Pellegrini mentioned the possibility of taking in the orphans during the weekend in a debate which took place on Slovak Television. The Prime Minister mentioned that there is no decision on the issue, but debates will take place with Minister of Foreign Affairs Miroslav Lajčák. Pellegrini is convinced that in case of need Slovakia is able to take care of the ophans, what should not take place in the facilities provided for immigrants, but rather in orphanages. The Prime Minister however clarified that he is against the mandatory quotas and has the right to determine, exactly how many asylum-seekers the country should receive.
Opposition party Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) agrees with the strategy. According to the official stance of the party, Slovakia is “wealthy enough to accept several dozen Syrian children who lost their parents during the civil war.” Boris Kollár however criticized Pellerini for his statements. “Our kids are threatened with poverty, mothers cannot feed them and provide them clothing, while the state support is meagre 0.19 Euros,” stated Kollár on Facebook, who believes that the issues connected with Slovakian poverty should be solved first.
