Drnovsek to Lead the Slovenian Government

If the words of the most fiery MPs, that is the defenders of Perterle's rule, who at the last session of the Slovenian parliament on 22 April this year fiercely opposed the choice of Janez Drnovsek as premier are to be believed, then the actual ruling coalition elected as President of the Slovenian government a dictator, commander of an occupying army, leftist and communist, advocate of a Yugoslav dungeon of the people, persecution of journalists and emergency measures, and at the same time a too "soft" merchant without spine or clear program, a collector of positions who has always "been sorting out things without ever sorting them out"...

All the cited and deeply contradictory arguments are most certainly the clearest indicators of the problematic position in which Drnovsek's critics find themselves; at the same time they are the best illustration of Drnovsek's qualities, on account of which he, as third in line as candidate for the place of President of the Slovenia government (following the failed candidacy of Marko Voljac and Igor Bavcar) has succeeded in persuading two-thirds of the Slovenian MPs to give him the mandate. Drnovsek's victory is not a result of his fiery national program, successful rhetorical acrobatics or imposing speeches, but the fruit of careful, drawn out negotiations and innumerable small compromises woven into the final agreement of all collaborating parties. The leaders of the Liberal Democratic, Democratic, Socialist, Green and independent parties signed the agreement only a few minutes before the start of the session which, in accordance with the institution of "constructive mistrust", was to decide on the new mandate, transforming over night the Demo Christian-Peoples bloc into the opposition...

It is certain that Igor Bavcar, Dimitrije Rupel, Jelko Kacin and a few other ministers from the "old" set-up of Lojze Peterle will remain in the new government, while the new ministers (primarily from the Liberal Democratic, Socio-Democratic and Socialist parties) will take over the ministries of education, culture, trade... In this way Drnovsek's variation of the cabinet really represents a government of the left-to-center parties: a government with the thankless task of sorting out serious economic difficulties.

In the place of great national projects, historical decisions and manifestations, the government of Janez Drnovsek in independent Slovenia awaits a mountain of smaller but crucial problems, whose resolving will show whether Slovenian statehood was a rational project or the product of national euphoria without financial basis. It could be said that the choice of Drnovsek as head of the Slovenian government is the right answer to such a question. His power is in his businesslike lack of charisma, his pragmatism and calmness. In his actions Drnovsek does not give the impression of an authoritative politician, which is his greatest advantage, thanks to which he is still the most popular leader in Slovenia.

In spite of all this, there are many who will say that his government is the result of "corrupt compromises", that it isn't based on the new elections and therefore does not agree with the desires of the people. Despite the dirge of those God has turned His is back on, the fact remains that in the choice of Drnovsek, real European politics and the kind of "indirect democracy" which is not founded on the populist "desires of the people" but is based on the mutual tolerance of parties and many tedious negotiations, came out tops. And the almost friendly meeting of the victor Drnovsek with the defeated Peterle, like their agreement in front of TV cameras on a working get-together in the course of the next few days, was an example of relations which we in the area of former Yugoslavia can only long for. A true picture of the victory of compromise.