Archive of articles - June 2002, page 9

Kremnica: A well-kept secret

WITH EACH VISIT to Kremnica, my wonder grows at how a town this lovely and intriguing could be so routinely disregarded. But it seems that when people think of former mining towns, they are rarely able get past the uniqueness of nearby Banská Štiavnica. This is understandable, but unfair.The fact is, Kremnica has everything a traveller could ask for, in any season: plenty of hiking trails, superb skiing conditions, an achingly picturesque main square and castle, a celebrated history and the finest statue in Slovakia.Kremnica is today a secluded mountain town of 7,000 inhabitants. But from the 14th to the 19th centuries, it was one of the richest cities in the Hungarian kingdom. Because the surrounding hills were loaded with gold, King Karol Robert Anjou declared Kremnica the royal coin-minting town in 1328. The so-called Kremnica ducats produced here were among the most valuable coins in Europe. The town's minting past can still be viewed at the Museum of Coins and Medals on the main square, Štefánikovo námestie.

Slovakia now on 26 of 30 EU chapters

Another court halts Lexa prosecution

A COURT decision ruling out the prosecution of former secret service boss Ivan Lexa in the infamous 1995 kidnapping of the then-president's son has narrowed the chances that the case will ever be solved.The Bratislava regional court on June 5 upheld the ruling of a lower court, which had argued Lexa could not be charged in the kidnapping because of a blanket amnesty in the case issued in 1998 by former Prime Minister Vladimír Mečiar, then acting president.The state's inability to successfully prosecute the case has long troubled the country, especially after former secret service (SIS) deputy chief Jaroslav Svěchota confessed to the magazine Plus 7 Dní in 1999 that he had organised the kidnapping on Lexa's orders, and that then-PM Vladimír Mečiar had been "the spiritual father" of the crime.

Highways lead construction revival

VW signs global labour charter in Bratislava

LEADERS of German auto maker Volkswagen's global operations and officials from the International Metalworkers' Union met in Bratislava in early June to sign what they have called an historic charter on social rights and industrial relations, affecting VW workers and suppliers around the world.The charter, released on June 6, establishes a basic set of labour principles for VW employees that the company promises will bring concrete benefits to labour while maintaining VW's competitiveness in the global marketplace.

Slovakia readies for general elections September 20-21

PARLIAMENTARY speaker Jozef Migaš has set September 20-21 as the date of parliamentary elections, an event seen as critically important for the success of the country's western integration aims.After setting the term Migaš appealed to voters to go to the polls. He said on June 6 he believed Slovaks understood the importance of the vote and would flock to election stations to decide Slovakia's future.A massive NGO campaign aimed at mobilising the electorate is indeed expected to generate high voter turnout, although analysts doubt the over 84 per cent from 1998 general elections will be topped this year.

Quote of the Week

Schuster wins US support vow

ON HIS RETURN from a visit to top government members in the US and Canada, President Rudolf Schuster reported that both countries had pledged to help Slovakia become a Nato member provided the country formed a cabinet after the upcoming September general elections that did not include former Prime Minister Vladimír Mečiar or his HZDS party.Although the message was "nothing new", according to domestic political and foreign policy analysts, Schuster's talks with US President George W. Bush - the first meeting of the countries' presidents since the creation of independent Slovakia in 1993 - were seen as shoring up key support for the young nation's western integration ambitions.After being dropped from a previous Nato expansion round in 1997 under the autocratic Mečiar, Slovakia is seen as a front-running candidate to receive an invitation to join Nato later this year.

Slovak hotels: Expect the unexpected

Travelling for this year's Spectacular Slovakia travel magazine, I have stayed in dozens of hotels around the country. And while I have had my share of bizarre experiences - I once stayed in a hotel in Žilina that shared a building with a brothel - I have been overall quite pleased.Foreigners and Slovaks alike often talk about Slovakia as if it were a backwoods destination where the services are sorely lacking. This may be true in some cases. But Slovak hotels and pensions are typically clean and comfortable, if not austere, with employees that are almost always nothing short of charming.Concerning employees, many hotels have receptionists who speak English, at least enough to arrange the logistics of a foreigner's stay. But some don't. So here are some key phrases:

Reader feedback: Elections will determine moral future

SMEs get Sk327 million in support

ST dividends to cover media debts

Review: The curious tale of the Golden Hind

THE GOLDEN Hind (Zlatá Laň) restaurant on Laurinská Street in Bratislava's Old Town is yet another in a flotilla of theme restaurants that have recently opened in the capital. Unlike the more successful Three Musketeers restaurant or El Diablo pub, however, this one looks like it's going to have an uphill battle to be more than cute.To understand why the Zlatá Laň is littered with nautical knicknacks, including treasure chests and a Captain Hook statue, you have to know that 'hind' in the restaurant's name is not used in the adjective sense, as the rear part of something, but as the noun synonym for deer. Golden Hind, as a proper name, was given by English captain Sir Francis Drake to the ship in which he circumnavigated the world from 1577 to 1580.

Lexa triumphs again: Moral duty shirked by courts

THE DECISION of the Bratislava region court this past week to again forbid the prosecution of former spy boss Ivan Lexa was not only legally flawed - it was cowardly and unjust.The court based its decision on a ruling by the Constitutional Court in December 1999, which said an amnesty issued in March 1998 by then-acting President Vladimír Mečiar concerning the 1995 kidnapping of the former president's son prevented the people involved in the kidnapping from being charged. By that time, a former Slovak Intelligence Service (SIS) officer, Jaroslav Svěchota, had already confessed to assisting in the kidnapping under Lexa's direction and the 'spiritual guidance' of Mečiar himself.

Bush signs NATO expansion measure

Record inflation lows give distorted picture

A DROP in the inflation rate to a record low last month was received with some skepticism by economic analysts, who said the trend reflected the government's desire to boost real wages before September elections by avoiding increases to regulated prices connected with EU integration.In May 2002, headline inflation, which includes all prices for consumer goods and services, fell to 3.2 per cent year-on-year, down from 8 per cent in July 2001 and 16.6 per cent in March 2000. The rate was the lowest monthly inflation figure in Slovakia since the end of communism in 1989.The central bank, however, immediately said the figure gave a misleading picture of the direction of the Slovak economy, which faces stiff price increases after elections as well as after Slovakia joins the European Union.

TASR boss drives fancier car than most

Central bank updates monetary document

Istrochem attracts four serious bidders