MEP: Slovenian PM blames everything on communism, even the Srebrenica Genocide

N1

The Slovenian Prime Minister blames everything on communism and did not refrain from even using the Srebrenica Genocide for his political agenda, one of the Slovenian MEPs who condemned Jansa’s recent statements regarding the tragedy, Irena Joveva, told N1 on Thursday.

As the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the 1995 Srebrenica Genocide was ongoing in Bosnia on July 11, Slovenian PM, Janez Jansa, tweeted two statements which were met with widespread criticism.

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In one of them, he stated that the tragedy would never have happened if “the Communist ideology had been eliminated from the territory of the former Yugoslavia” and if “post-war killings in Slovenia and elsewhere” would have been condemned.

In the other one, Jansa argued the Srebrenica Genocide would not have taken place if “the UN had condemned the communist genocides in the same way as the Holocaust.”

“As this did not happen, despite a large number of people killed, the doctrine of the JNA (Yugoslav National Army) that the enemy must be destroyed physically was revived during the breakup of Yugoslavia,” Jansa tweeted.

This prompted Slovenian members of the European Parliament, Irena Joveva and Klemen Groselj, to write to EP President David Sassoli and ask for a “serious, EU-wide political discussion” on the matter, accusing Jansa of misinterpreting history and abusing the genocide for his political purposes.

Joveva called Jansa’s tweets “shameful.”

“I really couldn't believe it,” she said.

“I know he's capable of writing, saying and doing all kinds of things, but I never thought that (…) I mean, that day wasn't meant for him and his theories,” she said.

“That day was meant for remembering something terrible. On that day, all world and European leaders sent some normal messages,” she added.

Joveva said that the Slovenian PM lives “in some other year, definitely not year 2020” and that he “blames communism for everything.”

“I’m even expecting him to blame climate change on communism,” she said.

She also pointed out that Jansa refused to apologise for his statements when given the opportunity to do so in parliament.

“He didn't want to, he shook his head and started explaining some of his theories again.”

“I want to take the opportunity to apologize to everyone who suffers the consequences of that genocide which someone now abused for his internal purposes,” she said.