Gorilla affair

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The gorilla affair ( Kauza Gorila in Slovak ) is a corruption scandal in Slovakia that was triggered by the publication of alleged copies of wiretapping logs of the Slovak secret service (SIS) on the Internet shortly before Christmas 2011 and in the course of the primary election period for the parliamentary elections in Slovakia 2012 on March 10, 2012 rocked the Slovak political scene. The object of the outrage is the connection between Slovak politicians and the private capital group Penta Investments as well as alleged bribes of government officials in the millions on the occasion of the privatizations and large public awards under Mikuláš Dzurinda's second government in 2005/06.

background

The trigger for the affair was the publication on December 21, 2011 of an alleged summary of eavesdropping protocols of the Slovak secret service (SIS) called "Gorila" (German Gorilla ) on the Internet. Talks from 2005 and 2006 between Penta chairman Jaroslav Haščák, former Minister of Economic Affairs Jirko Malchárek and the former director of the national wealth fund (Slovak: Fond národného majetku, FNM) Anna Bubeníková in are documented a conspiratorial apartment in downtown Bratislava, which suggests a network of corruption that encompasses politics and the state. There, details of the planned privatization of the state-owned enterprises under the Mikuláš Dzurindas government ( SDKÚ-DS ) were discussed, in particular the Slovak energy plants and the Bratislava airport , which the latter was stopped in 2007 by the then Prime Minister Robert Fico . For the bid, Penta is said to have agreed to generous commissions, among others, to his two interlocutors. According to the representations, she also influenced the selection of the members of the privatization commission. According to the document, politicians from across the political spectrum - from SDKÚ-DS, KDH , SMK-MKP and also Smer-SD - as well as other public officials are implicated in this scandal. Jozef Jurica, member of the FNM Executive Committee, Finance Minister Ivan Mikloš , Culture Minister Rudolf Chmel and Smer Chairman and later Prime Minister Robert Fico are also mentioned.

Zoltán Vargas, a friend of Haščák's apartment, was asked for acoustic monitoring by the Slovak secret service at the Regional Court in Bratislava on November 21, 2005, after the head of its analytical department, Peter Mravec, observed frequent visits to his neighboring apartment by representatives of the government and the Penta investor group were. The resulting sound recordings are said to have been destroyed.

Investigations

Since 2006 there have been repeated police investigations based on the information obtained through surveillance, but all of them have been stopped due to a lack of cooperation from the Slovak Intelligence Service. The then Prime Minister and the Interior Minister are also said to have been informed.

First investigations in 2006 were directed against the marketability of representatives of the people whose names were mentioned in the material. They were hired in July 2007 due to a lack of helpfulness on the part of Ladislav Pittner, the then deceased head of the intelligence service.

In the course of 2009, the sound recordings, which alone would have the power to confirm or disprove the information in the “Gorilla File”, were destroyed, according to Prime Minister Iveta Radičová . The anti-corruption office under the leadership of Tibor Gašpar is responsible for this. As a reason for their removal on May 14, 2008, he cites a lack of credibility and gaps that would have made them unusable for further investigation. Interior Minister Daniel Lipšic questioned the legality of this procedure, pointing out that the files should have been returned to the secret service.

Apparently the material known as the "gorilla files" appeared for the first time in 2009. At that time, the Canadian journalist Tom Nicholson reported this material, which is said to have leaked out under the then intelligence chief Jozef Magala, to the police, the anti-corruption office presented in Nitra and the media. This time, too, the investigations were stopped without prosecution. This time, too, it is due to the lack of cooperation by the secret service, this time under Jozef Magala, which was justified by the lack of verifiability of the material. The necessary release of the employees from the duty of confidentiality did not occur. The media also decided against publication. This not only because they feared criminal charges, but also because of the lack of trustworthiness of the content.

For the time being, the issue concerned the authorities for the last time in 2010. This time the investigations were apparently closed at the urging of the Deputy Prosecutor General Dobroslav Trnka in August 2011, again due to their doubtfulness and lack of evidence of their authenticity.

