US embassy cable - 05LJUBLJANA696

S E C R E T  LJUBLJANA 000696 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
FOR R, P, AND EUR/NCE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/30/2015 
TAGS: KDEM, KPAO, PREL, EAID, PHUM, SI 
SUBJECT: COMBATING EXTREMISM IN SLOVENIA 
 
REF: A. SECSTATE 159129 
 
     B. LJUBLJANA 740 
     C. LJUBLJANA 603 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Thomas B. Robertson for Reasons 1.4 (B, D) 
 
1. (S) SUMMARY.  Religious and political extremism are very 
rare in Slovenia.  With a homogeneous population of only two 
million people, Slovenian society and politics function on 
the basis of strong social networks that foster a culture of 
compromise, consensus, and centrism.  Nevertheless, the same 
factors that work to make Slovenia a tightly-knit community 
also create insularity and suspicion towards foreigners, 
which at times borders on intolerance and xenophobia.  The 
latter is manifested most noticeably with regards to the 0.2 
percent of the population (roughly 3,500 people) who are Roma 
and, to a far lesser degree, the 2.4 percent of the 
population who are Muslim (roughly 50,000 people).  Sitting 
on the crossroads of Western and Muslim civilization, 
Slovenia's Muslim community is well integrated into Slovenian 
society and has exhibited no overt manifestations of 
religious extremism.  Post's strategy for combating 
intolerance--and deterring the rise of extremism--focuses on 
tolerance education, fighting against discrimination and hate 
speech, and promoting social dialogue and outreach to 
minority groups.  Slovenia's Ombudsman for Human Rights and 
various Slovenian NGOs also take an active stand in promoting 
tolerance, diversity, and respect for human rights.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
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INTOLERANCE WITHIN SLOVENIAN SOCIETY 
------------------------------------- 
 
2. (SBU) Intolerance and prejudice exist in Slovenia and are 
channeled primarily towards the Roma, homosexuals, Muslims, 
and immigrants from other ex-Yugoslav republics.  Slovenian 
Roma regularly complain of discrimination in employment, 
housing, health services, and education (see REF B). 
Although the Roma living in the northeastern region of 
Slovenia (Prekmurje) are relatively well integrated into 
their local communities and experience low levels of 
discrimination, Roma living in the southeast (Dolenjska) 
often experience outright intolerance and overt 
discrimination, leading on occasion to inter-ethnic 
confrontations.  Actual outbreaks of violence are quite rare, 
however, with only one incident of violence reported in 2005. 
 Incidents of violence against homosexuals also occur, with 
several attacks and beatings reported in June and July 2005. 
Intolerance towards recent emigrants from other ex-Yugoslav 
republics remains a problem, as does prejudice against Jews. 
By and large, however, these negative attitudes and behaviors 
are more aptly characterized as intolerance and prejudice 
rather than xenophobic extremism. 
 
3. (C) The Slovenian National Party (SNS) is the sole 
political party outside the centrist mainstream that 
consistently employs nationalistic rhetoric.  The SNS 
espouses a platform of "nationalist populism" that combines 
nationalism, intolerance towards minorities, and populist 
demagoguery.  The SNS campaigned in the October 2004 
parliamentary elections against equal rights for Roma and 
homosexuals by arguing that these constituted "special 
rights."  SNS member and Deputy President of the National 
Assembly Saso Pece has famously pronounced that he would 
never want "to have coffee with a black man or a homosexual." 
 The SNS has also taken a tough stance on Slovenia's 
relations with neighboring Croatia, Austria and Italy.  SNS 
leader Zmago Jelincic regularly accuses Slovenia's neighbors 
of being "out to get" the Slovenian nation.  Nevertheless, 
the SNS is largely a fringe party, which garnered only 6.3 
percent of the vote in the 2004 elections. 
 
