Can Protests In Slovakia Stop Fico’s Judicial Overhaul?

The EU wields the real power to put pressure on hard-skinned Fico

11 January 2024

Albin Sybera

Contributing Editor

Robert Fico and his cabinet remain in control of the judicial overhaul despite obstruction from the opposition and protests in the streets of Slovak cities and towns.

The very short answer to the title question is no. Protests in Slovakia are unlikely to change Robert Fico and his cabinet’s resolve to push ahead with legislative changes to the judiciary and criminal code.

Fico’s parliamentary power

Fico’s Smer-led cabinet – which combines a blend of populism, social conservatism and nationalism – holds a key advantage which makes it more likely that they will achieve their goal of dismantling the Special Prosecutor Office and thus bend the police and judiciary to their will.

Despite the spread of protests outside Slovakia’s liberal capital, Bratislava, and into regional cities and towns, the Smer-led cabinet still holds a narrow majority in the National Council (Parliament).

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Albin Sybera

Contributing Editor

Contributing Editor. Albin is a freelance journalist, consultant and a former clerk at the State Environmental Fund of the Czech Republic. Besides Visegrad Insight, his texts can be also found at Britské listy or Balkan Insight and he is also a news reporter covering Czechia and Slovakia at bne IntelliNews.

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