The publication of the transcripts on the Internet and the filing of a criminal complaint by the SaS party on December 23, brought about a resumption of investigations by the police and the attention of the public. The authenticity of the documents in terms of their authenticity, completeness and freedom from errors as well as the legitimacy of the wiretapping processes that are said to have produced them, their publication and their use in criminal proceedings continues to be problematized.

In January, Interior Minister Lipšic set up a ten-member investigative committee under the supervision of the Special Prosecutor for Organized Crimes, which began investigating corruption on January 9, 2012. The regional court (Slovak: Krajský súd ) in Bratislava confirmed to the business newspaper Hospodárske noviny on January 12th the application of the Slovak secret service from November 21st, 2005 to use eavesdropping devices. On January 18, 2012, a document relating to the connection between Penta and the Slovak energy and electricity companies was released from the archives of Prime Minister Iveta Radičová to the investigative commission, which confirmed the implementation of this action by the secret service. He was also given a key role in further investigations. After the head of the secret service at the time, Karol Mitrík, was released from his duty of confidentiality by President Ivan Gašparovič on January 25, 2012 , he too confirmed that the apartment was being monitored. An indication of the authenticity of the documents is provided by the fact that the file and application numbers in the document match those of the application to the regional court in Bratislava for permission to monitor. The meeting has already been confirmed by many of the people concerned. Most recently, Prime Minister Iveta Radičová handed over a document from the archives of the government office, which is assigned a key role in confirming the authenticity of the gorilla files.

In 2018, USB sticks with copies of the gorilla sound recordings were found in a safe belonging to the entrepreneur Marián Kočner during a house search. Kočner is considered a long-time friend of Dobroslav Trnka, who, as co-prosecutor, arranged for the case to be closed in 2011. The recordings were leaked anonymously to the press in mid-October 2019 and caused outrage among the population. The President of Slovakia Zuzana Čaputová declared the "Gorilla" affair a "symbol of the political corruption of a whole generation".

Trnka was arrested on January 16, 2020. He is accused of protecting Kočner from prosecution for years.

Political Consequences

Removal of Bubeníková

One of the main characters in the wiretapping protocol, the director of the National Property Fund FNM Anna Bubeníková, was dismissed by the provisional government on January 11, 2012 - as recommended by the Minister for Economic Affairs, Juraj Miškov - with effect from January 18. The search for a successor was stopped by President Gašparovič for the time being. According to spokesman Marek Trubač, the National Property Fund does not need a new director two months before the elections and the Executive Committee can exercise its functions without a director. According to the business newspaper Hospodárske noviny, without a functioning management, the payment of dividends in some of the state-owned companies is at risk.

Popular demonstrations

The first protest against the corrupt behavior of politicians took place on January 27, 2012 in Bratislava . According to the organizers, the participation was somewhere between 1,000 and 10,000 people, and more than 4,000 users confirmed their participation in the protest on the social network Facebook . The protesters threw eggs and bananas (based on the name of the affair) on the building of the National Council and in the area of ​​the presidential palace , while they shouted slogans such as “gorillas behind bars” or “treason”.

The largest demonstrations to date took place on February 3, 2012 in various Slovak cities. In Bratislava , depending on the estimate, between 10,000 and 15,000 people took to the streets. The peaceful protest began at the Námestie SNP and should end properly in front of the building of the Slovak government office . The demands of the protesters included the resignation of several members of the government such as Mikuláš Dzurinda (Foreign Minister) and Ivan Mikloš (Minister of Finance) and other politicians, a full investigation of the scandal and the postponement of the early parliamentary elections from March to September. However, some members of right-wing extremist groups had violent clashes with the police in the area of ​​the government office and in particular in front of the National Council building , where the police used a water cannon to stop the unannounced protest. 3,000 people demonstrated in Košice , while smaller demonstrations also took place in Nitra , Poprad , Prešov , Trenčín , Zvolen and Žilina .

