History of the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia 1992-2014pog.C.1.
After Republic of Slovenia became independent in 1991 and adopted a new political system, the parliament as the central legislative and representative body of the state was formed anew. In accordance with the concept of a modern parliamentary democracy, the constitution drawn up in 1990 and 1991 bestowed upon it a powerful role with numerous jurisdictions in the political and social life of the state. Besides the classic representative and legislative function (adopting the constitution, laws, budget, resolutions and national programmes, ratifying international agreements, calling referendums, deciding on the declaration of the state of war and state of emergency, etc.), the Slovenian parliament also performs a supervisory function (deciding on parliamentary investigations and votes of confidence, posing parliamentary questions, deciding on the impeachment of the President of the Republic, Prime Minister and the ministers) and elects, appoints and relieves its own leadership, government, judges, the ombudsman, the governor of the Bank of Slovenia, members of the Court of Auditors, etc.).ods.C.1.1.
* * *
To date the national assembly has concluded five terms of office. At the first National Assembly elections in 1992 the multiparty democracy was still very young, and the political space, in which the parties had not yet profiled themselves clearly in terms of their programmes, was therefore unclear. Every party took part in the elections with its own tactics, and low blows as well as serious struggles were not a rare occurrence. The campaign may also be ascribed with many transitional characteristics. It was a novelty and not only did it stir up the political life, but also the society in general, attracting many citizens and recounting many pungent stories which the journalists as well as the people could enjoy. The party leaders sought exposure, just like at all subsequent opportunities.ods.C.1.2.
The first structure of the National Assembly was quite fragmented, as eight
parties qualified for it. The majority of votes went to the Liberal Democracy of Slovenia[or.] (hereinafter LDS[or.]), while the other parties lagged behind it
considerably. At that time the future Prime Minister Janez Drnovšek[os.] managed to form a diverse
coalition, called a small political miracle
, for it consisted of LDS[or.], the Christian
Democrats[or.] (hereinafter SKD[or.]), the
United List[or.] as well as the Social Democratic Party of Slovenia[or.] (hereinafter
SDSS[or.]). After the relations between the
coalition and the opposition had been established, the parliament started
addressing its extensive agenda. This primarily included the urgent legislative
activities, since on one hand the former federal legislation had to be replaced,
while on the other hand the basic acts of numerous state subsystems had to be
adopted – from education, judiciary, tax system, ownership transformation and
construction of the new economic system to national security, political parties
and corruption. In accordance with its ambitious plan the parliament pursued its
tasks diligently – the members of parliament mostly discussed the materials
realistically and with appropriate political passion. The debates may have
occasionally transcended the fields regulated by individual acts, but remained
within the context of the issues at hand. However, since the very beginning the
working enthusiasm of the parliament has not been in line with its public image.
The people would never notice any diligent members of parliament. Apart from the
basic legislative activities, the economic issues were the leitmotif of the first
term of the National Assembly. As the term progressed, Drnovšek[os.]'s coalition gradually fell apart,
and in the end it only consisted of LDS[or.] and
SKD[or.].ods.C.1.3.
* * *
After the elections, the second National Assembly found itself in a stalemate. Together the parties of the so‑called transitional right had 45 seats, while all the other parties including the two minority MPs, who supported the previous Prime Minister Drnovšek[os.] (president of LDS[or.], the party which was the relative winner of the elections), also had 45 seats. The parliament – the mirror of the society – found itself in a difficult situation, split in half... The initial session dragged on, and the opposing standpoints were evident at each step the parliament took. In the beginning of the term it seemed that the parliament had been idle for many months since the elections. However, the mere chronological facts do not convey much of a message, for dates scarcely mean anything on their own. In three months since the elections the parliament was nevertheless formed despite the stalemate, even elected its president with a large majority, carried out lengthy, occasionally bitter and remote but thorough and relevant discussions, and elected the Prime Minister. The National Assembly carried out its envisioned mission. It is understandable this took time. Then the search for an agreement continued, finally resulting in a large coalition between the biggest parties LDS[or.] and the Slovenian People's Party[or.] (hereinafter SLS[or.]), also joined by the Democratic Party of Pensioners of Slovenia[or.] (hereinafter DeSUS[or.]).ods.C.1.4.
