ATTACK ON ETHNIC HUNGARIAN STUDENT FABRICATED,

UNCLAS BRATISLAVA 000754

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM LO
SUBJECT: ATTACK ON ETHNIC HUNGARIAN STUDENT FABRICATED,
SLOVAK POLICE SAY

REF: BRATISLAVA 733


1. (SBU) SUMMARY. Reports of a racially-motivated attack on
an ethnic Hungarian student in the town of Nitra two weeks
ago and which have sparked considerable controversy between
Hungary and Slovakia were false, according to the Slovak
police investigator. Interior Minister Kalinak announced on
September 12 that the attack, which set off a wave of
international condemnation of the Slovak Republic and the
inclusion of the Slovak National Party (SNS) in the Slovak
government, was fabricated by the alleged victim. According
to a police source, the motivation behind the hoax was
personal, not political. We cannot offer an independent
assessment on the government's claims, but the Ambassador
will meet with the Interior Minister September 13 and discuss
the case. END SUMMARY.


2. (U) Interior Minister Robert Kalinak announced at a press
conference that the police have called off their
investigation of the alleged attack on an ethnic Hungarian
student, identified only as Hedviga M., after multiple
untruths in the alleged victim's story led them to the
conclusion that the attack never happened. On August 25,
Hedviga M. claimed that she had been attacked by two
skinheads in the town of Nitra for speaking in Hungarian on
her cell phone (reftel). She said that the perpetrators beat
her, wrote anti-Hungarian slogans on her shirt, and took her
cell phone.


3. (U) Kalinak elucidated several lies in the alleged
victim's story:

-It was raining on the day of the attack, and although the
girl came to school wet, her blouse on which anti-Hungarian
slurs were written was dry and clean;

- Although the alleged victim claimed to have been attacked
while talking on her mobile phone in Hungarian, phone records
revealed that no calls were placed on her phone around the
time of the alleged attack;

-An expert's report found the writing on the alleged victim's
blouse to be identical to her own script on her passport
application;

- A DNA analysis of an envelope containing the alleged
victim's personal documents, which she claimed to have
received anonymously after the attack, showed the alleged
victim herself had sealed the envelope.


4. (U) According to Kalinak, more than 250 police officers
were deployed, and 620 suspects questioned in the course of
the investigation of the incident. Kalinak said that it is
up to the police whether any charges would be filed against
the alleged victim.


WHY DID SHE DO IT?
--------------


5. (SBU) A police source informed Emboff that the reason the
young woman fabricated the story was to avoid taking a
university exam that she had previously failed twice before.
Ironically, the exam was on the Hungarian language. The
source expects that charges will be filed against the woman.
(COMMENT: While it appears that there was no political
motivation behind the false claim, we can expect plenty of
political finger-pointing in the next few days and weeks over
the incident. END COMMENT.)


6. (U) Prime Minister Robert Fico stressed that this incident
was one reason why the Slovak government has been vilified on
several occasions over the past two weeks. "This reason has
never existed," said Fico. He also said that the government
would tolerate neither extremism or xenophobia, nor someone
destroying the good reputation of Slovakia with lies.


7. (U) Ambassador Vallee has a previously scheduled meeting
with Minister Kalinak tomorrow and will discuss the
investigation, and its potential aftereffects, in more
detail.
VALLEE