Fico: European Parliament Has No Right to Supervise Slovakia

Bratislava, June 2 (TASR) - The European Parliament (EP) has no right to supervise the Slovak Republic or order us to do anything, Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) said in his press statement on Monday following his meeting with the EP’s monitoring group for democracy, the rule of law, and fundamental rights. According to Fico, receiving the delegation was a gesture of basic respect and courtesy toward the MEPs. The Prime Minister appreciated that the MEPs engaged with the topics in a factual manner. One of the subjects discussed was last week’s visit of the EP’s Budgetary Control Committee, led by Czech MEP Tomas Zdechovsky. Fico reiterated his criticism of Zdechovsky’s comments directed at the Slovak government. „We explained very clearly how we perceived and continue to perceive this provocation by the Czech MEP,” the Prime Minister remarked. Fico stated that the MEPs acknowledged that the current government has not adopted any legislative measures affecting human rights, democracy, or the rule of law. He also mentioned that the relationship between the government and the media was one of the issues discussed. The abolition of the Special Prosecutor’s Office was also addressed. „They were informed that all cases have been reassigned, that former special prosecutors are now working within the General Prosecutor’s Office, and that those matters are continuing to be handled,” the Prime Minister explained. He repeated that there is no open issue between the Slovak government and the European Commission regarding criminal law reform. According to Fico, the discussion also touched on the proposed constitutional amendment, particularly the primacy of national law in matters of national identity. He emphasized that in questions such as marriage, national law should take precedence. He claimed that the NGO bill is not subject to any criticism from the EU. In addition, Fico said he asked the EP representatives to form a similar mission to examine the years 2020 to 2023, pointing to what he called double standards, and referenced the death of a Slovak citizen at a Belgian airport. Sophie Wilmes, head of the EP monitoring group for democracy, rule of law, and fundamental rights, clarified before the meeting at the Slovak Government Office that the goal of the four-member delegation was to study and follow up on the rule of law report, which consists of several items. „The areas we’ll focus on include media freedom, the judiciary, separation of powers, and civil society,” she noted. Javier Zarzalejos, chair of the EP’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE), said they aim to cooperate with all relevant stakeholders to assess the current situation of democracy and the rule of law in Slovakia. mf