NEWS

The Slovenian Prime Minister, Janez Janša, today attended the ceremony to mark the decision on the Slovenian independence Poljče 1990 – 2012 organised by the Association for the Values of Slovenia's Independence. In his address, the Prime Minister highlighted in particular two features which significantly characterise this historic moment of 1990 and these are courage and integration. 

In this historic hall, the most important political decision with regard to the Slovenian independence was taken by the Demos coalition or the Demos group. "This courageous decision adopted in these premises resulted from the fact that the original plan of the Demos coalition regarding the independence of Slovenia in the way as to prepare the constitution and confirm it could not be realised without a two-thirds majority vote in the National Assemby. However, the Demos coalition did not have this majorityat that time, since the opposition did not support the idea," stated Prime Minister Janez Janša.  At that time, Slovenia was politically divided because the opposition supported the idea of loose confederation. It was an essential question about whether we will become masters on our own land. And the Demos intellectual circles presented the idea in this very hall that plebiscite was to be held first and the constitution was to be adopted after that. "Later on, it was a fact that this was the only reasonable solution we, the Slovenes, had, to get out of blood shedding events when Yugoslavia was falling apart", said the Prime Minister. He added that it had been a brave and correct decision made in due course for which the Prime Minister had congratulated all the stakeholders at that time, since "in the Slovenian history there has been no other comparable decision taken about the fate of the Slovenian nation with such positive consequences as that one". The second moment emphasised by the Prime Minister was the power of integration which enabled that the idea of Demos initiators and intellectual circles had been realised despite a strongly divided country. It was a step towards gaining a wider support where the Primer Minister highlighted Jože Pučnik as one of key personalities of that time.  The integrating policy of Demos resulted in the then unity at the plebiscite.  

At the close of his address, the Prime Minister referred to the present times and stressed that Slovenia was again put to the test: “Not as fatal as it was in that time, however, very decisive, since the sovereignty is at stake again. At that time, it was the dependence on Belgrade and today we are threatened to become too dependent on those from whom we have excessively borrowed in recent years.” From the very beginning, the Government has been making efforts, following the example of integration in the time of Demos, to comply with the measures that are necessary to exit the crisis and bring about long-term stabilisation of the situation both with social partners and the opposition which did not adopt the proposal for the common partnership to exit the crisis.  "I hope that the following days will yield the same results as those in November days in Poljče 22 years ago I believe that it is not possible to provide a better example for cooperation, working for the common good, making concessions and seeking compromises in a certain real time. This is a centre of values of the Slovenian nation which does not divide the Slovenians, " added the Prime Minister and called on to follow this shining example, since only in this way, Slovenian sovereignty will not be threatened.