Slovak elections, riots and rising tensions in the Middle East
Štefan Harabin at the press briefing of his new political party VLASŤ (Motherland). Photo: Denník N - Tomáš Benedikovič.
Maximilian Weber / November 13
Recent events through the eyes of Maximilian Weber
( 6 min read )
Slovakia
As the Slovak judge Štefan Harabin prepares to retire from his career in the judiciary sphere of Slovakia, he plans to officially enter politics in the next month and kick off his new party Vlasť (Motherland), he might not only kick off his political career but also escape justice; as now that he is abandoning his post as a judge, there might be little time left for him to be persecuted and disciplined for abusing his position as judge.
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The Minister of Justice, Gabor Gál, proposed disciplinary actions against the corrupt judge two weeks ago, however, they were not even the strictest ones that could have been pursued. Instead of having to resign from his post as the judge, Harabin would only face a 70 percent reduction in his salary for his breach of conduct as a judge. However, by the time the disciplinary senate could even decide if it will follow through with the proposal, it is highly likely that Harabin will no longer even be a judge.
Recently, this aspiring politician has been keeping himself busy. He has announced his intention of meeting with Marían Kotleba, the leader of the fascist ĽSNS party (People’s Party Our Slovakia). Harabin expressed that he wished to negotiate terms for cooperation in the formation of a government in the upcoming 2020 parliamentary elections. That said, Harabin is not the only politician that sees the ascendant far-right party of Slovakia as a potential ally - correspondents of SMER SD have announced that they might have intentions of working with ĽSNS if it will be necessary for them to form a new government after the 2020 elections.
Though this might all seem as bleak news, there is a silver lining to this development - a recent poll has found that more than half of the current voters see as Fico and Harabin as the biggest liars in Slovak politics (with R. Sulík - the leader of Sloboda a Solidarita (Freedom and Solidarity) party - not so far behind). With such a negative view of the establishment, it is possible that certain elements of the LSNS voter base might turn away from the party after they see Kotleba associating himself with the establishment that he preaches so violently against.
Marian Kotleba and his MPs at the parliament. Photo: SITA
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Last but not least, the President of Slovakia, Zuzana Čaputová, has recently returned a motion by the parliament which would put a 50-day moratorium on pre-electoral polls and research, as she found it unconstitutional. The bill was passed through parliament by SMER and ĽSNS MPs, and would severely impede the access to free information about the popularity of political parties for citizens in the days leading up to the election.
Middle East
As tensions between nearly all neighbors remain high in perhaps the most geopolitically divided regions of the world, a Jordanian land lease to Israel has expired this week, and Jordan has successfully managed to reintegrate this land. The foreign ministry of Israel has stated it’s regret for the Jordanian government to take such drastic decisions, while the Jordani King Abdullah cited Israel’s quote-on-quote “provocative” behavior of Israel for the failure to renew the land lease to Israel. On the other end, many Israeli farmers who now have to choose between moving out or facing “inefficient” bureaucracy should they wish to stay saw the failure to renew the land lease as embarrassing and as a political failure.
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In neighboring Syria, a protester was killed on Friday after being run over by the Turkish military, which was passing through an angry crowd of Syrian protesters. The death serves as another reminder of the consequences of the Trump administration’s decision to pull out of Syria - and essentially giving the Turkish government free reign in the region. During the commotion, ten other people were hospitalized as the Turkish forces fired tear gas to disperse the protestors. As tensions mount, prospects for an end to Syrian conflict are once again shot down by another intrusion on Syrian and Kurdish self-determination by a foreign power.
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In the nearby state Iraq, the domestic situation looks grim as well - the government had used excessive force to crackdown on protests in Baghdad, with 6 deaths as a result of the firing of live rounds. With the Iraqi security forces moving to take background they lost to protestors, casualties are mounting with over a hundred reported injuries. Many protesters that demand a reformed government and an end to the corruption look with dissolution to the international community as their calls for support go unanswered.
Iraqi protesters run from tear gas fired by security forces at Baghdad's Khallani square during ongoing anti-government demonstrations, Nov. 12, 2019. Photo: Ahmad al-Rubaye/AFP via Getty Images.
Hong Kong
With upcoming district council election, the city of Hong Kong remains plagued with a protester-police conflict for the 22nd straight week. With the high tensions and civil unrest in the city, there has been talk within the city’s pro-Beijing camp of postponing the city council elections. They argue that elections should not be held when tear gas rounds and petrol bombs have become a common site in certain districts of the city. It is likely that there is also an ulterior agenda behind the planned postponement - and that is the likelihood of a lower voter turnout should the elections be postponed. This is because many pan-democratic and anti establishment candidates are convinced that there will be a historically high voter turnout should the council elections be held this month. And, if they are right, it would mean that for the first time the pro-democratic parties would take control of the district councils away from the establishment. One should also note that such a move would be extremely unpopular, as only 17 percent of Hongkongers expressed an opinion supportive of delaying the elections.
However, pro-democratic candidates are not scared of a postponement in elections either - they feel that an anti-establishment sentiment has by now been engraved in the people of Hong Kong, and that this sentiment will be reflected in the ballot box. And should the elections be postponed, the pro democratic candidates argue that the streets still remain a viable outlet for opposing the pro-Mainland establishment.
Protesters march on a street during a rally against the extradition law proposal, June 9, 2019, in Hong Kong. Photo: Anthony Kwan/Getty Images
On the topic of rioting, the Hong Kong police have once cheerfully shown the public that they are happy to uphold law, order and civil society, as one of the police officers has expressed an intention to celebrate the death of protestors “with champagne”. This heinous sentiment expressed by the police officers represents a growing divide in the city of Hong Kong - a divide between people wanting a democratic government and a government propped up by the PRC. The Police have done little to make a good name for themselves - the use of live rounds, unprecedented force and a refusal to allow people to protest had effectively turned the world’s least corrupt police force into a symbol of oppression.
This does not mean the police have been able to keep the protestors from appearing - quite the contrary - the police failed to stop rioting this week despite increasingly aggressive tactics used against the protesters. As a response to the barring of Joshua Wong Chi-Fung from the district council election, massive protests sprung up around Hong Kong this week, with clashes happening all around the autonomous city. However, even though the police have made over 200 arrests, the protesters still managed to vandalize business tied to mainland China, as well as set fires in cases of arson all around the city. With no end in sight and Mainland authorities pushing for tighter national security, the world holds its breath as the protests progressively climb towards a dubious, yet inevitable, climax.
