Sevnica - Milan Kučan, Slovenia's former president, has accused the current government of being undemocratic as he told a ceremony Saturday that the next election will "decide about the return of democracy".

He said Slovenians had to send the clear message that "we are not willing to submit to the way the current government is governing, which is alien to Slovenia."

Kučan said the government was undermining the Constitution and the rule of law, and indeed abandoning the rule of law altogether, practices he said were in contradiction with the expectations people had when Slovenia became independent.

The Covid-19 pandemic is no excuse to interfere with the Constitution, rule of law and human rights. "It is becoming increasingly clear that the battle against the virus has also been a cover for completely different political and ideological goals," he said.

Kučan served as Slovenia's first president, serving until 2002. He has retired from politics but has recently appeared at anti-government protests and is believed to wield significant influence behind the scenes.