It so happened during one of the more spectacular exercises in rearranging urban furniture last October, that the cops let loose and gassed and water-bombed the entire Ljubljana city centre, non-protesting civilians included. Former Speaker Pavle Gantar tweet in response that “the city is full of gangs of citizens tear-gassing and hosing down innocent people”. Somehow this made Chief of Police Anton Olaj very unhappy.
As a result, the Big Cop filed charges against Gantar. Supposedly because the latter disrespected the men and women in uniform. And earlier this week, Gantar tweeted that he was fined to the tune of 250 EUR. The fine cited violations of Paragraph 1 of Article 6 of the Public Order Act. Then irony went home and died in agony.
For those who keep score at home, art. 6, para. 1 of Public Order Act states that “whoever provokes or encourages to fight or behaves in a bold, violent, rude, insulting or similar manner or persecutes whom and by such conduct causes him to feel humiliated, threatened, hurt or afraid, shall be punished by a fine,…“
Tweeting as behaving in a bold, violent, rude, insulting or similar manner? I guess it is technically admissible. But have you guys checked what the Glorious Leader has been (re)tweeting lately?
Fucking snowflakes
Be that as it may, claiming that tweeting can violate public order in any way, shape or form is a stretch. But to try and paint Gantar’s tweet as a violation public order is just fucking wild. I mean, it is possible, if you squint on both eyes and stand on one foot while a Thai man-whore rubs one out for you. But other than that, fuck no.
Nevertheless, Chief of Police Olaj proceeded to do just that. He claimed Gantar’s Twitter snark hurt his feelings. Then he filed a report with the police precinct in his native Dolenjske Toplice. And in a curious coincidence, he just so happens to be on some municipal committee with the precinct chief. And in turn this precinct chief promptly slapped Gantar with a 250 EUR fine.
Both readers may legitimately ask if Slovenian Chief of Police is really such a fucking snowflake that he would press charges over a snarky sorry-ass tweet. The answer is, of course, an unequivocal yes. But the question itself is wrong.
Intimidation
You see, this entire shitshow is not really about the fragile ego of Copper-in-Chief. Rather, it is about intimidation perpetrated by the higher echelons of the regime and its security apparatus. Because, apparently, one simply does not fuck with the People’s Militia. Article 133 of the Yugoslav penal code called and wants its playbook back.
In short, what we have here is the state clamping down on private citizens for things they said about elements of the state. Which is absurdly ironic. Not simply because in 2022 Muddy Hollows still supposedly runs some sort of a democracy.
But also because Pavle Gantar was at the forefront of freedom-of-speech movements back in the 1980s. As such, he played an important part in dissolution of a one-party state and introduction of multi-party democracy. And now, he is again subjected to the same One Party repressive tactics.
Olaj’s heavy-handed approach to what can at worst be described as snark by a former politician is, of course, indicative of the larger issue. Namely, that the Janša regime and its lackeys consider themselves beyond reproach and above democratic norms.
saying the quiet part out loud
In case either reader doubts this assessment, one of the Party propaganda outlets said as much. While salivating over former liberal politican getting fined, the e-maribor website wrote that “Gantar apparently forgot that these are no longer the 80s, when criticism of those in power was allowed.”
Go read that sentence again. And in case some dipshit propaganda scribe realises saying the quiet part out loud is still an astonishingly stupid idea, pengovsky has receipts.
Needless to say this is not the only case of the Main Police Honcho going after private individuals for their tweets. There is at least one other case of a Twitter user being investigated for tweets aimed at Anton Olaj. And in the words of Auric Goldfinger, once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, three times is enemy action.
While they can get away with it
So, what to make of all of this? Other than the plainly obvious fact that Anton Olaj is clearly no longer fit to be the top cop, that is. Not that he ever was but that is another matter.
Well, on one hand, this is proof positive that these clowns do not give a flying fuck about democracy and executive self-restraint. They will blatantly abuse the powers they are vested in for their own personal gain and/or purpose.
On the other hand, these gross abuses of power also show they are inherently unsure of their position and realise they may be driven out of power come Summer. Which why they are pulling all this shit while they can still get away with it.
Excellent, mate! You re-recruted the third reader.
Thx! And welcome back! 😀