Slovenia by Damjan Lajh Capital: Ljubljana Population: 2.0 million GNI/capita, PPP: US$26,470 Source: !e data above was provided by !e World Bank, World Development Indicators 2011. Nations in Transit Ratings and Averaged Scores 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Electoral Process 1.75 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 Civil Society 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.75 1.75 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 Independent Media 1.75 1.75 1.75 1.50 1.75 2.00 2.25 2.25 2.25 2.25 Governance* 2.25 2.25 2.00 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a National Democratic 2.00 Governance n/a n/a n/a 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 Local Democratic 1.50 Governance n/a n/a n/a 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 Judicial Framework 1.75 and Independence 1.75 1.75 1.75 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.75 1.75 Corruption 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.25 2.25 2.25 2.50 2.50 2.50 Democracy Score 1.83 1.79 1.75 1.68 1.75 1.82 1.86 1.93 1.93 1.93 * Starting with the 2005 edition, Freedom House introduced separate analysis and ratings for national democratic governance and local democratic governance to provide readers with more detailed and nuanced analysis of these two important subjects. NOTE: !e ratings reflect the consensus of Freedom House, its academic advisers, and the author(s) of this report. !e opinions expressed in this report are those of the author(s). !e ratings are based on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 representing the highest level of democratic progress and 7 the lowest. !e Democracy Score is an average of ratings for the categories tracked in a given year. 524 Nations in Transit 2011 E S lovenia underwent many parallel transformations in the period from the end of the 1980s to the start of the 1990s, including changing its economic and political system and establishing itself as an internationally recognized Sstate. Having proclaimed its independence on June 25, 1991, Slovenia joined the United Nations in 1992, the Council of Europe in 1993, and the European Union (EU) and NATO in 2004. On January 1, 2007, the Slovenian currency, the tolar, was replaced by the euro, and at the end of December 2007 Slovenia entered the Schengen zone. In 2008 Slovenia passed another maturity test on the European stage by holding the Presidency to the Council of the European Union from January to July of that year as the first of the 12 new EU member states to do so. In July 2010 Slovenia became a full member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). National Democratic Governance. As Slovenia’s economy continued to struggle against sharply rising unemployment, the government coalition faced internal conflicts and instability. !e Minister of Environment and Minister of Economy resigned, while the Democratic Party of Retired Persons of Slovenia, part of the coalition government, was strongly dissatisfied with the pension reform proposal. Two interpellations were raised against the Minister of Interior Affairs and Minister of Education and Sport. Dissatisfaction with government-proposed measures drew demonstrations from employees in the public sector and students. Slovenia’s rating for national democratic governance remains unchanged at 2.00. Electoral Process. Local elections were held in Slovenia in 208 out of 210 municipalities on October 10, 2010 (and a second round in the mayoral elections on October 24). Due to a decision by the Constitutional Court, elections were not held in the municipalities of Koper and Trebnje, where new municipalities needed to be split off based on the results of a 2009 referendum. Independent candidates were the absolute winners in the mayoral elections, of whom 70 were elected, while in the municipal council elections the best results were achieved by the oppositional Slovenian Democratic Party. !e local elections were marked by low turnout (50.28 percent in the first round and 48.81 percent in the second round), a large share of reelected mayors, extremely low share of elected women candidates, and the first elected black mayor in Eastern Europe. Slovenia’s electoral process rating remains unchanged at 1.50. Civil Society. In 2010, controversy continued over the adoption of the Family Law Act, including a provision to allow same-sex couples to adopt, which was still at Slovenia 525 the level of debate in parliamentary committee. Another years-old controversy was resolved when a bill was passed on the status of the “erased,” the thousands of non- Slovene Yugoslavs remaining in the country when it achieved independence who didn’t file for Slovenian citizenship in time. With the new act on the so-called erased persons, the government allows these individuals to submit applications to obtain a permit for permanent residence in Slovenia. !e government was also the focus of opposition from many civil society groups, primarily dissatisfied trade unions and students who opposed the Mini Job Act, which aims to regulate special forms of employment like student jobs and temp work. Slovenia’s civil society rating remains unchanged at 2.00. Independent Media. !ere were several threats against journalists during the year, including a death threat by the son of the mayor of Ljubljana against a newspaper journalist. On October 20, the National Assembly adopted the new Act on Radio-Television Slovenia, but days later 32 deputies requested a legislative referendum, which was held December 12. Critics opposed the act because it would change Radio-Television Slovenia (RTVSLO) from a state to a public broadcaster, decouple RTVSLO employee pay from government worker pay, and require programming for minorities from the other former Yugoslav republics. Only 14.8 percent of voters participated in the referendum on the act, which was voted down by a margin of 44.6 percent. Slovenia’s independent media rating remains unchanged at 2.25. Local Democratic Governance. In 2010, the controversial issue of establishing provinces in Slovenia was left on the back burner as in previous years. At the beginning of November, the government prepared legislation promoting balanced regional development and submitted it to the National Assembly for adoption. During the year there were controversial debates over Ljubljana mayor Zoran Janković. While some argued that during Janković’s mandate the Slovenian capital had finally started to develop properly, others talked about the “Berlusconization” of Ljubljana and high local-budget debt. Despite all the critics, Janković convincingly won a new mayoral mandate. Slovenia’s rating for local democratic governance remains unchanged at 1.50. Judicial Framework and Independence. In Slovenia, the judicial system remains overburdened with long trial delays. In 2010, the opposition was very critical of the work of Minister of Justice Aleš Zalar, threatening interpellation for his nomination of Branko Masleša as the new President of the Supreme Court. On the basis of journalistic reports, public questions were raised as to whether Supreme State Prosecutor Barbara Brezigar had ordered internal control over the work of State Prosecutor Branka Zobec Hrastar, who was directing the pre-trial proceedings in the controversial corruption case against the Finnish company Patria. !is case included an indictment against Brezigar’s ally, former Prime Minister Janez Janša. Slovenia’s judicial framework and independence rating remains unchanged at 1.75. 526 Nations in Transit 2011 Corruption. In August 2010, in the so-called Patria affair, an indictment was filed against five persons, including president of the Slovenian Democratic Party (and former Prime Minister) Janez Janša. Other corruption cases during the year were directly or indirectly linked to the construction sector. A deputy of the National Assembly was sentenced to imprisonment due to corruption and other criminal acts. Investigators also detained a District Attorney who was suspected of taking a bribe. At the end of May 2010, the Act on Integrity in the Public Sector was adopted to stimulate fair and transparent behavior among civil servants and good practices in decision-making processes. Slovenia’s corruption rating remains unchanged at 2.50. Outlook for 2011. Slovenia will continue to face pressure to resolve the financial and economic crisis causing the country’s increasing rate of unemployment and lagging wages. !e government coalition will continue working to resolve internal political conflicts and instability. Although the National Assembly at the end of 2010 passed pension reform legislation, this issue will also be high on the Slovenian political agenda in 2011. Controversial debates on adopting the proposed Family Law Bill will likewise continue. Nongovernmental actors have predicted initiatives to call referendums in 2011, especially concerning the adoption of the pension reform and Mini Job Act. Slovenia 527 M R National Democratic Governance 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 n/a n/a n/a 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 !e constitution defines Slovenia as a democratic republic based on the rule of law. !e separation of powers is provided through checks and balances among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. !e country’s system of government has achieved stability without coercion, violence, or other abuse of basic rights and civil liberties. Citizens may participate in decision-making processes, and referendums have become a stable feature in Slovenian politics, although some experts argue they are frequently used in an undemocratic and illegitimate manner.1 !e Slovenian parliament consists of the National Assembly and National Council.