But it’s the disputed overhaul of the criminal code that so far has had the most visible consequences, with convicted criminals being let out of prison. Fico — who survived an assassination attempt in May — is seen by the opposition as having orchestrated the revamp in order to help out political cronies who faced prosecution or jail terms.
The amendment to the criminal code, introduced in February but which only entered force in August, reduced penalties for a broad spectrum 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 connected to officials from Fico’s populist ruling Smer (Direction) party.
“The Slovak government has not only given up 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 party Progressive Slovakia, told POLITICO. “By reducing penalties, intimidating and sanctioning brave investigators and disbanding the police force.”
Slovakia’s Constitutional Court later suspended some of the changes, like the slashing of the statute of limitations for rape, but did not overturn the decision to abolish the prosecutor’s office.
The government was forced to hastily tweak the amendment in July after the European Commission published its Rule of Law report and pointed out that Slovakia could lose access to EU funding over some elements of the changes, which risk diminishing the country’s ability to pursue high-level corruption cases and protect the EU’s financial interests.