"Even in my wildest dreams I wouldn’t have imagined that Slovenia’s denationalization process would take this long. That’s the reason why we keep paying such high damages," said former Justice Minister dr. Rajko Pirnat. The Denationalization Act was passed on November 20, 1991. Pirnat said everyone was aware back then that not all nationalized property could be returned within a year as per the Denationalization Act. However, he stressed than nobody could have imagined that Slovenia could someday lose the island in Lake Bled, the north wall of Triglav or the coast of Lake Bohinj. "These are landmarks of exceptional importance," said Pirnat.

A number of former MPs told RTV Slovenia that they were already aware in 1991 that the Roman Catholic Church would be the largest claimant. Despite that, the then government did not impose a cap on claims or damages. The Denationalization Act had to be fast-tracked and passed before the privatization process could begin.

Castles, churches, Prešeren Grove etc.
While 99.6 percent of the nearly 40 thousand claims have been resolved, the most contentious cases remain unresolved, e.g. Our Lady of Help Church in Ljubljana, the Golte ski resort, the Robanov kot valley, Kodeljevo Castle, Cekin Mansion, Prešeren Grove, and Forma Viva.

Ideology has nothing to do with it
Why do most of the unresolved claims involve the Roman Catholic Church? "The Roman Catholic Church is not being treated any differently than any other claimant. This is a democratic country. I don’t think ideology has anything to do with it," said Damjana Pečnik, state secretary at the Culture Ministry, where 24 cases remain pending. The Culture Ministry has resolved most of its cases, though it lacks competent lawyers because it didn’t hire new ones when several lawyers retired.

Claimants can claim interest on damages
All this is grist to the mill for the claimants. Although they still haven’t received their property back, the claimants can claim interest on the damages. "It’s is easy money," said Miha Kozinc, a lawyer representing the Municipality of Ljubljana. The Municipality of Ljubljana recently returned the old Kolizej building to its previous owners. It also paid them 3 million euros in damages – most of it was interest.

Damages to be paid ASAP
Prime Minister Miro Cerar said in a recent parliamentary session that this issue needs to be addressed as soon as possible. "The longer the procedure takes, the higher the damages will be. We will have to pay the bulk of the damages in the coming years. We need to expedite this process, otherwise the taxpayer will have to foot an even higher bill," said Cerar. The government has earmarked an eight-figure sum for this purpose.

Marko Starman, a former Justice Ministry State Secretary, said that public officials should not be blamed for these delays. "One person alone can’t resolve this. With delays like these, informal influence is key," said Starman, adding that denationalization is yet another example of a noble cause gone wrong and an example of how the law doesn’t work.

Jure Brankovič, TV Slovenia; translated by D. V.