Smer-SD Files Criminal Complaints against Three Pundits

Bratislava, March 7 (TASR) - The opposition Smer-SD party has filed criminal complaints against three political commentators, namely Marian Lesko, Michal Havran and Tomas Hudak, claiming that they falsely accuse the party in their works. Member of the Smer-SD leadership Igor Melicher explained at a press conference that the complaint against Lesko concerns his claims that the alleged abduction of a Vietnamese national via Slovakia to Vietnam in 2017 was orchestrated with the help of the then government in which Smer played a major role. The complaint against Hudak deals with remarks describing Smer-SD as an organised criminal group. As for Havran, the complaint against him concerns his claims that Smer supports the genocide of the Ukrainian people. According to Smer vice-chair Erik Kalinak, the claims of these pundits are demonstrable lies. "The criminal complaints should not be understood as an attack on journalists or the media, they are factual criticism and, above all, a mirror serving as a reminder that there should be certain red lines in the work of the media and journalists that should not be crossed under any circumstances," said Melicher. Kalinak opined that the pundits didn't provide evidence in their articles that would in any way legitimise their claims. According to him, this constitutes the crime of false accusation. zel/df