Archive of articles - November 1998, page 3

Government officials hit the road

The new cabinet has been in office a mere three weeks, but has already dispatched a legion of ministers and state secretaries to foreign capitals. The visits were intended to convince representatives of the European Union and NATO alliances that Slovakia belongs among the front-runners for integration, an assurance that political scientists say is long overdue."I think it's more than necessary. We have a huge debt here, inherited from [former Premier Vladimír] Mečiar's government," said Miroslav Kusý, a political scientist with Comenius University in Bratislava. "The visits are not only declarative, their aim is also to show that Slovakia is a stable country ready for an inflow of foreign capital, which was frozen during Mečiar's rein."

Slovak Telecom for sale - again

State-owned Slovak Telecom (ST), the country's fixed telephony monopoly, is being hoisted onto the auction block once again. Gabriel Palacka, the Minister of Transport, Post and Telecomunication, told a press conference on November 12 that ST would be turned into joint-stock company within six months.Palacka said that ST, as a state company, had reached the limit of its development potential, and henceforth would be actively seeking capital investment from a foreign telecom operator."In all probability it will be necessary to allow the entry of foreign capital, know-how and technology to advance Slovak Telecom to a higher level and to keep up the pace of development," Palacka said.

NBS refinancing rumours cool interest rates

The Slovak crown weakened around 2% from November 11 to 13, hitting 11.8% below parity on Friday November 13. The crown's fall was fuelled mainly by foreign banks' demand for hard currencies, creating short positions in Slovak crowns.On the other hand, fundamentals remained weak and the entire yield curve has been in decline. Thus, some fresh demand for long-term Slovak crown funds appeared on the money market, and we saw an increase at the long-end of the yield curve after a period of sharp decline.

Travel companies defend higher prices

The practice of charging foreigners twice as much for hotel accommodation has infuriated many visitors to Slovakia who expected to find lower prices here than in other western countries. But hotels are not the only culprits in the price-fixing game - travel companies also regularly charge foreigners more than Slovaks for tickets.Tatjana Barta, a Canadian citizen of Slovak heritage, was furious when she was forced to pay a rate 172% higher than her Slovak companion for a bus ticket to Vienna. "I didn't understand. It had never happened to me before in all my life. Even though I speak Slovak, I couldn't grasp the idea of what they were telling me. The concept that I had to pay more because of my nationality had never occurred to me in my life. That's why I was shocked," she said.

220,000 tons of sugar ready to supply Slovak market

Slovak hotels re-think higher rates for tourists

Nathan Wood, an American tourist visiting Slovakia, was shocked to find that a few days in Bratislava cost him almost as much as he was used to paying in western European cities. "Everything was more expensive than I thought. Because I was a foreigner, I had to pay around twice as much for a hotel room, and over three times as much for travel tickets. I was very angry. It's discrimination," he said.Hotels and travel companies quoting two prices - a modest sum for locals and a higher fee for foreign visitors - have long been a feature of the tourist landscape in Slovakia. But now that the country is gearing up for possible entry into western structures like the European Union, voices are being raised in criticism of the discriminatory practice.

Ministry gets tough with tax cheats

Finance Minister Brigita Schmögnerová attended a press conference on November 16, at which she spoke of her ministry's plans for the near future. What follows is a partial transcript of her speech and responses to reporters' questions.Question: What changes do you plan to introduce at the Finance Ministry?Brigita Schmögnerová (BS): The ministry will undergo a small reorganization before the end of the year. Changes in personnel and work processes are needed to make the ministry functional. In the second half of the election term, we would like to change the structure of the Finance Ministry in a more significant way: we want to create some new institutions which will take care of the capital market, the insurance market, and which would control the natural monopolies and their policies. This plan will thus limit some of the current powers of the minister, and will be included in the government programme.

Materák nominated as new STV director

Community Grapevine

English language eveningsBeatles on filmCalling all Vikings, Picts and Bravehearts

Holy See studying draft treaty with Slovakia

Not-so-White Knights

Na zdravie, Mr. Minister

On a chilly weekday evening in November, something extraordinary happened - Slovak Culture Minister Milan Kňažko shared a few drinks in a theatre pub with his Czech counterpart, Pavel Dostál.Kňažko and Dostál are both former actors and know each other well, so the simple fact of their hoisting a few pints was not exceptional. But the sight of the top two Czech and Slovak cultural officials deep in conversation and flushed with excitement was unusual, to say the least.For the past four years, the Slovak Minister of Culture has been Ivan Hudec, a man with as much feeling for art as Tony the Pony. Hudec discouraged the creative and promoted the artless; intimidated the dissident and rewarded the servile. In four years he succeeded in putting culture at the service of politics, and in banishing those artists who refused to sing for their suppers.

Corporate managers entrenched

In the waning months of the administration of former Premier Vladimír Mečiar, the managements of several large Slovak companies and financial institutions made changes to the statutes of their firms. The new rules almost universally required an unusually high quorum of shareholder support to oust senior management or alter the development strategies of the firm.Stock market analysts said that the statute changes had been intended to insulate the owners of companies who had close ties to Mečiar's HZDS party from revenge firings by an incoming administration. But the changes may ultimately also discourage foreign investors from buying into firms they will never have the power to control.

"No obstacle" to Slovak EU integration

After the official appointment of Slovakia's new cabinet on October 29, a flurry of international diplomatic visits encouraged the new cabinet to think positively of its chances for early European Union integration. The Slovak Spectator asked Christian Bourgin, Chargé d'Affaires of the European Commission Delegation in Slovakia, how he thought the recent political changes in Slovakia had been received by EU and EC officials.

Canadian minister speaks out on minorities

Hedy Fry, the Canadian Minister for Multiculturalism and Women's Rights, visited Slovakia on November 11 to deliver a speech on the role of minorities in nation-building. Speaking at Comenius University in Bratislava, she outlined Canada's experience with immigration and minorities, and described the contribution immigrants can make to the countries in which they live.Following her speech, Ms. Fry told The Slovak Spectator what she thought Slovakia could draw from the Canadian experience.

Figaro chocolates releases results

What's Happening in Bratislava

An unusual Romeo and Juliet

Slovakia's first professional modern dance company, the Bratislava Dance Theatre (BDT), is starting the second year of its existence with an exceptional performance of the classic Romeo & Juliet."This is not a traditional performance," said Robert Meško, BDT director. Instead of the traditional love theme, Meško warned, the BDT staging "is also about hate, stupidity and coincidence." Nikita Slovák, who wrote the lyrics for the production, said that the idea had been to make the story more relevant to contemporary experience. "This decade doesn't care about anything, even about deep love."

Cabinet starts dialogue with NGOs