The Slovenian Government has extended police powers after the fatal stabbing of 48-year-old Aleš Šutar outside a bar in Novo Mesto, a city close to the border with Croatia.
The incident in late October has ignited public debate over security, crime and the question of Roma integration.
The Roma are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group who originated in South Asia – specifically, the Punjab, Rajasthan, and Sindh regions of modern-day India and Pakistan – and are now widely dispersed, primarily across Europe.
The suspected killer, an ethnic Roma man, has spurred rising tensions between the Slovenians and the Roma minority.
Following the incident, the parliament approved a new legislation, the so-called Šutar act, which it claims will help “fight crime” and “increase security in society.”
The act will enable police to enter homes or cars without a warrant when searching for illegal weapons.
It will also expand surveillance powers and reintroduce automatic number-plate recognition (ANPR) technology, previously banned as unconstitutional.
While critics argued this new legislation targets the Roma population, the Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob said the Šutar Act targets “crime itself, not any particular ethnic group”.
“The Šutar Act provides certain answers on how we can increase safety in society, how to take a stand against crime, not against any particular ethnic group, but against crime itself,” he said.
Yesterday, Mensur Haliti, Vice President at the Roma Foundation for Europe, said: “If the government conflates fighting crime with policing the Roma, it is not protecting public safety; it is punishing an entire group for the actions of individuals.
“Crime and violence must be addressed but proportionality is what separates the rule of law from collective blame.”
In June, the Ombudsman in Slovenia Peter Svetina said there should be a consistent police presence in Roma settlements because disturbances, misdemeanours or crimes still happen there.
Earlier this year, he warned police presence is still necessary in Roma settlements to address recurring societal problems and unrest.
His office also said that Roma integration remains largely unrealised, with many of its past recommendations on social inclusion and local co-operation still ignored.
