Slovakia: Formation of new government coalition - full text
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Iveta Radicova,a 53-year-old sociology professor, on July 9 became Slovakia's first female prime minister when she was appointed by President Ivan Gasparovic to lead a new government. The new administration comprised members of four centre-right parties, all of which had been previously in opposition, and which together now held 79 out of the 150 seats in Slovakia's parliament.
The formation of the Radicova government followed the failure of Robert Fico, whose ruling The Direction-Social Democracy Party (S-SD) party had won the greatest share of the vote in elections held on 12 June, to form a government himself. In office Fico's administration had at first overseen continuing prosperity, but had latterly been unable to prevent the effects of the world financial crisis from triggering recession. S-SD's prior association with parties opposed to rights for Slovakia's Hungarian ethnic minority effectively ruled out any coalition with Radicova's pro-Hungarian allies, and sent the S-SD into opposition.
Immediate context
Campaigning ahead of the elections had centred on economic reform, debate about the rights and status of Slovakia's large Hungarian-speaking minority, and allegations of corruption against a number of parties. The previous administration, a coalition led by Fico's centre-left S-SD party and embracing both the conservative People's Party-Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (LS-HZDS), and the hardline nationalist SNS (Slovak National Party), had come to power in 2006. The coalition had continued the wave of economic reform that had, under the previous premiership of the centre-right Mikulá Dzurinda, earned Slovakia membership of the EU and NATO in 2004. Major privatizations had spurred an export boom and an increase in foreign investment, though the administration had failed to reduce Slovakia's high levels of unemployment. S-SD had been expected to perform well at the polls but suffered some damage from allegations of corruption, fundraising fraud (which Fico dismissed as libel), and official incompetence. The party's tough approach to rights for the Hungarian minoritya position apparently driven by the need to mollify the nationalist SNSeffectively precluded any co-government with parties previously in opposition.
The dominant opposition party had been Radicova's right-wing Slovak Democratic and Christian Union-Democratic Party (SDKU-DS), which had attacked the administration's handling of the economy since the onset of the global recession. The SDKU-DS, however, had also faced corruption accusations that saw it rate poorly in opinion polls before the election. The SDKU has been joined in the coalition by the KDH (Christian Democratic Movement), under Jan Figel, who emphasized law and order, and by two newly-founded parties: Bela Bugar's Most-Híd ("Bridge") party, which emphasized unity between ethnic Hungarian and Slovak citizens. A second ethnic Hungarian party, Pál Csáky's SMK/MKP (Party of the Hungarian Coalition), had been heavily criticized for using Hungarian-language election posters in apparent contravention of a 2009 amendment to the country's language law, which restricted the use of languages other than Slovak in public life. The controversial amendment manifested tensions within the country concerning the status of the large ethnic Hungarian minority, and reflected the low ebb of relations between Slovakia and its largest trade partner Hungary.
Poll results saw Fico's S-SD secure the greatest vote share of any party, but also returned severe reversals for both the LS-HZDS and SNS. The LS-HZDS lost all its seats, polling under five percent of the total vote, and the SNS was left with half the number of parliamentarians it had returned in 2006. Thus, despite the fact that S-SD had actually increased its share of the vote since the 2006 election, Fico on June 23 declared himself unable to form a government; Gasparovic turned instead to Radicova.
Reaction and outlook
The coalition was expected to seek closer ties with neighbouring Hungary. Radicova's inauguration speech signalled an intention to reverse the damage inflicted by Slovakia's anti-Hungarian stance on languages and citizenship. As well as revising the language law, pro-Hungarian elements in the government advocated the abandonment of a recent law that removed Slovak passports from citizens who took dual Hungarian nationality.
Curbing the rising budget deficit, following economic contraction of 4.7 per cent during 2009, was expected to be another early priority. Newly-confirmed finance minister Ivan Miklos indicated that he would concentrate on reducing public spending over the next four years, with efforts to stimulate growth to follow. Miklos anticipated difficult early meetings with other EU finance ministers, having expressed his opposition to a recent agreement that established a 440bn (US$1.00=0.7915 euros as at July 9, 2010) "safety net" to protect eurozone economies from debt default. Slovakia had been asked to subsidise 4.5bn of this fund. The S-SD in opposition would hold a large number of parliamentary seats, but some commentators predicted that the party could struggle to maintain integrity and risked fission without the promise of public office to appease factions within the party. The migration of right-wing voters from LS-HZDS and SNS to the S-SD was also seen as a possible spur to the party to adopt a more nationalistic agenda.
The failure of the Hungarian-representing SMK/MKP to win a single seat prompted the resignation of its leader Pál Csáky. Following the SMK/MKP's collapse the representation of Slovakia's Hungarians fell to Bugar's Most-Híd ("Bridge") party, whose approachadvocating bridge-building between Slovak and Hungarian speakerswas tipped to be more conciliatory than that of their predecessors.
Historical context
The state of Czechoslovakia was created by the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire after World War I. Slovak interests were often subordinated to Czech interests in the new state, leading to calls for autonomy or independence. After the annexation of Sudetenland by Germany in 1938, Slovakia became a German protectorate and fought with the Axis in World War II. Soviet forces liberated the country in 1945 and Czechoslovakia was re-established as a member of the communist bloc. The communist administration remained in power until it was toppled by popular protests in 1989 along with other communist regimes in Eastern Europe.
Slovakia achieved independence again in 1992 when Czechoslovakia divided into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Economic independence was secured when the old currency was split and political independence was enshrined in Slovakia's new republican constitution. Michal Kovac of the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS) was elected as Slovakia's first president. The political system in Slovakia produced a series of coalitions, many of which became embroiled in corruption scandals, or infighting. Accession to the EU improved the economic situation in Slovakia but did not end corruption, including the misuse of EU funds.
