portion of Slovenian politicians "still equate journalism with propaganda. Thus they reward this activist journalism with seats in the national or European parliament," while the rare critical media are being suppressed and persecuted.

It also accuses "the Slovenian parties on the transitional left" of blaming others and exporting fabricated accusations to the EU and of "speaking of Orbanisation".

MEP Tanja Fajon, the president of the opposition Social Democrats (SD), said on Twitter that what had happened was a "disgrace for Slovenia" and the SD labelled Janša's appearance a "farce and unbecoming of a prime minister".

On the other hand, MEP Milan Zver of Janša's Democratic Party (SDS) said on Twitter that Sophie in 't Veld "censored the Slovenian prime minister" and that such a display of disrespect had never happened in the European Parliament before.

The SDS also tweeted that the video clip was censored.

MEP Ljudmila Novak of the coalition New Slovenia retweeted her recent statement in which she says that her greatest concern was Slovenia finding itself in the group of countries reproached for violating democracy, human rights and freedom of the press.

Klemen Grošelj and Irena Joveva (Renew/LMŠ) said ahead of the debate that they were concerned about what was going on in Slovenia and that the European Commission should apply all available tools to protect media freedom in the country.

STA, 25 March 2021 - The share of Slovenian residents concerned for their life or lives of their loved ones in March is lowest since the start of the Covid-19 epidemic a year ago, show results of a recent Mediana survey. Meanwhile, trust in government decisions and the ratings of the vaccine drive are declining.

The share of those who do not feel any concerns for their lives or lives of their families and friends is the largest since July 2020. On the other hand, the share of those who feel such concerns is the lowest since the start of such measurements in March 2020, standing at 40%.

Some 53% think that Covid measures are excessive given the situation and encroach on their personal freedom. Since November 2020 (32%), the share of residents who see the measures as appropriate despite encroaching on personal freedom has been declining, currently it is at 23%.

Some 22% believe that the measures are balanced in tackling health and economic issues. 18% consider them to be in favour of the economy at the expense of public health, whereas as much as 43% said the situation was the other way around.

Optimism expressed in February slightly decreased in the wake of the beginning of the third Covid-19 wave. Currently, 9% think that life will get better after the epidemic. On the other hand, 64% believe that life will likely take a turn for the worse after the epidemic.

About 44% think that other countries have been better at fighting Covid-19 than Slovenia. 18% trust the government to be ready for future global challenges.

The share of those who trust the government to make the right decisions for the nation has been dwindling since May 2020 and reached the lowest point in the most recent poll (17%).

Moreover, the numbers of those who are satisfied with the vaccine drive or government communication with the public dropped in March by 7% compared to the previous month. The most significant decrease was recorded in the category where respondents rated the government's efforts to procure Covid-19 vaccines - the share dropped from 21% in February to 12% in March.

The survey was conducted by the Mediana institute between 23 and 24 March among 504 respondents.

STA, 25 March 2021 - Prime Minister Janez Janša has proposed that President Borut Pahor call a meeting of the heads of parliamentary parties and deputy groups with the Health Ministry and its Covid-19 advisory group as soon as possible. Pahor meanwhile said that he had sent out invitations for Sunday morning.

The call from Janša came as the government is preparing to take additional measures by the end of the week due to a growing number of infections.

According to the prime minister's office, the Health Ministry proposes additional measures to stop the third wave of the epidemic at the proposal of its Covid-19 task force.

Janša said that because of the "worryingly rapid growth of infections and Covid-19 patients" the government was forced to discuss and adopt additional measures by the end of the week at the latest.

Based on the agreement from the last meeting of medical experts with the heads of parliamentary parties that any measures adopted by the government should be discussed by them first, Janša asked Pahor to call such a meeting as soon as possible.

"Representatives of the opposition stressed at the first meeting that they wanted to be acquainted with measures in more detail before they are adopted by the government, so now the government is taking the opposition's calls into account with the call to the president," Janša said.

He also proposed that the meeting be public, "so we can all get acquainted with the proposals and dilemmas we must face".

Janša proposes for the meeting to be held on Friday evening or on Saturday or Sunday, stressing though that the government must reach a decision on Sunday evening at the latest.

Pahor said in the afternoon that he called a meeting for Sunday at 10am, saying that all stakeholders wished the government take timely action at the start of the third wave. Participants will decide before the meeting whether it will be public, as proposed by Janša.

Some media have reported that the Covid-19 group could propose the government to introduce a full lockdown from 1 to 12 April due to the growing number of infections and hospitalisations.

Health Minister Janez Poklukar said today he did not wish to prejudge what the decision would be, noting it would be a political decision. "I'm counting on us taking a constructive position, which we will then present to the public," he said.

STA, 24 March 2021 - The government amended once again the national vaccination strategy on Wednesday, moving higher up on the list the age group of 60 and older, as well as the national Olympic team bound for Tokyo in the summer.

The changes were made due to the changing epidemiological situation and will take effect on Monday, a press release said after today's government session.

Healthcare workers and elderly care home staff remain at the top of the priority group list. They are followed by those aged 70 and over, especially vulnerable chronic patients and education staff.

The second priority group includes the age group of 60 and over and chronic patients who are not particularly vulnerable.

Diplomats and others involved in Slovenia's EU presidency in the second half of the year follow, as well as foreign diplomats in Slovenia and Armed Forces members set to be deployed abroad. This priority group now also includes Slovenia's Olympic team.

The next priority group includes MPs and national councillors, some expert services staff, the government and staff at ministries vital for the government, the president and his office, mayors and Constitutional Court judges, as well as vital staff in judiciary, the police, the military and the Civil Protection Administration.

Next up will be those working in the sectors of energy, transport, food, pharmaceutical industry, water supply, finance, environmental protection and IT, as well as other staff vital for the state.

They will be followed by the rest of the population in the order individuals applied for vaccination.

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