Slovakia: assassination attempt on prime minister

After the cabinet meeting, the prime minister wanted to greet his supporters (Smer and Hlas won more than 50 percent of the vote in the recent parliamentary elections in Handlova). Then shots were fired. Fico lost his balance, fell over. Security guards reacted, thanks to which moments later he was already in a government limousine to drive away towards the hospital.

At the same time, security and police pacified a man who was about to shoot at the prime minister. He is a 71-year-old retired miner who used to work in Handlova, and more recently as a security guard at a shopping center in Levice, where he lives. He legally possessed the weapons. In addition, he is the author of three volumes of poetry and a member of the Slovak Writers’ Union. In his work, he repeatedly wrote negatively about “Gypsies.” Media outlets also report that in the past he was linked to the pro-Russian paramilitary group Slovenskí Branci, which spread pro-Kremlin propaganda in Slovakia.

First coup in history

This is the first time in modern Slovak history that an assassin has directly threatened the life of a high-ranking politician.

Politicians often receive various threats, especially via the Internet. On this basis, many of them were strengthened protection. A lot of experience in this includes. Fico and Igor Matovič. In February 2023, former Defense Minister Jaroslav Nadia received a sharp bullet in an envelope.

The most serious case documented by police was the shooting of two people by a killer outside the Tepláreň bar on Zámocka Street in Bratislava in October 2022. The investigation revealed that the attacker’s main target was then Prime Minister Edurad Heger. The killer waited for him in front of the house where he lived, but did not find him there.

When asked about the reasons, political scientists unanimously say that Slovaks are a highly polarized society and the attack on the prime minister should serve as a warning of what hatred and aggression spread in the public space can lead to. One can hear that there may be more similar incidents.

He who sows the wind…

It is worth recalling that Robert Fico, since losing the previous parliamentary elections in 2020, has regularly held press conferences in which he criticized and tried to discredit the government of the day, journalists and members of the judiciary. The reason, on the one hand, was fear of the noose tightening around his neck – at one point Fico was accused of founding and leading an organized crime group. On the other hand, he already saw that the only way to return to power was to befriend extreme voters.

The last few years he has been spreading hatred, insulting the media and pouring buckets of slander on anyone who might stand in his way of winning. Fico is spreading pro-Russian propaganda among his constituents , and internationally he is becoming a great friend of Ukraine, who wants to help it not only humanely, but also in the process of integration into the EU.

It was his party, Smer, that changed the language of Slovak politics, crossing borders. Meanwhile, Fico and coalition politicians had already tried to create the impression that they and Petr Pellegrini’s supporters were under pressure from hateful attacks by opposition voters and Ivan Korčok.

A month ago, Fico began warning of the atmosphere that followed the presidential election. “They are challenging government politicians in the streets, and I am just waiting when this frustration, so intensely exacerbated by Denník N, Sme and Aktuality.sk, will translate into the assassination of one of the government’s leading politicians.” – Prime Minister Fico said at the time.

Condemned by all, coalition as always divides

Immediately after news of the shooting of the prime minister appeared in the media, politicians, regardless of their party affiliation, unequivocally condemned the act.

But even such a tragic event did not stop for a moment the wave of attacks on journalists and the opposition. Shortly after the first news was published, the chairman of the coalition SNS party Andrej Danko blamed the media for the attack. In doing so, he named the same editorial boards that Fico had previously mentioned, and with which the government has not spoken since October 2023. “Are you satisfied now?” – Danko asked the journalists.

He was echoed by Smer Vice Chairman Ľuboš Blaha, shouting to reporters: “You have made targets out of all of us!”.

Not coincidentally, the attacks on the media also took place on the day the prime minister was assassinated. The coalition government has long accused the country’s largest editorial offices of hostility and spreading false information, while coalition members are more frequent and willing to visit the editorial offices of disinformation media, whom they thank for their “honest journalistic work.” It is worth recalling that the Minister of Culture is Martina Šimkovičová, who used to be a presenter of the national TV Markíza, but was expelled from it for posts full of hatred towards migrants. He is now the main star of the pro-Russian, disinformation-spreading Slovan Internet TV.

On the day of the assassination attempt, the parliament was debating a bill to change Slovak public television. The coalition has made no secret of the fact that it wants to create a government TV station along the lines of the writ TVP, something that some members of the public disagree with. Opposition protests in defense of RTVS were to be held that day, but after the attack, organizers canceled them.

What now?

The Prime Minister was transported by helicopter to a hospital in Banska Bystrica, where he underwent several hours of surgery. Information about his health status is conflicting for now. Some media report that Fico is in critical condition, while some government officials say he is in stable condition. There is no official position yet. Doctors at the Banská Bystrica hospital were banned from communicating with the media, and their phones were taken away.

In case of Robert Fica’s prolonged health indisposition, his place should be taken by one of the deputy prime ministers. There are currently four of them in the government. One is Defense Minister Robert Kaliňák, and since he and the prime minister are from the same party, it is likely that Kaliňák will temporarily take over. Other candidates are Economy Minister Denisa Saková of Hlas, her party colleague Peter Kmec, who is vice chairman of the recovery plan, and Environment Minister Tomáš Taraba of SNS.