Protests force a Slovenia city mayor to step down

World December 06, 2012

Protests force a Slovenia city mayor to step down

Photo: AP A riot police officer is silhouetted against flares during clashes between police and anti government protestors in Maribor, Slovenia, Monday, Dec. 3, 2012. Anti government protests were held throughout Slovenia the day after presidential elections

Show more Show less

More Photos (1 of )

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia (AP) — The mayor of Slovenia's second-largest city says he is stepping down after thousands in the small EU state demanded his resignation over alleged corruption.

Protests against Franc Kangler, the mayor of Maribor, near the border with Austria, have turned violent as demonstrators clashed with police who used tear gas to disperse them. Anti-graft authorities have been probing Kangler in a suspicious consulting deal. The street protests started after he allowed a private firm to set up traffic cameras in the city and pick the money from the speeding tickets.

Kangler said Thursday he was resigning to avoid further violence. His resignation will take effect on Dec. 31. Also Thursday, about 3,000 students rallied in the capital, Ljubljana, against austerity cuts in education.

Subjects
Locations
- Slovenia,
- Ljubljana,
- Eastern Europe,
- Europe

Related Headlines

More street protests rock tiny EU nation Slovenia
Slovenia's prime minister is on trial accused of involvement in a bribery scandal. The main opposition leader — who is also mayor of the capital — is under investigation for ...
Thousands join anti-austerity protests in Slovenia
Thousands of people across Slovenia have protested against the center-right government and its austerity measures designed to avoid an international bailout for the ...
Thousands strike amid gov't crisis in Slovenia
Schools closed down, theaters cancelled shows, hospitals switched to weekend schedules and long lines formed at Slovenia's borders on Wednesday in a massive anti-austerity ...
Thousands rally for, and against, Slovenia's gov't
Thousands of people rallied for and against Slovenia's center-right government Friday, adding to the tensions in the small European Union country where authorities have turned ...