BRATISLAVA (SITA) -- The Slovak Interior Ministry has violated the constitutional right of Ivan Šimko when he was prevented to take part in the May referendum on Slovakia's membership in NATO and on direct presidential election and thus the Ministry has violated the Šimko's legal right to participate directly in the administration of public affairs, writes the verdict that the Slovak Constitutional Court released on Friday, February 6. The Constitutional Court decided that the Interior Ministry violated the law between May 21-24, 1997, while securing the print and distribution of referendum ballots to municipalities for the referendum on direct presidential elections when ballots with only three questions were printed lacking the question on direct presidential elections. Šimko in his reasoning of his instigation wrote that the Interior Ministry did not create technical conditions for practicing the above constitutional right. The Central Referendum Commission decided that the valid ballot embrace four questions. However, as Šimko found out, the local referendum commission in Dlhe Diely, Bratislava, where he wanted to vote, had no ballots with four question, only ballots with three questions on the Slovakia's membership in NATO. Simko turned to the Constitutional Court on September 25, 1997, pleading that the constitutional rights of individ uals were violated.