The coalition, finally established after many difficult months, was quite diverse despite the limited number of partners, since LDS[or.] and SLS[or.] were two ideologically and socially completely different parties. The parliamentary practice of the second term confirmed this thesis to a considerable extent. The situation in the National Assembly was often confusing, and it seemed that SLS[or.] belonged to the opposition rather to the coalition. Furthermore, the opposition failed to carry out a well‑orchestrated offensive against the government or to supervise it, since it was divided itself at the ideological level. The Slovenian Democratic Party[or.] (hereinafter SDS[or.]) and SKD[or.] were more closely related to SLS[or.], while the United List of Social Democrats[or.] (hereinafter ZLSD[or.]) were more akin to LDS[or.]. The dissolution of the coalition often seemed inevitable.ods.C.1.5.
Despite all its crises (which were quite frequent, especially as far as the staff
was concerned), the shaky coalition between LDS[or.]
and SLS[or.] held almost until the end of its term.
Meanwhile the parliament kept performing its visible and invisible tasks, in the
context of which it was able to carry out many large‑scale reform projects. Thus
towards the end of 1999, after lengthy coordination, it adopted a comprehensive
pension scheme reform. However, not long after the adoption of the large‑scale
reform in the spring of 2000, only slightly more than half a year before the
elections, the relations within the coalition fell apart. At that point – after
many difficult meetings, progress and setbacks – the kindred parties SLS[or.] and SKD[or.] finally
managed to agree on merging into a single party which would not be a part of the
coalition. The downfall of the declining
government was imminent. Drnovšek[os.] did not wait for the situation to
resolve itself. He made his move ahead of his partners and he himself proposed
that the SLS[or.] ministers be replaced with new
ones. He tied the vote to a vote of confidence, which was not passed. Soon after
Drnovšek[os.]'s fall, SLS + SKD[or.], after the unification the largest
parliamentary party, proposed Andrej
Bajuk[os.] as the new Prime Minister. However, the new parliamentary
coalition was not destined to last long, since the second term would be over in
less than half a year. Furthermore, already after a bit over a month the coalition
found itself in a serious political crisis.ods.C.1.6.
* * *
On Sunday, 15 October 2000, the third National Assembly elections took place in
Slovenia. Once again the election campaign took place and mostly the familiar
parties and faces appeared in public... The Slovenian parliamentary-historical
process gradually proceeded and evolved. The elections taking place at the turning
point of the decade, century and millennium, were not an important milestone in
themselves. However, symbolically they marked the onset of a new era. The first
decade after the fall of the Berlin Wall, referred to as the time of freedom by
the best chronicler of the 20th century
Timothy Garton Ash[os.], drew to a close
and the new nameless decade
, an elusive time of an unclear character, was
beginning. A year earlier the common European currency was introduced and NATO was
extended to include the first three Eastern European countries, which had a
special meaning for the processes of integration. Next year, on 5 October 2000,
only ten days before the Slovenian elections, the last Yugoslav tyrant, Serbian
leader Slobodan Milošević[os.], was
stripped of power in Belgrade. All of this can be seen as a historical censorship
of a certain era. Slovenia was a part of these global developments. During the
third term of the National Assembly it itself joined the European Union and NATO,
which concluded (perhaps illusory) the process of the transition in this state. On
top of everything, the third term was also the last term controlled by the large
Drnovšek's[os.]
LDS[or.], the strongest party since 1992. The results
of the elections on 15 October 2000 were most likely its swan song. LDS[or.] got a whooping 36.21% of votes, which translated
into 34 parliamentary seats. The coalition included ZLSD[or.], SLS[or.] and DeSUS[or.].ods.C.1.7.
The weakness of the opposition, whose core consisted of SDS[or.] and New Slovenia - Christian People's
Party[or.] (hereinafter NSi[or.]), which
refused to acknowledge the opposition status of the Slovenian National Party[or.] (hereinafter SNS[or.]) and the new Youth Party of
Slovenia[or.] (hereinafter SMS[or.]), was
largely characteristic of the third term and the forms of the parliamentary work.