The demands include the recall of the then Prime Minister and now Foreign Minister Mikuláš Dzurinda, Finance Minister Ivan Mikloš and Deputy Prime Minister Rudolf Chmel by Iveta Radičová, as a result of the affair of the voluntary resignations of Economics Minister Juraj Miškov ( SaS ), Health Minister Ivan Uhliarik ( KDH ), as well as the chairman of the parliament Pavol Hrušovský and the members of parliament Béla Bugár and Robert Fico. In addition, there is pressure to postpone the election planned for March 10th to September, the lifting of immunity for MPs and the release of all persons involved in the cases, including the then head of the secret service, Jozef Magala, from confidentiality.

Further demonstrations were held on February 10, 2012, albeit on a smaller scale than the previous week, with 2,000 people in Bratislava and smaller protests in Ružomberok , Poprad and Košice . Two days earlier, a demonstration took place in Banská Bystrica, where, in addition to the previously written demands, the Slovak electoral system was changed (see Political System of Slovakia ), namely the possibility of electing local politicians, and strengthening the means of direct democracy , such as the referendum , expressed at local, regional and national level. Two weeks later, on February 24, 2012, the Gorilla IV demonstration took place, albeit on a smaller scale than before, but with noteworthy excesses at the party headquarters of SDKÚ and Smer. At the same time, part of the protest movement split off, not only because of dissenting opinions on the dispute over the cancellation of the early parliamentary elections, but also on the form of the protest. The new group founded a citizens' initiative called Občania in 2012 , which made proposals to resolve the political crisis. On February 29, 2012, riots broke out in front of and in the building of the National Council when some protesters came to the balcony above the meeting room and insulted MPs and the Speaker of Parliament for allegedly “violating the constitutional rights of protesters”.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Scandal in Slovakia: The multi-million euro gorilla , The Economist, accessed on January 28, 2012
  2. ↑ How to Dispose of a Scandal , Die Presse, accessed January 28, 2012
  3. ↑ Na verejnosť prenikol dokument s krycím názvom Gorila , TA3, accessed on February 4, 2012
  4. ^ Scandal in Slovakia. The multi-million euro gorilla , The Economist, accessed February 15, 2012
  5. ↑ Ľudí zo spisu Gorila spája hotel v Tatrách , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012
  6. ↑ Polícia začala riešiť kauzu Gorila , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 16, 2012
  7. ↑ Analýza: Spis Gorila triafa do reality SME (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012
  8. ^ Corruption in Slovakia , TAZ (German) accessed on February 15, 2012
  9. ↑ Gorilla traces as far as Vienna , Wiener Zeitung (German), accessed on February 15, 2012
  10. ↑ Súd potvrdil odpočuvanie for gorily , SME (Slovak), accessed 15 February 2012
  11. ↑ Gorilla traces as far as Vienna , Wiener Zeitung (German), accessed on February 15, 2012
  12. ↑ Právnici Penty: Akcia Gorila bola nelegálna , Pravda (Slovak), February 15, 2012
  13. ↑ Gorilla affair shakes the system , Wiener Zeitung (German), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  14. ↑ Radičová: Vyšetrovanie Gorily bude viac než kompikované SME (Slovak), accessed on February 16, 2012.
  15. ↑ Lipšic: Akcia Gorila skutočne existovala, spis úmyselne skartovali , Pravda (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  16. ↑ V SaS videli Gorilu davno , SME (Slovak), accessed on 16 February 2012 found.
  17. ↑ Prečo sme nepísali o Gorile , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 16, 2012.
  18. ↑ Prečo sme nepísali o Gorile , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 16, 2012.
  19. ↑ Trnka radil stopnúť Gorilu SME (Slovak), accessed on February 16, 2011.
