CET ON-LINE*10-APR-96

Wednesday, 10 March 1996 Volume 1, Issue 325

Slovak President Michal Kovac refused on Tuesday to sign an

amended penal code law allowing punishment for subversion and

slandering the country abroad, instead he returned the amended

law to parliament. According to a statement released by the

President's office, Kovac is asking parliament to reconsider the

law and to eliminate the amendments which he considers to be

undemocratic, and violations of the principles of the freedom of

speech, information and assembly. The law in question allows

for the imprisonment of people who are found to have organised

anti-government rallies and spread false information abroad, or

who are accused of subversion or the intention to subvert.

Last Wednesday three envoys representing the European Union met

Foreign Minister Juraj Schenk and informed him of an EU

statement expressing concern over changes to the Slovak penal

code. On Thursday Schenk lashed out at the EU for its criticism

of the penal code amendments, saying it was premature and had

not allowed Slovakia to present its arguments in favour of the

law. But, Kovac reiterrated that the new law in its present

form "will at least make Slovakia's path to European political,

economic and security structures more difficult".

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