SLOVAKIA POLITICAL ROUNDUP FEBRUARY 02, 2005

UNCLAS BRATISLAVA 000079

SIPDIS


SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PHUM CU LO RU
SUBJECT: SLOVAKIA POLITICAL ROUNDUP FEBRUARY 02, 2005

REF: (A) BRATISLAVA 45 (B) BRATISLAVA 17

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED -- PROTECT ACCORDINGLY

Senior USAID Officials Visit Bratislava; Discuss Cuba
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1. (SBU) Adolfo Franco, Assistant Administrator for Latin
America and the Caribbean at USAID and David Mutchler, Cuba
Senior Advisor, met with Slovak NGO and governmental
representatives January 14 on Cuba issues. Franco said the
highlight was his meeting with Speaker of Parliament Pavol
Hrusovsky (KDH),who has been a vocal proponent of human
rights in Cuba. Franco thanked Hrusovsky for his principled
stance on this subject, and they had a friendly dialogue
about their shared viewpoint. Hrusovsky later echoed the
sentiment (Ref A). Media representatives asked Franco and
Mutchler long and well-informed questions about Cuba, U.S.
policy toward it, and persistent human rights abuses there.


2. (SBU) Franco and Mutchler shared further details about
the current situation in Cuba during a dinner with PM
Dzurinda's foreign policy advisor, Milan Jezovica, and
Frantisek Ruzicka, Acting Director General of the MFA
Section for European Affairs. Franco related he was
particularly impressed with NGO activist Eliska Slavikova of
People in Peril, who had been to Cuba in December and was
encouraged by the dissident movement but distressed by the
persistence of the regime's repression. Franco and Mutchler
said that the GOS and the EU should focus on the stagnant
government and continuing human rights abuses in Cuba rather
than one's position on U.S. policy.

DEVELOPMENTS CONCERNING THE JEWISH COMMUNITY
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3. (U) THE NEW DRAFT PENAL CODE NO LONGER INCLUDES THE
CRIMES OF DEFAMING A NATION, RACE OR RELIGIOUS BELIEF
INCLUDING DENYING THE HOLOCAUST. JUSTICE MINISTER DANIEL
LIPSIC SAID, "ANY THOUGHTS, EVEN VULGAR ONES, ARE PROTECTED
BY FREEDOM OF SPEECH UNLESS THEY INITIATE ILLEGAL ACTS." THE
UNION OF THE JEWISH UNION OF RELIGIOUS COMMUNITIES AND OTHER
JEWISH ORGANIZATIONS IN SLOVAKIA (UZZNO) PROTESTED IN A
PUBLIC LETTER JANUARY 22. THEY CAUTIONED MPS AGAINST
LEGALIZING "EXTREMIST AND NEO-NAZI ACTIVITIES" AND NOTED
THAT NEO-NAZI PROPAGANDA IN EUROPE HAS BEEN ON THE RISE.
THE HUNGARIAN PARTY (SMK) WILL WORK TO KEEP THE CURRENT LAW.
LIPSIC INDICATED OTHER LAWS PREVENT NEO-NAZI CRIMES.


4. (U) REPRESENTATIVES OF THE CZECH AND SLOVAK JEWISH
COMMUNITIES ASKED THE GERMAN GOVERNMENT TO EQUALIZE
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PENSIONS OF PEOPLE WHO SURVIVED THE
NAZI EXTERMINATION CAMPS. VICTIMS LIVING IN THE FORMERLY
COMMUNIST STATES HAVE RECEIVED HALF THE REGULAR COMPENSATION
RATE THAT WESTERN EUROPEAN PENSIONERS RECEIVE.
SECRET POLICE ARCHIVE SCANDALS CONTINUE

SIPDIS
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5. (U) THE INSTITUTE OF THE MEMORY OF THE NATION MADE PUBLIC
THE COMMUNIST-ERA SECRET POLICY ARCHIVE IN NOVEMBER.
POLITICAL AND COMMUNITY LEADERS NAMED HAVE MET VARYING
DEGREES OF PRESSURE TO RESIGN (REF B). NATO PARLIAMENTARY
ASSEMBLY VICE PRESIDENT AND SDKU MP JOZEF BANAS ASKED TO
ADDRESS PARLIAMENT REGARDING HIS COLLABORATION WITH THE
SECRET POLICE. HE HAS REFUSED TO RESIGN. DEPUTY DEANS OF

SIPDIS
THE TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY IN KOSICE ZSOLT LUKACS AND JAN
KRCHO RESIGNED IN PROTEST AGAINST DEAN JAROSLAV JAREMA.
JAREMA REFUSED TO RESIGN AFTER BEING NAMED AN ACTIVE
COLLABORATOR WITH THE SECRET POLICE. KOSICE DEPUTY LADISLAV
LANCOS (KDH) RESIGNED AFTER BEING NAMED.

MILITARY DRAFT WILL CEASE BY THE END OF 2005
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6. (U) CHIEF OF STAFF OF THE SLOVAK ARMY, MAJOR GENERAL
LUBOMIR BULIK, ADMITTED THAT COMPULSORY MILITARY SERVICE
COULD BE TERMINATED EARLIER THAN THE SCHEDULED END OF 2006.
THE ARMY DOES NOT WANT TO SPECIFY THE DATE TO PREVENT
SPECULATION FROM YOUNG MEN WHO TRY TO AVOID SERVICE. THE
MILITARY WILL RETAIN A CENTRAL DATABASE OF ELIGIBLE DRAFTEES
IN CASE ADDITIONAL TROOPS ARE REQUIRED. THE MILITARY WILL
NOT KEEP A VOLUNTEER MILITARY RESERVE.

EDUCATION REFORM UPDATE
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7. (U) The next major aspect of the reform agenda,
introducing low university tuition fees, will reenter the
legislative process. Education Minister Martin Fronc
submitted a new draft for interdepartmental review, which
parliament will review in March. This is Fronc's third
attempt to introduce tuition fees, although SDKU's attempted
self-redefinition as the "education party" may give the
reform greater stimulus. The communist party (KSS) opposes
the reforms and proposed merging the parliamentary vote on
university tuition fees with a no-confidence motion against
Fronc.


THAYER


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