STA, 24 June 2020 - Delo says in Wednesday's front-page commentary that the recent ID-ing of individuals police were guessing could attend the parallel ceremony organised by protesters on the occasion of Statehood Day is without precedent in democratic law-governed Slovenia.
The paper starts by dismissing PM Janez Janša's labelling of today's rival ceremony to be organised in Ljubljana's Prešeren Square as indecent and detestable, noting he had organised rival ceremonies several times while he was the opposition leader.
What is more, there are quite a few differences between Janša's alternative ceremonies and the event being organised in Prešeren square. The latter is a citizens' event, not one that would be organised by parliament's political opposition.
There is nothing indecent about people celebrating Statehood Day, it is just a sign they identify with the state, even if they may not agree with the actions of the ruling coalition.
The alternative ceremony has not been officially registered and will cause a violation of the ban on gatherings in excess of 500 people still in place due to Covid-19.
The police responded to the development ahead of time, starting to ID last Friday those handing out flyers for the event, as well as passers-by, the reason being a suspicion they could break the law in the future.
"It is crucial to put the approach of the police in a historical context. Since the onset of democratic legal order, the police has never dealt with potential illegal actions that could happen in the future. The police is too serious an institution to be delving in fortune telling. The holiday will happen. If you will be celebrating it together with fellow citizens, wear a mask," Delo says in the commentary Celebrating with a Mask (Praznovanje z masko).
