Archive of articles - October 2002, page 3

Quote of the Week

Budget draft receives warm welcome

The Finance Ministry has submitted a draft budget proposal for 2003 that, if approved by parliament, will reduce state spending, set realistic deficit goals and improve government transparency, say financial analysts.The draft budget, signed by Finance Minister Ivan Mikloš on October 18, calls for scrapping or reducing planned civil service pay rises, limiting state expenditure in the social sphere and raising excise taxes on tobacco products and value added tax on other goods and services (see box below).

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Companies ride Slovak call centre wave

THE US-BASED Dell computer company has become the latest high-tech firm to open a telephone service centre in Slovakia, joining a number of technology firms and other companies seeking to cut costs while maintaining high service profiles.Dell is set to have 120 operators working in the centre by December serving primarily the German market, where the company plans to expand its market share to 11 per cent.

Close of competition chapter held up before EU summit

AT TALKS in Brussels October 24, Spain signalled it would not agree to close Slovakia's European Union legislative chapter on competition, expressing concern over state aid for carmaker Volkswagen.Once passed, the legislative changes will force Slovakia to update its laws regarding tax benefits and other state subsidies used to attract foreign investment. Previously, the country had offered tax holidays as long as 10 years, a practice not allowed by EU rules.

Majský jailed

Crown climbs on Irish yes

Penta wants bigger VSŽ stake

From cheerleader to referee: The state and Slovak arms exports, 1993-2002

IN THE VIEW of weapons dealer Štefan Žiak, Slovak arms traders remain handicapped against foreign competition by the lack of political support for their business at home."The former [1998-2002] government offered only a minimal amount of [political] backing to the defense industry," said Žiak, president of arms exporter DMD Trade and former arms trade coordinator for import-export firm Kerametal."I got the feeling they were afraid to get engaged in the weapons trade... Our politicians should take their priorities from us as to where they should get involved. Where they should visit and which PM they should privately inform what is available, and under what conditions."

HZDS libel suit adjourned

Drunk cops will continue to face tough measures

UNDER the new Interior Minister, Vladimír Palko, policemen who drive drunk will continue to face tough penalties, including being fired on the spot, the minister confirmed.Since January this year drunk policemen in uniform have caused 22 car accidents and killed several people, including a mother and a baby she held in her arms (see chart on page 10).In the latest incident of this kind, regional police inspection officer Michal Dzúrik, from the eastern Slovak town of Košice, was returning from a meeting of inspection officers in Bratislava on October 8 when he crashed into a car driving on a highway near Nitra.

EU takes shaky steps to expansion

With a final decision on EU enlargement just weeks away, some members are reconsidering the pros and cons of accepting Slovakia and nine other candidate countries into the Union in 2004.In Ireland on October 19, voters delivered a resounding endorsement of the Nice Treaty, which lays down the framework for EU expansion. However, in Luxembourg a few days later, EU foreign ministers failed to come to an agreement on how enlargement should be funded. Negotiations on enlargement must be wrapped up by a December deadline.

Minister wants communist judges thrown out

JUSTICE Minister Daniel Lipšic has said his Christian Democrats (KDH) party will propose a law enabling the sacking of justices who ruled in political trials under the communist regime.The plan was unequivocally rejected by Slovakia's top judicial authorities, who argued that the law, if passed, would come much too late.Historians say that 71,000 people were unjustly sent to prison during communism, while 705 people were executed or otherwise killed by the regime in Slovakia. More than 13,000 people were sent to labour camps.

Culture Shock: One visit, five kilos

WITH an Italian grandmother on one side of the family and a Jewish grandmother on the other, I am no stranger to being told to eat. Jewish and Italian mothers and grandmothers have earned a well-deserved place in history as some of the world's worst nudges, pushing food consumption well past the alleviation of hunger, and making the overstuffed guest feel guilty for refusing that third slice of cake.How can I break it to them, gently of course, that they have lost their title? Sorry Grandma; you've got nothing on the Slovaks!

Society must wage war against racism, say activists

ANTIRACISM activists and legislators have renewed calls for racism in Slovakia to be dealt with as a priority on a national level.The comments came after an international scandal erupted over the behaviour of some Slovak football fans at a match in Bratislava. During the Euro 2004 qualifier on October 12, some Slovak fans chanted racist abuse at black players in the visiting England national team. In response, the English press branded Slovakia a nation of racists.

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More belt-tightening announced