"There had been signs for quite some time, because other directors were being dismissed as well,"
"They were also signaling publicly what they didn't like,"
"The culture of the Slovak people should be Slovak. Slovak and no other. We tolerate other national cultures, but our culture is not a mixing of other cultures,"
"Journalists began asking the ministry why I had been dismissed, and that's when they began inventing all sorts of reasons, constantly changing them, First it was because the gallery was empty. Then because it was too full. Then because there was no Slovak flag outside the building. Then because of the renovation work that had taken place two years earl"
Robert Fico returned to power in late 2023 and formed a fourth administration that shifted cultural policy toward traditional Slovak values. The Ministry of Culture went to the far-right Slovak National Party and appointed Martina Simkovicova as minister. Simkovicova prioritized culture that reflects a singular Slovak identity and opposed works exploring liberal or LGBTQ+ themes. Within months, leaders of national cultural institutions were dismissed, including the Slovak National Library, the Slovak National Theatre, and the Slovak National Gallery. Official reasons for dismissals changed repeatedly and often contradicted one another, reflecting a politically driven personnel purge.
Read at www.dw.com
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