Police claim that newly elected Prime Minister Robert Fico’s mobilisation of hundreds of police and soldiers at the border only deterred two groups of migrants without apprehending either, with the opposition questioning the wisdom of his attempt to show strength amid dwindling migrant numbers in a likely bid to take credit.
No migrants were caught during the one-night-only crackdown on the Slovak-Hungarian border, but the government is happy with its results.
“This operation was to make it clear to the whole world that Slovakia is no longer a safe transit country,” said Interior Minister Matúš Šútaj Eštok, adding that the “deterrence” included hundreds of police officers, soldiers, dog handlers and equipment such as thermal vision vehicles, drones, boats and a water cannon, some of which were borrowed from the Czech Republic.
While Šútaj Eštok said the operation was over for now, he is ready to repeat it if necessary, noting that such “preventative” measures are more economically efficient than “taking care” of migrants who arrive in Slovakia to travel further west.
However, this is something the opposition disagrees with.
“We will ask him how much this has cost us all,” said Progressive Slovakia leader Michal Šimečka, calling the event a “smokescreen” to divert attention from the government’s “police purge”.
Critics previously questioned the need for this crackdown, arguing that the number of migrants was already dwindling due to colder weather, a phenomenon that occurs every year and that Fico’s government was using this opportunity to take credit.
Immediately after taking office, Fico’s government announced sweeping changes. Šútaj Eštok suspended a group of police investigators led by Ján Čurilla, who were investigating high-level corruption from the Smer era.
Slovakia’s Whistleblower Protection Office protects the investigators, so the action could result in a fine of up to €100,000 per unfairly suspended officer.
Fico’s government is also looking to lower punishments for economic and property crime and replace prison time with electronic tagging or “alternative sentences”. Over 40 people from the Smer era were recently convicted for various corruption-related crimes.
During a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Fico described the events as a “criminalisation of the opposition” and criticised the Commission for “ignoring” it.
(Barbara Zmušková | Euractiv.sk)
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