In a blow for the right to freedom of expression, a court in Slovenia has ruled that an NGO, whose pro-life bus ads had been removed in 2018, had not been discriminated against.

The state-owned bus company, contracted by the NGO, Zavod ŽIV!M, had agreed to display their ads for a couple of months. The municipal authorities, however, had deemed the messages “We love Life!”, “You are not alone”, and “I mourn my child”, accompanied by pictures of a happy family, a grieving mother and a woman holding a pregnancy test to be “intolerant”. They instructed the bus company to remove the ads after just over a week. The national equality body found that Zavod ŽIV!M had indeed been discriminated against, but the court now criticised that initial ruling, and asked the equality body to reexamine it.

The director of the NGO, Darja Pečnik, said they want to stand by women in crisis, especially those facing unplanned pregnancies or the loss of a child. “Our bus ads were meant to show them that they are not alone. We are disappointed that the court agreed with the bus company that removed the ads. Our message, which celebrates life, should be celebrated, and instead we have faced discrimination for it.”