4. (C) The Muslim community in Slovenia, numbering 
approximately 50,000 people, is composed largely of recent 
immigrants from Bosnia and Albania.  Muslims in Slovenia are 
relatively well integrated and generally espouse a moderate 
Islamic faith.  There is little interpersonal friction 
between Muslims and non-Muslims.  The primary irritant for 
Muslims living in Slovenia has been their inability to build 
a mosque (see REF C).  Although there are no restrictions on 
the Muslim community's freedom of worship, plans to construct 
a mosque initially ran into political opposition when a 
referendum was called (a common practice in Slovenia) to 
reject zoning changes approved by the Ljubljana Municipality 
to allow for the construction of the mosque.  Supporters of 
the referendum used demagogic rhetoric to argue that 
construction of the mosque would lead to increased Islamic 
fundamentalism within Slovenia.  However, in July 2004, the 
Constitutional Court rejected the legality of the referendum 
and ruled that it could not take place, thus allowing the 
Muslim Community to proceed with its plans to begin 
construction of the mosque.  Embassy contacts in the Muslim 
 
Community have repeatedly thanked the Embassy for raising 
this issue in its Country Report on Human Rights, and have 
told us that most obstacles to the construction the mosque 
are behind them, though the actual sale of the parcel of land 
where the mosque is to be located is now being held up by a 
denationalization claim. 
 
5. (S) Post is not aware of any extremist tendencies within 
the Muslim Community.  During a September 2004 conversation 
with PolMil off, Slovenian Mufti Osman Dogic opined that most 
Muslims living in Slovenia viewed themselves equally as 
Muslims and as Slovenian citizens/residents.  Dogic, who 
speaks flawless English, joked that his family was perfectly 
multicultural since his three children were Bosnian, 
Slovenian, and Australian (NOTE: Dogic has lived in each of 
these countries). Though Dogic is currently engaged in a 
bitter doctrinal dispute (and lawsuit) with Maribor Imam 
Ibrahim Malanovic to determine who is the rightful leader 
(Mufti) of the Slovenian Islamic Community, both individuals 
portray themselves as moderate leaders and friends of the 
Embassy. 
 
 
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EMBASSY PROGRAMS TO PROMOTE TOLERANCE AND DIVERSITY 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
6. (SBU) Post vigilantly monitors the press for instances of 
xenophobia, hate speech, and political extremism.  Embassy 
officers have regular contact with representatives of 
Slovenia's minority communities, including the Roma, Jewish, 
Muslim, and gay/lesbian communities.  Post also maintains 
regular contact with NGOs that work in the field of human 
rights and regularly exchanges information with Slovenia's 
independent Ombudsman for Human Rights. 
 
7. (SBU) The Embassy has funded a variety of social and 
cultural events as well as NGOs that work in the field of 
human rights protection and anti-discrimination.  The 
following represent a sampling of some of the most recent 
projects we have funded or organized in this area (per REF A): 
 
--In September 2005, the Embassy funded a workshop on civil 
rights for Roma women and children living in the Dolenjska 
region.  Impact: long term.  This program is ongoing and is 
judged to be very effective. 
 
--In September 2005, the Embassy funded a cultural event and 
information campaign titled "Stop the Violence 2005," which 
raised awareness of prejudice and discrimination against the 
Roma in the southeastern city of Novo Mesto (Dolenjska).  The 
event was attended by numerous Roma and non-Roma citizens 
interested in fostering dialogue and better communication 
between the two communities.  Impact: short term. The event 
was characterized by the Human Rights Ombudsman as a 
"terrific success." 
 
--In August 2005, the Embassy sponsored a Holocaust education 
project for children.  Impact: short term.  The event was 
judged to be moderately successful.  Jewish community 
contacts told us it was a welcome event, but opined that the 
Slovenian government needed to employ a more systematic 
approach to Holocaust education. 
 
--In June 2005, the Embassy financed a conference on social 
inclusion of vulnerable minorities, which looked at social 
integration and ways to fight against xenophobia by improving 
employment policies and practices.  Impact: long term.  The 
conference was judged to be successful. 
 
