ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic challenged constitutional systems all around the globe. The Slovak experience was no different. Since early 2020, the government had sought to curb the spread of the deadly virus with various anti-pandemic measures. These affected not only the freedom to enter Slovakia but also to move within the country. The government sealed the borders for foreigners and imposed mandatory quarantines for Slovak citizens returning from abroad. On the surface, the government shifted the primary responsibility for the anti-pandemic decision-making onto its direct subordinate, the Chief Hygienic Officer. However, this expert state official with no political power remained at the mercy of political deals forged within the government. Therefore, he had to integrate complicated political arrangements into byzantine regulations filled with abundant exemptions and arbitrary regimes often conflicting with medical experts’ recommendations. The adopted human rights restrictions have been legally challenged, most notably before the Constitutional Court. However, the Court acted deferentially and approved almost all emergency actions. The government's anti-pandemic responses were sluggish, chaotic, inadequate, and often heavily politically affected. Even though the adopted measures were legally contested, the relevant authorities did not endorse these challenges. Therefore, numerous pervasive restrictions remained in place, disputably for too long.
