Anti-government protesters rally in Ljubljana
Anti-government protesters filled the square in front the parliament building in Ljubljana, Slovenia, in the first such rally since the right-of-centre government of Janez Janša took office in June.
The protest was called by the Voice of the People, an initiative bringing together more than 100 NGOs and several thousand individuals, which had led anti-government protests on bicycles under the previous Janša government in 2020-22, CE Report quotes The Slovenia Times.
The latest protest was prompted by "unacceptable and callous actions and lies" by Boris Mijić, an MP for the government-supporting populist Truth party who has been facing allegations of fraud, unpaid debts and lying about his university degree.
The protesters - around 2,500 by police estimates - accused Janša's coalition of dismantling the welfare state and public healthcare systems while relying on the political support of Truth party. They see its scandal-ridden MP as a "symptom" of a ruling coalition plagued by "acute corruption, greed, and an unbridled lust for power".
The rally, which featured Palestinian flags and banners calling for the fall of Janša's fourth government, read a petition calling for Mijič's resignation and a by-election that has allegedly garnered over 15,000 signatures.
In a style similar to similar protests in the past the demonstrators staged a mock arrest, carrying away a symbolic representation of Mijič in a cardboard police car.
Several opposition figures, including the leadership of the Left party, attended the demonstration.
Speakers from civil society and labour groups used the platform to condemn systemic violations of workers' rights, pointing to Mijič's business practices as indicative of wider corporate exploitation.
Activists called for greater solidarity with precarious and foreign workers, warning of the creeping privatisation of public services. They also urged the public to vote against government-backed measures in upcoming referendums, specifically targeting an omnibus bill they said would further erode the social safety net while rewarding the wealthy.
The controversy surrounding Mijič, whom his party is expected to replace only after a 10 October deadline to prevent losing a parliamentary seat, centres on his former construction firm, Progros, which owes tens of thousands of euros to workers and the state following liquidity issues.
Mijič, who is also accused of falsifying his educational credentials, subsequently transferred ownership of the heavily indebted company to Rok Snežič, a controversial tax adviser. Snežič then renamed the firm and bizarrely changed its registered primary business activity to camel breeding.
Republic Square in front of the National Assembly is a symbolic venue, having witnessed anti-government protests since before the country gained independence. Under the previous centre-left government a series of protests were held there by a pensioners' movement led by a former member of Janša's Democratic Party (SDS). Those protests too were joined by the then opposition.
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