Archive of articles - April 2000, page 6

Diplomat exhibits watercolours

Motivated by the aim of giving Austrians "the idea that Slovakia is a country worth seeing more of," Austrian Ambassador to Slovakia Gabriele Matzner has painted over 60 water-colours of Slovak scenes, a selection of which is currently being exhibited at the Slovak Institute in Vienna. A desire to show contrast, especially where there is structure, is evident throughout the collection of landscapes, castles, churches, and dwellings, both modest and grand.At the packed opening of the exhibition on March 17, guests were entertained by the Ambassador's distinguished friends from the world of arts. A heartfelt and amusing opening speech was given by the popular Austrian actor, Fritz Muliar, followed by three romantic songs from Slovak opera singer Peter Dvorský.

Review: Dance - 3 ex performs 4 gems

On March 28, the Bratislava Dance Theater presented 3 ex, an original and colourful performance many viewers have deemed worth seeing more than once. After spending January performing in New York - and receiving an excellent review in The New York Times - the group returned to Bratislava and again presented their dance-triptych.In the first piece, 'Lady Lost Found', American choreographer Daniel Ezralow creates a dreamy impression of Scottish folklore interpreted with great flair by Marianna Pauliková and Katarina Vlniešková. Dressed in Victorian cream white dresses, the Scottish lasses dance lightly across stage with Jan Mrňák, who delivers a comic performance dressed in a kilt.

VW's Wilhelm: Local supplier base wanted

For Karl Peter Wilhelm, member of the board of directors at Volkswagen Slovakia, every second of business time is devoted to keeping one of Slovakia's great FDI stories a success. The fact that he was 45 minutes late for his interview with The Slovak Spectator on March 28th was thus no surprise. "The days sometimes seem to be shorter than they really are," he apologised.VW Slovakia has long been the 'poster child' for foreign direct investment in the country, with exports worth 68 billion crowns last year ($1.6 billion, or 16% of Slovakia's total exports), a production target of 150,000 cars this year, and a planned investment of 400 million marks ($200 million) over the next two years.

Viktor Beránek: High Tatras "harsh and clean"

A group of hikers, panting with effort, moves slowly up the steep trail to Rysy Cottage in the High Tatras. At their head is a short, stumpy figure who carries a massive load on his back - a keg of beer, several cartons of milk, sacks of coal and potatoes and a package of wrapped meat. Despite the load that dwarfs him, Viktor Beránek is scarcely breaking a sweat.Beránek is the owner of the popular Chata pod Rysmi (Rysy Cottage), the highest inn in Slovakia at 2,250 metres above sea level (7,380 feet). Barely 170 (5'6") cm tall and 80 kilograms in weight (176 pounds), Beránek has carried loads of 118 kilograms up the four-hour trail to Rysy. A naturalist, Beránek refuses to let a helicopter do the work, and with a team of volunteers supplies Rysy literally on foot - until, that is, an avalanche virtually destroyed the cottage in February.

Business briefs

Schuster appoints new NBS Vice-GovernorBidders through to second round of ST privatisationHarach asks for delay on SE privatisation plan

Six steps to dot.com heaven

This time I want to look at how businesses and entrepreneurs in Slovakia can start an online business. Readers might think I am being a bit premature with only 9% of the population online, but putting your business on the Internet means you not only can reach out to customers in your own country, but all across the globe. Moreover, when Slovakia attains EU membership, one requirement will be the liberalisation of telecommunications, which will make Internet access more affordable for all citizens.

Slovnaft close to oil deal with MOL firm

The Hungarian oil and gas firm MOL Rt. is reportedly close to an agreement with Slovnaft that would give them a majority 51% stake in the oil refinery and give the Slovak oil giant a boost in recovering from its near-financial disaster of a botched loan agreement with Merrill Lynch in 1999 and current losses of two billion Slovak crowns ($47.6 million).Even though an expected announcement of the deal failed to materialise on March 28, Slovak, Austrian and Hungarian media reported that MOL was on the verge of clinching the deal with Slovakia's biggest exporter.

News Briefs

Ivor wants Mečiar to testify in kidnapping caseSlovak Nazi victims to benefit from Berlin AgreementPolish smugglers caught with 52 kilos of heroin

Cafés

Cafés in BratislavaKaffee MayerCafé MuzeumCafé u MaximiliánaLaguna CaféGremium CaféU Anjelov

Tenders for top posts to boost transparency

The latest crisis in Slovakia's four-party coalition government was defused on March 28 when a senior government body agreed to review the conduct of all directors of state-owned banks and monopolies. The bargain answered some of the demands of the Democratic Left Party (SDĽ), which had been incensed when Štefan Košovan, the SDĽ-appointed manager of state electricity utitlity Slovenské Elektrárne, was sacked in mid-March for mismanagement.SDĽ Chairman Jozef Migaš told media after a meeting of the Coalition Council last Wednesday that if the personnel audits revealed wrongdoing at other state-owned institutions, new directors would be found through a series of expert tenders rather than through political appointment. The deal represented a compromise between Deputy Prime Minister Ivan Mikloš' call for expert tenders and the SDĽ's claim that its appointees were being singled out for the new policy.