The coalition was gradually nicknamed the voting machine
and in these
circumstances the opposition had to be tough. Otherwise it would only remain a
part of the folklore
. ods.C.1.8.
* * *
The fourth National Assembly elections, called by the President of the Republic on
3 October 2004, on one hand gave the impression of the usual democratic routine
with a standard election campaign, while on the other hand they remained limited
by the established ideological and political patterns. The cultural
struggle
between the left
and the right
continued, even
though its intensity was receding. The results of the elections were not
completely unexpected, but they meant a radical ideological change. For the first
time after 1992 the large LDS[or.] suffered a defeat.
The winner of the elections that Sunday was SDS[or.]
with its leader Janez Janša[os.], who had
gradually become the head of the opposition after 1996. Janša[os.] also formed the new coalition and
became the Prime Minister. If the evident strength of the coalition and weakness
of the opposition were characteristic of the third term, we could conclude that
the fourth term would be completely different in this regard. The coalition was
less numerous, more diverse, and the opposition consisted of two experienced
parties, which did not even give the new government the traditional 100 days of
peace. Different circumstances and practices in the parliament were expected.
However, no significant changes took place and the initial (unrealistic)
expectations vanished. As it happened, the strength and public support of the
coalition and the government were considerable in the beginning, and on the other
hand the opposition succumbed to internal disorientation and dissolution.
Especially LDS[or.] was obviously in a crisis. Thus
the fourth term was quite similar to the third one, even if a few roles were
changed. The European topics were an element which definitely brought together the
members of the parliament, but many other topics resulted in a well‑established
left – right division. ods.C.1.9.
* * *
At the eve of the fifth National Assembly elections in September 2008, the
Slovenian political space seemed quite clear and predictable. Wellbeing
became the leitmotif of all parties, but the programme means of achieving it were
increasingly vague and especially similar to each other. Therefore the voters
could hardly make decisions on the basis of programmes and had to cast their votes
on the basis of other factors: persuasiveness of the election campaign, charisma,
ongoing affairs, their established political convictions, more or less irrational
considerations... And as always, on the basis of unpredictable elements. Despite
the expectations the relative victory went to Borut Pahor's[os.]
Social Democrats [or.](the former ZLSD[or.], hereinafter SD[or.]),
and Borut Pahor[os.] also became the Prime
Minister.ods.C.1.10.
Already at the eve of the elections it was also clear that a debt and financial crisis was spreading globally, threatening to develop into a wider economic crisis and also engulf Slovenia. Pahor's team conveyed an impression that it was aware of the situation. However, in the following months it responded slowly and hesitantly due to the Prime Minister's consensual approach. However, the first batch of anti‑crisis measures was already addressed by the parliament towards the end of 2008. The MPs adopted it at the last session of the year, thus almost symbolically announcing the central problem of the fifth term: overcoming the situation, which finally developed from an economic into a political crisis.ods.C.1.11.
Every important subject (or at least those underlined as important) involved a
difference of opinions. When the government finally managed to agree on the
resolution of the question of the border with the neighbouring Croatia, which we
should undoubtedly see as one of its greatest successes, it immediately stumbled
upon resolute protests of the opposition as well as some of the more prominent
intellectuals (on the other hand a significant percentage of renowned
intellectuals supported the agreement). Finally the parliament and the votes of
the coalition supported the so‑called Arbitration Agreement, but the strongly
rooted doubts persisted. The pension scheme reform also gave rise to considerable
opposition. In the context of reforming the labour market the coalition also
adopted the Mini‑jobs Act, radically amending the system of student work and
shaking the foundations of the financial empires
of the student
organisations and student work services. Naturally, the students opposed the
changes resolutely and organised student demonstrations in front of the National
Assembly in May 2010. However, legitimate concerns about the new legislation
turned into an unarticulated smearing campaign and even violence. Granite cobbles
were flung through the air, a small fire broke out, and the parliament building
(especially the entrance) was visibly damaged. The decisions adopted by the
parliament were by no means accepted
...ods.C.1.12.
