Thursday

28th Mar 2024

Opinion

Claiming righteousness but being a hypocrite will not convince voters

Listen to article

Our opponents are mouthful when it comes to reproaching us, the European People's Party (EPP).

They charge us for breaching the rule of law, liaising with undemocratic forces, oppressing the freedom of speech and media. They not only manipulate reality, but also, at all cost, refuse to turn inwards, apply self-criticism, and see the bias: their own double standards.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

Why is it acceptable for the European socialists to shield their Maltese friends linked to the assassination of a journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia? And why do they keep a blind eye for the mistakes of Slovenian socialists and extreme left, who amongst other blame the USA and NATO, rather than Putin, for Russian war in Ukraine?

Our friends from other political parties and groups in the European Parliament are well too aware of their inconsistencies. Nonetheless, they have made it their mission to hide behind populism, newspaper headlines and easy political spins to shame us. They claim righteousness but are hypocritical.

It takes little effort and a small glance outside the box full of their shallow accusations to see the EPP is not the enemy. In Slovenia, for instance, a coup is underway. Under the pretext of depoliticising national television and defending the freedom of speech, the extreme left government's ruling garniture is changing laws to allow scrupulous appointments.

The changes, that would completely behead the current management of Slovenian national broadcaster, are designed to exclude voters from participating in the management of the public TV. Their involvement is not direct, but through a vote of their elected representative in a democratic Parliament, Slovenians have had the chance to keep national broadcaster in check and balanced. With the changes adopted by the ruling parties, this is about to be taken away from them, whereas the obligatory monthly fee they pay to watch the program, is to stay.

We therefore ask ourselves, is freedom of speech only the right of leftist political forces?

We, as the EPP, want and will always encourage changes to any behaviour, composure or law, for that matter, if undemocratic, but those changes must be based on public discussion and social dialogue.

When decisions, as the one concerning Slovenian public broadcaster, are done hidden from the public's eyes, through an urgency procedure, foreseen exclusively for cases of natural disasters and war, one cannot help oneself to worry. Whose freedoms are those elites defending? It certainly isn't the freedoms of more than 50,000 people who signed under the Slovenian EPP opposition's decision to challenge those changes in public, in a so-called referendum.

Maybe a reminder is in place. If we completely let go of introspection, self-control and self-criticism, we might as well need to denounce our right to criticise, nevermind trash, our opponents, as well.

Author bio

Romana Tomc is a Member of the European Parliament from Slovenia. She is a member of the Slovenian Democratic Party, part of the European People's Party (EPP).

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author's, not those of EUobserver.

Is Orban holding out an olive branch to EPP?

It is Tibor Navracsics, an ex-EU commissioner and minister without portfolio in Orban's new government, who was reportedly picked to work on closer relations between Fidesz and the European People's Party.

Hypocrisy of S&D and Left MEPs on fossil-fuel gas pipelines

The majority of members of the European Parliament's energy committee, including the Socialists and the Left, look set to green-light measures proposed by conservative parties which would lock the EU into fossil gas for years to come.

EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania

Among the largest sources of financing for energy transition of central and eastern European countries, the €60bn Modernisation Fund remains far from the public eye. And perhaps that's one reason it is often used for financing fossil gas projects.

Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Rather than assuming a pro-European Labour government in London will automatically open doors in Brussels, the Labour party needs to consider what it may be able to offer to incentivise EU leaders to factor the UK into their defence thinking.

Column

EU's Gaza policy: boon for dictators, bad for democrats

While they woo dictators and autocrats, EU policymakers are becoming ever more estranged from the world's democrats. The real tragedy is the erosion of one of Europe's key assets: its huge reserves of soft power, writes Shada Islam.

Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Rather than assuming a pro-European Labour government in London will automatically open doors in Brussels, the Labour party needs to consider what it may be able to offer to incentivise EU leaders to factor the UK into their defence thinking.

Column

EU's Gaza policy: boon for dictators, bad for democrats

While they woo dictators and autocrats, EU policymakers are becoming ever more estranged from the world's democrats. The real tragedy is the erosion of one of Europe's key assets: its huge reserves of soft power, writes Shada Islam.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us