Original article (in Slovenian) was published on 27/5/2025; Author: Aljaž Primožič
The Prime Minister’s office says the only reason why two stuffed animals were taken to Rome was to receive the Pope’s blessing at the request of a Slovenian girl fighting cancer.
The Moja Dolenjska portal ran a story on 8 May alleging that Prime Minister Robert Golob and his partner Tina Gaber handed Pope Leo XIV a plastic bag with plush toys during the inaugural mass marking the start of his pontificate. The portal supported its claim with a screen-grab of the encounter and an official photograph of Golob and Gaber with the pontiff.
A spokesperson for the prime minister’s office told Razkrinkavanje.si that the bag was not a gift for Pope Leo XIV. Protocol gifts, she noted, are exchanged only during formal visits, such as Golob’s 2022 audience with then-Pope Francis. No gift exchange was scheduled this time, and none took place.
Gaber simply honoured a request from a girl undergoing cancer treatment in Slovenia, according to the prime minister’s office: the child wanted her two favourite plush toys blessed by the Pope. This was arranged with Golden Ribbon, an advocacy group which raises awareness of childhood cancers.
They pointed out that other Slovenian outlets, including Siol, N1 and Metropolitan, correctly reported on the toys’ purpose. Gaber likewise explained the gesture on her social media channels.
Golden Ribbon director Tomi Jakša shared Gaber’s post on Facebook, while founder Valerija Čarman confirmed the collaboration on her Facebook page.
In a statement on its website, Golden Ribbon stressed that the toys were taken for a blessing, there is no mention of them being a papal gift. The girl, they said, entrusted Gaber with her toys so they could carry to the Vatican a message of hope for all children with cancer. Each toy bore a gold ribbon, the symbol of childhood cancer. The blessing was meant as a symbolic show of support for all children fighting cancer. In a response to a Razkrinkavanje.si’s query, they reiterated their statement.
Photos posted by Golden Ribbon in the days after the mass show the girl reunited with her newly blessed toys. One has since been placed in the Basilica of St. Mary Help of Chistians in Brezje, the girl kept the other.
Ksenija Benedetti, a longtime head of Slovenia’s State Protocol Service and now a lecturer in protocol rules, told Razkrinkavanje.si that papal audiences follow strictly negotiated guidelines, including gift exchanges, which are agreed in advance with the embassy in the Vatican. Because Gaber’s gesture was not part of the official protocol, Benedetti sees absolutely no problem with it. “On the contrary, it strikes me as a beautiful gesture.”
Asked about the story, Moja Dolenjska editor Vida Stare said the portal had relied on an unnamed source it trusts – and threatened Oštro with “all available means” over our inquiries.
The claim that the plush toys were a gift to the Pope is false.