The National Assembly became a place of permanent disputes, which was also reflected in the parliamentary discussions. The debate on the new Family Code proposal can certainly be counted among the especially irreconcilable and controversial issues, at the same time bringing the attention to profound ideological, conceptual and even cultural‑anthropological differences. The trust in the government and the parliament during this term was still low, dissatisfaction grew, and the economic crisis had been an evident fact for quite a while. The political space remained unappeasable and the coalition gave an increasing impression of being blocked within and without, not having any real ideas of how to solve the situation. Thus the path towards a political crisis was paved. The coalition gradually fell apart, finally only consisting of SD[or.] and LDS[or.]. ods.C.1.13.
Numerous referendums, where the voters decided about almost all significant projects of the coalition, were an important catalyst of the political crisis and dissolution of the coalition ever since the summer of 2010. Furthermore, only a single project was confirmed: the Arbitration Agreement with Croatia, and in this case the referendum was proposed by the coalition itself. The fifth term ended with the dissolution of the National Assembly by the President of the Republic on 21 October 2011, after the government had received a vote of no confidence and in the absence of any new candidates for Prime Minister. For the first time in the almost 20‑year history of the Slovenian parliament an early election was called for 4 December. The trust in many parliamentary parties was shaken and a more thorough restructuring of the political space was expected.ods.C.1.14.
* * *
The time between the announcement by the President of the Republic with regard to
the dissolution of the National Assembly and the elections was scarce. In these
circumstances it was not surprising that the campaign lacked any innovative
approaches, convincing and lucid solutions, and insightful approaches towards the
voters. The campaign was quite calm (although not without affairs), and for the
first time in twenty years the divisive ideological topics were more in the
background than before. This certainly does not mean that they did not exist and
that they did not influence the voters' decisions, but the majority of the
political debates nevertheless focused on overcoming the economic crisis and
finding exit
strategies. Even in the beginning of October the political
atmosphere was still predictable. However, only a bit later the political space
started to change radically as new political faces and new parties started
entering the political arena one after the other. The fact that the voters were
fed up with the established candidates resulted in a turning point. Less than two
months before the elections two new parties with exceptionally high ratings
appeared, climbing to the top of the pre‑election polls. The first party was
established by the controversial and charismatic mayor of Ljubljana Zoran Janković[os.] (Positive Slovenia,
hereinafter PS[or.]), while the second one was headed
by the former minister in Janša[os.]'s
government, Gregor Virant[os.] (Gregor Virant's Civic List[or.], hereinafter DLGV[or.]).ods.C.1.15.
The campaign announced considerable political changes in the Slovenian space, and
the results of the elections taking place on Sunday, 4 December 2011, only
confirmed them. PS[or.] won the elections, but for the
first time in the twenty‑year parliamentary history of Slovenia its president
Zoran Janković[os.] did not become
the Prime Minister. The coalition was formed by the leader of the SDS[or.], Janez
Janša[os.], which came in second. The parliament started working eagerly,
immediately addressing the crisis and the fiscal consolidation of the state, of
course. Thus the new faces among the MPs
soon faced all the dimensions of
their tasks. Due to the general situation in the state, in the first half of 2012
they were even more closely scrutinised by the public as their colleagues during
the preceding terms. In the times of austerity and shrinking budgetary resources
in all fields that is not surprising, for of course in the end it is the
parliament which has to adopt unpopular government measures, and the MPs,
privileged and overpaid in the public opinion, are the ones who have to vote for
them.ods.C.1.16.
In the second half of 2012 the dissatisfaction of people resulting from the economic
crisis kept getting increasingly profound and more and more obviously oriented against
the political elites. Numerous people's uprisings
broke out. In the following
months the area in front of the parliament building became the central
location where different standpoints and opinions manifested and piled up – especially
those wishing for completely different politics. The adjective "political" and especially
politics as a profession focusing on the state and prosperity became pejorative terms.
Mottoes about the wrongfulness of the political system as well as appeals for the
introduction of direct democracy started appearing... Politics once again became similar
to the oldest trade, and this was expressed by one of the protesters in a brutally
direct,
vulgar, but politically exceedingly meaningful banner: A fuck or a refund!
In the
beginning of 2013 it seemed that not only the coalition, but the whole of the political
elite was put to the test. All the people were dissatisfied with everyone, but
the government with its parliamentary majority was definitely the focus of attention.
