Ljubljana, Slovenia (Pixabay)
Slovenian Justice Minister Andreja Katic and Interior Minister Bostjan Poklukar resigned on Oct. 26 after the death of a 48-year-old victim of a beating in front of a bar in Novo Mesto by a Roma minority member.
The assault took place in the night of Oct. 24 and 25, when the 48-year-old victim came for his son, who had called him to pick him up after being threatened by several Roma men. "By resigning, I wish to contribute to defusing the situation. Everyone must consider their own responsibility," Katic told an extraordinary news conference, while the interior minister said he assumed "objective responsibility."
Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob also spoke at the news conference and announced urgent amendments to laws pertaining to Roma issues and security. "Violence does not stop overnight. It is born in an environment where the act is not followed by punishment, when justice drags its feet and accountability loses its point. The event has shaken us all," Golob said.
Police said in a press release that a 21-year-old suspect had been arrested. After the tragic event in Novo Mesto, Slovenian President Natasa Pirc Musar moved for an extraordinary session of the Slovenian parliament, while the leader of the opposition Slovenian Democratic Party Janez Jansa called for an assembly in Ljubljana as an expression of dissatisfaction with the failure to address Roma issues.
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