Quote of the week

The benefits of customer service

As the head academic administrator for an American style business school, I am always interested in how superior customer service provides lasting competitive advantages. Recently I experienced an impressively high level of customer service in a new store right here in Bratislava.I was searching for a new pair of glasses and a colleague recommended that I try a shop, Optiland, which recently opened on Obchodná 4 (near the Hotel Forum). Since my friend's new glasses were attractive and reasonably priced, I decided to follow his recommendation and visit the shop.

Top Pick: Europa Luna Park in Bratislava

As spring arrives in Bratislava, outdoor activity can once again be enjoyed by all. Europa Luna Park, the glittery fun-fair set up outside Istropolis Cinema which is a fun place for kids (and adults, too), offers the perfect opportunity for enjoying the new spring evenings. The organisers of this travelling fair, which previously visited Nitra and Levice, hail from Holland and Germany. Since setting up operations in mid-March, they have had their hands full entertaining the excited crowds enjoying the atmosphere and rides on a nightly basis.The ride called 'Move-it' has so far been a big attraction for its quick speeds and moments of leaving the rider hanging up-side-down. The large Ferris-wheel offers a somewhat calmer ride where visitors swing above the fair in small cabins while taking in the unique view of the city. 'Break-Dance' is another fan-favourite, where volunteers are tossed around and left feeling totally dizzy.Bumper cars and carousels round out the ride selection, and delicious fried chicken is on sale as well. Contests promising prizes such as giant teddy bears and other toys, loud music and the ever-present neon-lighting of the grounds add to the festive atmosphere and illuminate the grey Dom Odborov building nearby.

Anti-smokers deplore stats

With the approach of the fourth annual Daffodil Day, an event organised on April 7 by the Slovak Anti-Cancer League to raise research funds and public awareness, leaders are calling for the country's citizenry and government to pay more attention to what they say is Slovakia's increasing cigarette problem. According to the League's President Eva Siracká, the seriousness of the smoking issue is not yet recognised by Slovak people and is being neglected by government officials."State officials are being negligent, they hope that the situation will somehow solve itself," Siracká said, adding that top Slovak politicians, as well as TV journalists and pop singers, are often seen smoking on television. "They don't realise they are being bad role models for our youth."As a result of this high-level negligence, she said, Slovak society continued to downplay the damaging consequences of smoking. But statistics show that smoking amongst Slovaks is a bad habit that is killing more and more citizens every year.

Slovakia's press law: Nasty, brutish and short

Slovakia's press law is a joke. Passed in 1966 and amended nine times since then, it contains only 43 paragraphs and 18 articles, in which space it attempts to define complex relationships such as those between journalists and their sources, the press and the courts, and media owners and the public. It's too short, vague and - frankly, communist - to guarantee either the public's right to objective information, the journalist's need for independence or the desire of 'newsmakers' for protection from scurrilous reporting.Before this column is dismissed as another self-indulgent rant about difficult working conditions, the following points should be considered. First, the current law does not force owners of newspapers to disclose their identities, meaning that readers know little about the people who print what they read, or about their political and business interests.

Battle joined over political diplomats

Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Boris Gandel announced on February 24 that Magda Vášáryová had been selected to succeed Ondrej Nemčok as Slovak Ambassador to Poland. The posting marks the second stint as ambassador for the former actress and Slovak presidential candidate, who served as Czechoslovak Ambassador to Austria from 1990 to 1992.Political analysts said that Vášáryová would improve diplomatic relations with Poland which had stagnated under Nemčok. Selected to his post by former Prime Minister Vladimír Mečiar in October 1998, Nemčok was one of several ambassadors which diplomats had criticised as unqualified, and which were sent abroad by Mečiar's HZDS party after it failed to win enough votes to form a government coalition.

Letters to the editor

Skinheads hurting tourism, investmentRacism in Slovakia no worse than many other countries

Investors hurt by time delays

Over the past 10 years, and particularly in the last one or two, Slovakia has undertaken efforts to reform its legal system and to otherwise solicit foreign direct investment. This is important on many levels, including the need to attract investment capital in light of tight capital markets for Slovak firms, a desire to upgrade Slovak companies through technological advances from abroad, and to find ways of effectively competing in the global market generally, which basically demands co-operation with foreign businesses.

US Steel commits to VSŽ stake

Corporate presidents Gabriel Eichler of VSŽ and Paul Wilhelm of US Steel signed a memorandum of understanding last week officially declaring that the Pittsburgh-based steel manufacturer would become the new strategic investor in the Slovak VSŽ.The deal came after two long days of discussions on March 23 and 24, and over 16 months of uncertainty regarding the future of VSŽ, which essentially went bankrupt in November 1998 after defaulting on a $35 million syndicated loan from Merrill Lynch.Although concrete details on the deal, set to be signed as soon as US Steel officially finishes its audit of VSŽ, have yet to be disclosed, both Eichler and Wilhelm announced that a new company fully owned by US Steel would take over all of VSŽ's core steel activities and some of the firm's debts.