The police is to step up its strike on Monday and start identifying and excluding technically inadequate equipment, deemed dangerous for police work. Slovenia's Police Trade Union and the Trade Union of Police Officers also announced a protest rally in Ljubljana for next Thursday.

"I'm still not familiar with the strategy the unions have for excluding our equipment. It is clear however that choosing which equipment should be excluded from use cannot be based on subjective estimates made by police officers or union representatives," was Police Commissioner Marjan Fank's reaction to the announced exclusion from use of dangerous equipment. He added that equipment can only be excluded through formal procedures and not based on "subjective estimates on what is or isn't dangerous for police work".

Fank does agree however that the police has had to use a lot of technically inadequate equipment in recent years and that the possibility of discarding some of it does exist. He also stressed that police officers do need safe equipment for their work. That is why they will not oppose the exclusion of some equipment, but only if the equipment to be excluded truly "represents an imminent threat".

The Police Commissioner approves of the police demands and says the majority of the demands are justified and legitimate.

Fank backs the police
According to TV Slovenija journalist Tjaša Potisk, Fank finds it unacceptable that the funds for meeting the strike demands are to be sought for from within the pool of money additionally approved as material funding for the police. "It means that if we would take from that money, with which we are trying to facilitate the very poor state the police is in, and use it for meeting the strike demands, next year we will realistically be in an even worse situation than this year," explained Fank.

Fank himself will not be a part of Thursday's protest, although he agrees with the majority of the police demands. He stressed that he would always stand by his police officers and support the activities of the union for as long as they "are dignified and don't bring under question the security of our citizens".

Sa. J., Tjaša Potisk; translated by K. J.