Gorilla scandal

Vazovova Street in Bratislava, the wiretapped flat is located in the house to the right

Gorilla scandal (Slovak: Kauza Gorila) is a political corruption scandal in Slovakia. It is named after a Slovak Secret Service wiretap file (Slovak: Gorila) from the years 2005-2006 which leaked to the internet in December 2011. The file suggests information about politicians, officials and business executives discussing kickbacks in return for procurement and privatization contracts. However the accuracy of the content has not been officially confirmed yet and due to lack of the original tapes it is rather speculation than evidence of true conversations. [1] The file presents alleged massive corruption at the highest level and its leak to the public rocked the Slovak political scene.[2] On October 16, 2019, several Slovak mainstream medias received a link to download a file that appear to be a copy of original wiretapping operation Gorilla. [3]

The Gorilla scandal resulted in a wave of nationwide political protests across the country, that organized themselves into a coordinated effort called Protest Gorila. The scandal also influenced the results of the 2012 Slovak parliamentary election.[4] Although the full contents of the file have not yet been confirmed, Interior Minister Daniel Lipšic has confirmed the intelligence agency did carry out a wiretapping operation named Gorilla.[1] On 12 January 2012 the Regional Court in Bratislava confirmed it allowed the Gorilla wiretaps. [5] However, the accuracy of the content has not been officially confirmed.

  1. ^ a b Cienski, Jan (10 February 2012). "Slovaks protest over corruption claims". The Financial Times. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  2. ^ "Slovak politics rocked by 'Gorilla' corruption scandal". EurActiv. 17 January 2012. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  3. ^ "SME: V Gorile počuť šušťanie bankoviek aj stretnutia, ktoré spis nespomína". Sme.sk. 16 October 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  4. ^ "Fico enters the jungle". The Economist. 17 March 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  5. ^ "HN: Súd potvrdil odpočúvanie z Gorily (Hospodárske Noviny: Court confirmed the Gorilla wiretaps)". Aktuality.sk. 12 January 2012. Retrieved 24 May 2012.