ARCHBISHOP Ján Sokol has admitted that he communicated with the ŠtB, the former communist secret service – something that has always denied - but maintains he was never a collaborator.
“ŠtB officers forced these meetings on me. I found them degrading, but when we met I tried to protect the interests of the Church and to distract their attention to irrelevant issues,” Sokol said.
Until now, Sokol has maintained that the information contained in the recently unearthed ŠtB files concerned somebody else. However, after the Sme daily published new documents in late February, Sokol changed his story.
The Slovak Conference of Bishops has refused to comment on Sokol’s recent statements.
