Archive of articles - June 2002, page 2

Slovaks massively uncertain about EU entry date

UNCERTAINTY about the results of coming September national elections, and their possible effect on the country's European Union membership, explains why almost half of Slovakia's citizens cannot say when their country might join the 15-member bloc, say economic analysts.In the Europe Barometer survey conducted by the Austrian financial house Bank Austria Creditanstalt and released June 19, 40 per cent of the over 1,000 Slovaks interviewed could not answer when they expected their country to join the Union, the highest total among nine countries in central and southern Europe vying for membership.

Film Restaurant: Giving good dining a bad name

Where: Vysoká 37Tel: 02/5292-3008Open: Daily 11:00 to 23:00

Increasing oil reserves costly

Roast goose, mulled wine and the sun on Spišský hrad

The Slovak Spectator (TSS): What is your favourite place to eat and drink in Slovakia?Amanda Surbey (AS): I like it when Le Monde [restaurant in Bratislava] has a special occasion menu (like on Halloween or Valentine's Day). I find the food quality and the service are consistently high, but the menu really shines when they can create something special. Never had a bad meal there. Good value for the money. Any of the outdoor cafes are lovely in the summer. Any of the ice cream stands around the city. The flavors are wonderful, and, at Sk7 a scoop, you can try them all.TSS: What Slovak dish or drink do you like?

Bratislava recovers cultural traditions decades after they were banned

"For some native Bratislavans, walking from Michael's Gate down to the Danube embankment at sunset used to be a ritual. When the sun went down, something seemed to lift us up, and we went out and mixed with the walking crowd. This was the spirit of our town. The spirit of lilacs, waltzes, walnut rolls, wine, baked chestnuts and the Danube. It's a spirit which has come back."Humourist Július Satinský, a Bratislava native, is like many residents of the Slovak capital delighted by the city's return to life over a decade after the end of communism.Situated rather unusually for a national capital in the extreme south-west of the country where the borders of Austria, Hungary and Slovakia meet, Bratislava has been fought over for centuries by Czech, Austrian and Hungarian rulers since it was founded in the 1100s.

UPC agrees to pay up

US toughens anti-HZDS rhetoric

Private Vlk nature reserve opens

The lesser evil

DO NOT VOTE for the lesser evil, proclaims an election slogan of the tiny right-wing Civil Conservative Party (OKS) that is shakily anchored to the ceiling of Bratislava's Zichy Palace. Well-wishers say the slogan, like the former anti-communist fighters who defend it, is a sign the party has both outlived its use and ignored the name of the democratic game - political compromise.According to political opinion polls the OKS has little chance of succeeding in September elections, in which contestants must secure five per cent of the vote to be given seats in parliament. In a June opinion poll carried out by the MVK polling agency, the OKS scored 0.3 per cent.Party sympathisers see something heroic yet pathetic in the stances taken by OKS leaders, who have been tireless advocates of market reform since assembling under the banner of the anti-communist Public Against Violence in 1989. Many current OKS members are academics rather than career politicians, and advocate a pure anti-corruption, pro-market and democracy line the current government has not been able to match in action.

Reader feedback: What were they really doing?

Reader feedback: Peace Corps not about morality or money

Around Slovakia

Gunslinger teacher jailed for five yearsBorn againUniversity plagiarist remains in jobNo room for the deadFishermen catch piranhas in lakeBear in a tent

Roma not to get easy exams after all

Reader feedback: Pork-barreling, Canadian style

Europe confirms 2004 expansion date

A EUROPEAN Union summit in the Spanish city of Seville on the June 22 weekend confirmed the 2004 target date for enlargement of the body, and determined that candidate countries would receive direct agricultural aid once they joined.The amount of the aid, however, is to be set in early November, at which time the Union will announce its common policy on farm subsidies for candidate countries.That will leave the entry candidates only a month to complete negotiations on the controversial agriculture docket of talks with the EU before another summit in Copenhagen in December, where the Union hopes to close entry talks with up to 10 applicant countries.

Cabinet wants Election Law amended

Collateral law removes major lending barrier

THE RELUCTANCE of banks to lend to small Slovak companies is expected to change following a Civic Code amendment making it easier to use movable assets as collateral for loans.The changes, which take effect at the beginning of next year, are part of a three-year government strategy to restructure banks and companies and improve the legislative environment for lending.The Civic Code amendment has been praised by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which has promised funding to help put the law into practice.

Baroque mansion to house treatment centre

Reader feedback: EU admission more certain than it seems