We Have Had Enough!

Political party in Slovakia

Politics of Slovakia
Political parties
Elections

We Have Had Enough! (Slovak: Máme toho dosť!) was an agrarian political party in Slovakia. It was formed following protests by farmers in 2018 and 2019 surrounding the allocation of farm subsidies from the European Union. It contested the 2020 parliamentary elections and received over 9,000 votes before dissolving by 2022.

History

Under the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy, farmers in the EU are given subsidies in order to supplant their income and allow farmers "to make a reasonable living".^[3] According to the law in Slovakia, anyone who farms on the land can claim subsidies, even if they do not own the land itself.^[4] These laws meant that fraud could be committed quite easily. Journalist Ján Kuciak was going to publish an article alleging that several million Euros in subsidies had been lost due to fraud, but he was murdered on 26 February 2018.^[5]

Following Kuciak's murder, several large-scale anti-government protests were held. Slovakian farmers played an important role, demanding more transparent rules for the distribution of EU subsidies.^[6]^[7] The protests continued into 2019, and in August of that year František Oravec announced the founding of a new party, named after a slogan used by the protesting farmers.^[2]^[8]

The party contested the 2020 parliamentary election, running a total of 71 candidates, with party leader František Oravec receiving the most (4,082) votes.^[9] The party received a total of 9,260, 0.32% of the national vote and the fifteenth largest vote share overall, and did not win any seats in the National Council.^[10]

Ideology

Having been founded by farmers, the party focused mainly on agricultural issues. It called for self-sufficiency of food products, reforming the way EU farming grants are awarded, and restrictions on the export of timber in order to protect Slovakia's forests.^[11] In addition, it would encourage the establishment of regional farming companies and put in place more financial assistance for new farmers. Outside of agriculture, the party pledged to introduce new employment programs, reduce taxation of businesses, and improve Slovakia's less developed regions.^[11] The party also pledged to tailor its campaigns to specific regions of Slovakia, in order to "bring the strong voice of the regions to the National Council".^[11]

References

^ ^a ^b "Party Chairman We have had enough! is František Oravec". Pravda 100. 10 November 2019. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Farmers form a party from the protests We have had enough!". Conservative Daily Postoj. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
^ "Aims of the common agricultural policy". European Commission. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
^ "Slovak farmers drive tractors to capital to protest against subsidy fraud". Reuters. Reuters. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
^ Gotev, Georgi (20 June 2018). "Slovak farmers drive tractors into capital to protest alleged EU subsidy fraud". Euractiv. Agence France-Presse. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
^ "Farmers join anti-government protests in Slovakia's Bratislava". TRT World. Agence France-Presse. 23 June 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
^ "Slovak farmers clog capital protesting alleged EU subsidy fraud". France 24. Agence France-Presse. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
^ TASR. "Farmári z protestov zakladajú stranu Máme toho dosť!". www.postoj.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 2024-03-24.
^ "Candidate list WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH!". TA3. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
^ Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic. "The Election to the National Council of the Slovak Republic Summary Results". volby.statistics.sk. Retrieved 2024-03-24.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Why we were created". We have had enough. Archived from the original on 2020-01-14. Retrieved 20 March 2021.