Sophia IN 'T VELD (Renew, NL), Head of the LIBE delegation in Slovenia, shares some first findings. The EP delegation was in Ljubljana to assess the situation regarding the rule of law and media freedom in Slovenia.

Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

EP delegation

IN 'T VELD, Sophia (Renew, NL)

EU mechanism on democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights (T)

EU - Slovenia (T)

Slovenia

Ljubljana

EP LIBE delegation to Slovenia, Ljubljana: final statement by Sophia IN 'T VELD (Renew, NL), Head of the delegation

SOUNDBITE (English), Sophia IN &apos;T VELD (Renew, NL), I think on the one hand, on the positive side, we can see that the democratic institutions are functioning well and are resilient. I was also struck by the fact that there is a very deeply felt democratic instinct in all people, no matter what side they are. At the same time, we can also see that there is a very, very bitter and divided public debate.

SOUNDBITE (English), Sophia IN 'T VELD (Renew, NL), And you can say that's all unpleasant, but I think it's more than unpleasant. Because it is undermining the trust in democratic institutions. It is not harmless. It's not innocent. We have seen on the 6th of January in the United States how even in a robust democracy, this kind of, you know, drip drip, drip poisoning of trust the effect it can have.

SOUNDBITE (English), Sophia IN 'T VELD (Renew, NL), We have also seen that using the budget, using legal procedures, that pressure can be exercised on people, using criminal charges, squeezing the budget, not making appointments. All those things are sort of harassment and intimidation, "ad hominem attacks" also from the government. And this is, I think, particularly worrying because if there's one instance that should be protecting democracy, it's the government. And if the government itself is attacking public institutions and public figures, then that will seriously undermine trust in democracy.