Archive of articles - February 2002, page 3

State carrier drops rates to compete

Orbán calls for ban on Beneš decrees

Lipa's jazz dream comes true in capital

AFTER a visit to the music clubs of Vienna, Budapest or Prague, the winter days may seem sad and gloomy in Bratislava by comparison. And quiet - except for some live music sporadically performed in downtown bars such as Aligátor or the Jazz Cafe, sceptics say Bratislava does not much to offer. Even jazz, one of the main genres of the central European musical landscape, is not often heard.Much, therefore, is expected from Metro, a new club in Bratislava's downtown opened this February by Peter Lipa, a Slovak jazz legend. Metro is in a renovated basement in the Slovenská sporiteľňa bank building opposite the Fórum Hotel on the Presidential Palace square. The interior is modern, with the only concession to a traditional club atmosphere being a small stage slightly set apart from the audience.

Unemployment up again in January

EU to applicants: Not one euro more

Kids dabbling with drugs

Till school do us part

Wood processors get funds

Carrying a big stick

A MAN who studied to become a chemical engineer is now the country's second most important policeman, and has turned police headquarters into the site of regular press conferences on success fighting organised crime.The debonair Jaroslav Spišiak, a 37-year-old native of the southern Slovak village Veľké Ludince, says becoming a cop was part of a high school dream to fight "the bad guys" and seek adventure."I hated the bad guys. It's always easier to be bad than good. I couldn't come to terms with why those who at school were ill-behaved and got bad marks were more popular, and acknowledged by their peers. They were strong and they beat up whoever they wanted, and girls liked them too. I didn't like that," Spišiak says, lighting another in a succession of cigarettes.

Car industry riding crest of wave

Quotes of the Week

US Steel Košice planning Czech expansion

United States Steel Corp. (USS) has decided to take another step towards increasing operations in Europe, announcing an intention to bid for Czech steel firms on February 20.USS daughter firm US Steel Košice boss John Goodish said the firm was looking to buy Nová Huť, Steel Vítkovice and Vysoké Pece Ostrava, the vital organs of the Czech steel industry, as they approach a government sell-off this spring.Goodish also said his firm was looking to acquire another steel property in Europe with headquarters in the US, but declined to specify which one.

Ministry's jobless plan plots new labour course

A NATIONAL Action Plan for Employment, unveiled by the Labour Ministry last week, has drawn praise as a credible starting point in the fight against record unemployment.But prognoses for the Slovak labour market remain grim, according to Labour Office figures and economists.The blueprint, which has yet to be approved by cabinet, defines 34 measures to be introduced on the labour market, including strategies to improve people's chances of finding employment, developing businesses and improving the ability of the workers to respond quickly to demand.

KDH names post-election partners

All smiles as cabinet reaches SPP deal

Months of uncertainty concerning a privatisation plan for a 49 per cent stake in gas utility SPP ended February 20 when cabinet confirmed that the entire stake would be offered to a strategic investor, rather than divided as a government party had suggested.The compromise, coming after weeks of belated political discussions on the wisdom and transparency of the sale strategy, left the seven bidders for SPP free to submit binding offers by the February 28 deadline for the massive property.Market analysts also said it was a reassuring sign that political and economic cooler heads continued to rule the country.

No lives at risk

Giving something back: How to send taxes to NGOs

MAREK, a four-year-old boy who lived in our Bratislava apartment building, died last year from a brain tumour he had been fighting for half his life. Towards the end, as his head swelled dramatically, he was unable to speak, walk or eat.Losing a child is the one of the most violent things that can happen to people. It's an emotional Leviathan capable of tearing up marriages, blowing apart families and taking survivors to the deeps of depression.I don't know where she found the strength, but Marek's mother responded to his death by joining a civic foundation serving terminally ill children and their families. Their idea is to raise enough money to start a hospice, a place where these miserable children could go with their parents to die in warmer surroundings than hospitals offer - among familiar toys, in a room of their own, instead of on one of Slovakia's dilapidated, crowded and understaffed hospital wards.

Parliament fails to elect ombudsman

PARLIAMENT failed to elect an ombudsman due to what several politicians called a communication crisis among the parties of the ruling coalition.The voting procedure called for the winner to score a simple majority of votes from the members of parliament (MPs) present in the 150-seat chamber, meaning 67 ballots on that February 19. Ruling coalition MPs still command a majority of over 80 seats.But their failure to agree on a common candidate reflected the disunity which reigns in government ranks, and was "a true picture of the coalition", said László Nagy, head of the human rights parliamentary committee and an MP for the Hungarian Coalition Party (SMK).

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