Nervousness mounted and a political change was imminent... ods.C.1.17.
In January 2013 an outsider
, one of the few that the public still trusted, started
setting things in motion: the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, which published
a report about its supervision of the officials' assets. As the president of this
Commission,
Goran Klemenčič[os.], said picturesquely:
When numbers talk, bullshit walks
. The Commission established that neither the Mayor
of Ljubljana and leader of the PS[or.]
Zoran Janković[os.] nor Prime Minister
Janez Janša[os.] were able to explain how their
property had increased significantly over the last few years. Both of them screamed
in
unison that they were not guilty, but only their most fervent supporters believed
them.
The coalition fell apart.ods.C.1.18.
After the dissolution of the coalition things came at a standstill. The central problem of the creators of the new coalition was seemingly simple: the largest parties from both sides of the spectrum – the PS[or.] and the SDS[or.] – were led by politicians burdened with the report of the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption. Only their resignation could have opened up new possibilities. However, while the SDS[or.] kept supporting Janša[os.] unwaveringly, the PS[or.] gradually discovered that it might be wise to take advantage of this political opportunity. Zoran Janković[os.] resigned and "froze" his function as the President of the PS[or.] party. He did not date it: he stated he would do that when a new government under the leadership of the PS[or.] was elected. Although his manoeuver appeared trivial and the whole scenography of the PS[or.] was reminiscent of the political dilettantism from the beginning of the 1990s, this was enough for the future coalition partners. Under the leadership of Alenka Bratušek[os.] from the PS[or.] (the first female Prime Minister) a new Slovenian government was formed in March of 2013.ods.C.1.19.
After the new government was elected, the political storm started to calm down despite many problems in the Office of the Prime Minister and the unfortunate staff choices. In the beginning of 2014, a year after it had been in power, the coalition still seemed solid and in control. At that moment Prime Minister Bratušek[os.] decided to strengthen her position within the PS[or.], and she announced an attempt to take over its presidency. The political situation looked favourable, and radical turning points were not on the horizon. However, in the spring of 2014 the principle notable in the modern politics (not only) in this space for almost 200 years once again surfaced in all its brutality: politics is the art of the possible, the anticipation of the unforeseeable, a performance involving the most unusual turns of events. The Mayor of Ljubljana and founder of the PS[or.], Zoran Janković[os.], decided to compete with Alenka Bratušek[os.] for the spot of the party president. For many people this was surprising, for many suicidal, for some irresponsible and for others the only right and prudent thing. In April the members of the PS[or.] elected Janković[os.] as president and a political crisis offering very few exits broke out. Alenka Bratušek[os.] resigned as Prime Minister. Thus the mandate of the entire Office of the Prime Minister ended automatically. Nobody proposed a new formateur, thus the President of the Republic Borut Pahor[os.] dissolved the Parliament on 2 June and called the elections on 13 July 2014 (despite significant criticism due to the coincidence with the summer vacations).ods.C.1.20.
* * *
In terms of contents the election contest represents the seventh mandate of the
National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia. Once again it is expected that
the elections will radically change the political and staff composition of the
Parliament, similarly as in 2011. There are several reasons for this. After the fall
of Janša's[os.] government the momentum of
the people's uprisings gradually ceased. However, the dissatisfaction with the politics
and the political elites remained, and the results of the public opinion polls remained
inexorable. A few uprising groups, among others the movement of the All Slovenian
People's Uprising, decided to take advantage of the uprising
potential and actively
enter into politics. In December 2013 the Solidarity party was established. In the
next
year, on 1 March 2014, the United Left was formed according to the model of the attractive
and convincing Alexis Tsipras's Syriza in Greece. Shortly before the elections another
three parties with heavy weight leaders entered the political space:
the I Believe party[or.], headed by the
former president of the Court of Auditors Dr Igor Šoltes[os.], the
Alliance of Alenka Bratušek[or.] (gathered
around her are the Members of Parliament
and former members of the Positive Slovenia who had joined her), and
the Miro Cerar Party[or.]. The latter is
even favoured by the pools,
although all of its potential is concentrated in its undoubtedly well
liked and renowned president.ods.C.1.21.