Archive of articles - December 1996

DONOVALY - A complete ski adventure

The road north from Banská Bystrica cleaves through Slovakia's mountainous heart. To the right are the Low Tatras, to the left are the Kremnické Hills, and straight ahead are the Great Fatras. Just five kilometers out of revitalized Banská Bystrica, the road forks in two directions. Travellers seeking refuge from snow and wind head westward and settle into the spa town of Turčianské Teplice. But those yearning to meet nature head-on continue to climb the road as it curves northeast toward the village of Donovaly.Once a collection of seven 17th and 18th century collier's villages where coal was mined for the smelting works in nearby Staré Hory, today Donovaly is home to less than 200 residents year-round. It is a village that swells and shrinks with the seasons, and the busiest time of all is ski season.

Prašná Bašta is one of the city's secrets

Tucked away at the bend of Zámočnícka ulica, near Michael's gate, Prašná Bašta is a wonderful place for an inexpensive meal. In summer, you can sit outside in what was once the moat surrounding the old city walls. Winter offers a charm all its own, as a vaulted ceiling, dim lighting, and tables nestled in various nooks give a sense of coziness.For such a small restaurant, seating only 50, Prašná Bašta has a menu with a couple of unusual and interesting appetizers. We tried the Arménsky šalát (25 Sk), which was a delicious combination of finely grated fresh carrot and garlic. They also offer smoked trout (63 Sk).

Investors quiet during interim before Securities Law vote

During the first half of December, investors waited to see how Parliament would vote on an amendment to the Securites Act returned by President Michal Kováč back to the chamber. The BSE floor market experienced a series of quiet sessions with low trading volumes and a marginal increase in blue chip prices. Slovnaft gained Sk83 and is currently trading at Sk783 and VSŽ, after falling below its Sk500 limit, returned back above this mark.Železiarne Podbrezová was traded in several large block trades in which stakes of 3.3% and 4.2% of the company's equity were exchanged at prices between Sk172 and Sk186. OTC market deals constituted about 90% of total turnover and interesting deals with Plastika, Chemolak, VÚB and IRB were reported at considerably higher prices than those listed.

President warns country is on verge of international isolation

President Michal Kováč issued a clear warning that the government's undemocratic policies are not only jeopardizing Slovakia's chances of joining the European Union and NATO but also threatening the young country with being ostracized in Europe, in his end-of-the-year address to Parliament on December 11.şşThe number of clear signals that our country is moving toward international isolation is increasing,'' Kováč said. şşIt is becoming the rule that Slovakia is often excluded from among the first group of candidates for NATO and EU membership. Yet our government is not reacting to these signals that have caused such an important twist in the relations of European countries and the United States towards our country.''

ZSE is choosing a bank to provide a loan for finishing PPC

Former HZDS deputy booted out of Parliament

František Gaulieder, a deputy who quit Slovakia's main political party, the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), has been stripped of his seat in Parliament on the basis of a resignation letter he says he never wrote. After a stormy debate in Parliament on December 4, Gaulieder's former HZDS colleagues and deputies from the two other parties that form the ruling coalition voted that Gaulieder be removed from Parliament and that his seat be given to HZDS member Ján Belan.The Slovak Parliament's action provoked a swift and angry response from the European Parliament (EP), which staged an urgent vote on a resolution condemning Gaulieder's ouster on December 12. The EP resolution urged the Slovak Parliament to şşreconsider its position on this matter'' and reminded "the Slovak Government that respect for fundamental democratic principles, including the free exercise of parliamentary mandates, is a condition for entering into and developing cooperation with the EU.''

Makyta plans over 1 billion Sk in revenue

VSŽ chairman target of bomb attack

KOŠICE - A bizarre bombing last month apparently targeting the top figure in Slovakia's largest company, the iron and steel mill VSŽ in Košice, has baffled police but may point to disagreement with efforts to clean up the company. In the early morning hours of November 28, an unknown individual or group tossed an explosive through the fence toward the house of Ján Smerek, chairman of VSŽ's Board of Directors. No one was hurt in the bombing, but the explosion damaged the exterior of Smerek's house, located on the corner of Rastislavova and Milosrdenstva in Košice."There was a big flash and then a huge noise," said Smerek's neighbor, who declined to give his name. "Then the glass in my windows blew out. I looked through the window, but no one was anywhere. It was horrible, what I went through; it must have been awful for them as well."

The Spotlight

Embattled Gaulieder survives bombing

As František Gaulieder, the embattled former deputy in Parliament and ex-member of the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), fights for his seat back, he also could be fighting for his life.That's because a bomb apparently directed at him exploded in front of his house in the west Slovak town of Galanta shortly after midnight on December 6. "After this terrorist act, I fear not only for my own life, but also for the lives of my wife and children," a shaken Gaulieder told the Slovak press agency TA SR.The bomb, planted in the gas meter, demolished the front hall and blew out all the downstairs windows when it exploded, Gaulieder said. No suspects have been identified in the blast, which both Bratislava and Galanta police are investigating.

Around Slovakia

Swans' rapid reproduction threatens fowl and people alikeTrain smashes into trolleybus; all escape in timeChinese mob open fire on each other; one killedErotic massage bar burned to ground

Kerko got a loan from Tatra banka

Highway stickers needed to cruise Austria's highways

Starting January 1, those who wish to drive Austria's highways will need a special sticker or risk paying a fine of 1,100 shillings (ATS), according to officials at the Austrian Ministry of Transportation.Stickers for cars, motorcycles and trucks all are divided into three groups according to length of their validity. A 10-day sticker costs 70 ATS, a 2-month sticker runs for 150 ATS and year-long pass amounts to 550 ATS.Prices are more expensive for buses and light trucks (from 3.5 to 7.5 tons), ranging from a 10-day sticker for 330 ATS, 1,500 ATS for a 2 month sticker, and 6,000 ATS for the year.

Saunier Durval establishes a joint venture with Protherm

Slovak government to draw its first-ever loan from World Bank

The Slovak government is applying for its first loan and technical assistance package from the World Bank, Juraj Sipko, director of the international relations department at the Ministry of Finance, confirmed for The Slovak Spectator.Sipko added that the government has yet to decide on specifics because it is deciding how much the loans will be and in what areas they will be used. To date, the Slovak government has eschewed any loans from the World Bank, saying they were unnecessary. "The Slovak government has an excellent record for responsible fiscal policy," said Robert Rocha, principal economist from the World Bank's regional office in Budapest. "It really doesn't need to borrow money."However, as is the case with Hungary, where the World Bank is most active in the region, it is the total package - the technical expertise in various fields - that is the most desirable, Rocha said, a conclusion confirmed by Sipko.

Fermas is one of four producers of amino-acid medicine

FNM denies report that it sold majority stake in the state-owned Slovenská Poisťovňa

According to a well-informed source at the state privatization agency Fund for National Property (FNM), the FNM's Presidium has decided to privatize over half of the shares in Slovenská Poisťovňa (Slovak Insurance Company - SP), the country's largest insurance company, the Sme daily reported on December 5.However, the source, who wished to remain anonymous, did not say at what price the stake was being sold nor to whom it was going. The FNM's spokesman, Oto Balogh, later denied the report, calling it "nonsense."Slovenská Poisťovňa is one of four key financial institutions in Slovakia that the government has prepared for privatization but has been reluctant to conclude. According to a June statement by the president of the FNM Presidium, Štefan Gavorník, "as far as privatization of the four key Slovak financial institutions goes, Slovenská Poisťovňa can be privatized anytime."

Bank of Ireland to be adviser for VÚB

Juhocukor invests in new sugar storage unit