--In June 2005, the Ambassador and PolMil off visited three 
rural Roma communities, a Roma community center, a 
kindergarten, and an elementary school that served as a local 
model for integrating Roma and non-Roma students.  Impact: 
short term.  This trip succesfully demonstrated the Embassy's 
concern for the well-being and rights of the Slovenian Roma 
and focused on the positive steps towards integration that 
have been made in the northeastern part of the country. 
 
--In May 2005, the Embassy funded a project organized by the 
International Organization for Migration titled "Empowering 
Migrants: Integration through Information and Training of 
Public Officials and NGOs."  The aim of the workshop was to 
provide migrants and NGOs dealing with migrant communities 
with training on integration of foreigners, the rights of 
foreign citizens residing in Slovenia, psychological aspects 
of integration into the host society, communication skills, 
transparency in administration, and principles of good 
governance.  Impact: long term.  The project is ongoing and 
is judged to be very successful. 
 
--In November 2004, the Ambassador hosted an Iftaar dinner 
for members of the Muslim community.  Impact: short term. 
 
The dinner was very successful and helped cement our 
excellent relations with the Muslim community. 
 
--In June 2004, the Embassy funded a project on Roma 
education and training, designed to promote ethnic tolerance, 
integration, and greater social equality.  The pilot project 
placed a Roma teaching assistant in elementary school 
classrooms, where s/he translated and helped Roma children 
learn the Slovene language, culture and history, while also 
serving as a liaison between Roma families and the school. 
Other activities included workshops for Roma mothers and 
pre-school children, and training for school teachers in 
anti-bias education, Roma culture, and history.  Impact: long 
term.  This project was very successful and serves as a 
long-term model for multiethnic education in the Slovenian 
school system. 
 
8. (SBU) Upcoming projects also include an Embassy-sponsored 
conference on "Islam and the West" that will focus on the 
Balkans as a crossroads of Western civilization and Islam. 
We plan to invite progressive Islamic scholars to address the 
issues of cooperation and coexistence between Islam and the 
West. 
 
 
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GOS PROGRAMS TO PROMOTE TOLERANCE 
---------------------------------- 
 
9. (SBU) Slovenia's independent Ombudsman for Human Rights 
has been very active promoting tolerance and combating 
discrimination.  In late 2004, the Ombudsman launched a 
campaign against hate speech that included a traveling 
exhibition documenting hate speech in the media, on the 
internet, in the public pronouncements of politicians, and in 
graffiti.  The campaign has received wide media coverage and 
has been very successful at exposing some of the worst 
offenders and bringing this issue to the attention of the 
public.  The Ombudsman has also regularly spoken out about 
the rights of the Roma community and the existing 
discrimination they face.  Both the Ombudsman and Ljubljana 
Mayor Danica Simsic have been supportive of the Muslim 
Community's efforts to build a mosque and Mayor Simsic has 
also organized a number of events promoting tolerance for 
foreigners, homosexuals, and other minority groups living in 
Ljubljana. 
 
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COMMENT 
-------- 
 
10. (S) Slovenia sits at the crossroads of Western 
civilization and Islam, but is remarkably free of any 
significant expressions of political or religious extremism. 
Nevertheless, intolerance is a problem that we are vigorously 
working to ameliorate through financing of NGOs, workshops, 
conferences, Embassy outreach, and other projects that 
promote tolerance, diversity, and an open society. 
Fortunately, Slovenia has many excellent NGOs that work in 
this area and an active Ombudsman and media who are quick to 
draw attention to instances of discrimination and prejudice. 
Our strategy is to support human rights NGOs to the extent 
possible, since they form the best bulwark against the 
"uncivil society" represented by extremists and terrorists. 
NGOs and other civil society associations are the best 
integrated with minority communities, the most energetic, and 
often the most effective at identifying solutions.  Post will 
continue working with our NGO contacts and reaching out to 
the minority communities living in Slovenia to promote our 
goals of democracy and human rights. 
ROBERTSON 
 
 
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 2005LJUBLJ00696 - Classification: SECRET 


 
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