Slovakia loses battle against corruption – POLITICO

But it is the controversial penal reform that has had the most visible impact so far, with convicted criminals being released from prison. Fico — who survived an assassination attempt in May — is seen by the opposition as the one who orchestrated the reform to help political cronies facing prosecution or prison sentences.

The amendment to the Criminal Code, which was introduced in February but did not come into effect until August, reduced penalties for a wide range of crimes, such as corruption and fraud.

It also led to the abolition of the special prosecutor’s office, the institution that handled sensitive corruption cases, including those linked to officials from Fico’s populist ruling party Smer (Direction).

“The Slovak government has not only abandoned the fight against corruption, but is directly creating ideal conditions for it,” Ľudovít Ódor, a former prime minister and newly elected member of the European Parliament for the opposition Progressive Slovakia party, told POLITICO. “By reducing sentences, intimidating and punishing brave investigators, and disbanding the police.”

The Slovak Constitutional Court later suspended some of the changes, such as the reduction of the statute of limitations for rape, but did not overturn the decision to abolish the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The government was forced to hastily amend the amendment in July after the European Commission published its rule of law report, which pointed out that some elements of the changes could leave Slovakia without access to EU funding. This could jeopardise the country’s ability to tackle high-level corruption cases and protect the EU’s financial interests.