An unprecedented escalation of political violence should be a wake-up call for ruling elites, not a pretext for power grabs. Saturday’s attempt on US presidential candidate Donald Trump’s life sent shockwaves across the world. In its aftermath, commentators have pointed to the growing polarisation in the United States and the former president’s divisive rhetoric.
Playing on people’s fears and encouraging hatred may be effective populist tools, but they also tend to backfire. Slovaks know this all too well, having experienced the shock of their own Prime Minister Robert Fico’s assassination attempt, amid his polarising third term in office. Just two months ago, a 71-year-old self-described poet and security guard fired several shots at the prime minister at close range in the town of Handlová as he was walking out of a meeting.
The assailant was reportedly motivated by his disagreement with the Fico government’s media and foreign policies. In the aftermath of the incident, cross-party condemnation of political violence was not enough to bridge the deep divide between Fico’s conservative, pro-Kremlin base and the opposition’s pro-Ukraine, progressive-liberal supporters. Just like in the US, where now Republicans are blaming Democrats for the attempt on Trump’s life, high-level government officials in Slovakia were quick to accuse the media and the opposition of inciting the assailant.
The ruling coalition used the incident as a pretext to double down on poli.