  20. ↑ Polícia začala riešiť kauzu Gorila , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  21. ↑ Police to reopen Gorilla , The Slovak Spectator, accessed February 15, 2012.
  22. ↑ Trnka: Dokumenty o Gorile never autentické sú , SME (Slovak), accessed on 15 February 2012 found.
  23. ↑ Právnici Penty: Akcia Gorila bola nelegálna , Pravda (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  24. ↑ Gorilla traces as far as Vienna , Wiener Zeitung (German), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  25. ↑ Gorila už má dva vyšetrovacie tímy , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  26. ↑ Súd potvrdil odpočúvanie z Gorily , hospodárske noviny (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  27. ^ Lipšic: Akcia SIS Gorila sa udiala, spis skartovali protiprávne , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 16, 2012.
  28. ↑ Spectator: Spy boss can now talk about Gorilla , The Slovak Spectator, accessed February 15, 2012.
  29. ↑ SIS potvrdila odpočúvania z Gorily , SME (Slovak), accessed February 15, 2012.
  30. ↑ MPs: SIS chief confirms flat in Vazovova Street named in Gorilla file was spied on , The Slovak Spectator, accessed on February 15, 2012.
  31. ↑ Gorila už má dva vyšetrovacie tímy , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  32. ^ Corruption scandal in Slovakia. Code name Gorilla Süddeutsche Zeitung (German), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  33. ↑ Súd potvrdil odpočúvanie z Gorily , SME (Slovak), accessed February 15, 2012.
  34. ↑ Haščák napadol dôkaz Gorily, ktorý odovzdala premiérka , SME (Slovak), accessed on 15 February 2012 found.
  35. ↑ Police found recordings from the infamous Gorilla file in Kočner's flat. December 4, 2018, accessed May 25, 2019 .
  36. ↑ Controversial businessman Kočner allegedly Commanded the general prosecutor. January 8, 2019, accessed May 25, 2019 .
  37. ↑ Gerald Schubert: New details of an old scandal shake Slovakia. In: derstandard.at. October 21, 2019, accessed October 21, 2019 .
  38. ↑ Suspicion of corruption network outraged Slovakia. In: orf.at . October 18, 2019, accessed October 21, 2019.
  39. ^ Journalist murder trial: Slovak police arrest public prosecutor. In: derstandard.at . January 16, 2020, accessed January 16, 2020.
  40. ↑ Gorila má svoju prvú obeť, vláda odvolala Bubeníkovú , SME (Slovak), accessed on February 15, 2012.
  41. ^ Corruption scandal in Slovakia. Code name Gorilla , Süddeutsche Zeitung, accessed February 15, 2012.
  42. ^ New Government Should Elect Next FNM Chief, President Says , webnoviny.sk, accessed February 11, 2012.
  43. ↑ FNM nemá vedenie, Slovensko dividendy , hnonline.sk (Slovak), accessed on February 11, 2012.
  44. ↑ Ulicami Bratislavy sa ozývalo: Dosť bolo Goríl! , webnoviny.sk (Slovak), accessed February 4, 2012.
  45. ↑ protest malo ukončiť ticho. Nakoniec zneli delobuchy , Aktuellne.sk (Slovak), accessed February 4, 2012.
  46. ↑ Slováci vyšli do ulíc, aby povedali Gorile nie , webnoviny.sk (Slovak), accessed on February 4, 2012.
  47. ↑ Online: Na radikálov pred parlamentom použila polícia vodné delo , Aktuellne.sk , accessed on February 4, 2012.
  48. ↑ MPs: SIS chief confirms flat in Vazovova Street named in Gorilla file was spied on , The Slovak Spectator, accessed on February 15, 2012.
  49. ↑ Organizátori protestu Gorila vyzvali Radičovú, aby odvolala ministrov , Pravda (Slovak), accessed on 15 February 2012 found.
  50. ↑ Protest proti Gorile poznačila hádka, O týždeň pôjdu k Pente , webnoviny.sk (Slovak), accessed on 11 February 2012 found.
  51. ↑ Organizátori protestu Gorila predstavili svoje požiadavky , Pravda (Slovak), accessed on 11 February 2012 found.
  52. ↑ Demonštranti zasypali sídlo SDKÚ vajcami, Smer ostal čistý , webnoviny.sk (Slovak), accessed on March 3, 2012.
  53. ↑ Ex-organizátori protestov Gorila sa dištancujú od sučasných , webnoviny.sk (Slovak), accessed on March 3, 2012.
  54. ↑ Tvár protestu Gorila Lucia Galová skončila na polícii , webnoviny.sk (Slovak), accessed on March 3, 2012.