How Slovakians Beat the Oligarchs
January 10, 2019 10:54 AM   Subscribe

 
Forgetting the undefined and undifferentiated claim of “authoritarianism” in Hungary Poland and Czech Republic I’m not sure the headline actually reflects the article.

To read that “Although Slovakia’s leaders have changed, their autocratically oriented government remains in control” seems hardly a ringing endorsement, and perhaps seems to indicate that it’s not the outlier the writer claims.

Wish fulfilment perhaps?
posted by Middlemarch at 11:43 AM on January 10, 2019


Yes, this is far from over - "Balogová and others, though, are still not convinced that Slovakia has succeeded in shrugging off the menace of oligarchy" - seems like this is calling a winner in the first quarter of a game...
posted by PhineasGage at 12:14 PM on January 10, 2019 [2 favorites]


“It was not very nice—an ugly thing,” Fulmek told me, of this betrayal. “In the past, people thought Western owners were good.”

You aren't the first to make this mistake and you won't be the last.
posted by klanawa at 1:34 PM on January 10, 2019 [1 favorite]


Some counterpoint: Slovakia is run by serious xenophobes (the new PM is on the same path), racism runs rampant, the elites are corrupt and hate independent journalism with a passion (well Fico did anyway and as the article points out - this anin't over), and the oligarchs are doing fine.
The recent resignation of Fico as mentioned in the article is a step in the right direction, but I'm not sure any other model other than that of semi-authoritarian, post-democratic, oligarchy is seriously on the table for most of Eastern Europe, absent a very persistent popular movement, and anyway it seems to have been less rapacious than in neighboring countries.
The current government is a collaboration of the so-called Social Democrats with the Hungarian Minority Party and a far-right party BTW.
posted by talos at 4:03 PM on January 10, 2019 [6 favorites]


Close on the heels of recent, notable demonstrations in Hungary against Orban's "slave law", protests are growing in neighboring Serbia, too: F. Stojanovski (Global Voices) Protests against President Aleksandar Vučić spread from Belgrade to cities across Serbia.
posted by progosk at 6:30 AM on January 11, 2019 [1 favorite]


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