Outrageous! Communist Party of Slovakia punished for its 100th anniversary campaign

Billboard celebrating the KSS's 100th anniversary in 2021

A Slovak court has upheld penalties against the Communist Party of Slovakia (KSS) and members of its leadership over a campaign commemorating the party's 100th anniversary, in a ruling that has sparked strong condemnation from communist parties abroad.

The case dates back to 2021, when the KSS marked the centenary of its foundation with a nationwide campaign featuring commemorative posters bearing the hammer and sickle and the slogan "Without socialism, it will not work." 

EU Commission justifies Slovakian government's monstrous anti-communist law

In a written question submitted on November 2020 the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) MEP Kostas Papadakis asked the EU Commission to provide its opinion concerning the new despicable anti-communist law of Slovakia's coalition government that characterizes the Slovakian Communist Party as a “criminal and reprehensible organization”. 

 

In her response, the Vice President of the EU Commission Vera Jourová provocatively turns a blind eye to the anti-communist legislation of Slovakia that aims to criminalize communist ideology and the activity of the communists. 

Slovakia's reactionary drift: Parliament passes monstrous anti-communist amendment

Following the steps of Poland, the Parliament of Slovakia passed a despicable anti-communist amendment which distorts history and sets into grave danger the democratic and political rights in the country.

More specifically, the amendment, which was prepared by the conservative coalition government of Igor Matovič and passed by the Parliament on November 4th, declares the Czechoslovak Communist Party (as well as the current Communist Party of Slovakia) as “criminal organizations”! The amendment is added to the 1996 anti-communist law on “Immorality and Illegality of the Communist System” and will be put into effect on December 1st. 

Slovak communists denounce their exclusion from official event honoring WW2 resistance

Every year Slovakia celebrates the armed insurrection organized by the Slovak resistance movement against the Nazis and their collaborators during the Second World War. 

The known as Slovak National Uprising (SNP), in which the communists played a decisive role being the main organizers of the anti-fascist struggle, was launched on 29 August 1944 from Banská Bystrica.

This year, the authorities of the Slovak National Uprising Museum, which organizes the annual memorial events, decided to exclude the Communist Party of Slovakia (KSS) from participating in the official commemoration event for the 76th anniversary. For this decision, the SNP Museum invoked the COVID-19 pandemic situation and the fact that the event, scheduled for August 28-29, would be held as an "apolitical event" with limited participation. 

Communist Party of Slovakia: Statements on the current political situation

After the destabilisation of the Slovakian political scene and mass protests following the murder of journalist Jana Kuciak and his partner, the Communist Party of Slovakia issued statements analysing the current situtation. On 9 March, in an open letter addressing the Prime Minister from the Smer-SD social democrat party, KSS declared that from the very beginning the social events triggered by the murder were a well-thought-out attack of the opposition as a coup attempt against the results of parliamentary elections of 2016. It said ‘We clearly see that many non-governmental organizations as well as media serving the interests of foreign owners actively support this goal.’