Archive of articles - November 2002, page 3

Bratislava's leading candidates for mayor

Parliament approves cabinet programme

Focus on Mexico and zoom in on Germany

NINE full days can be spent in the magical world of moving pictures during the upcoming fourth International Film Festival (IFF) Bratislava, which opens on November 29. It will offer a high-quality selection of more than 200 feature films and documentaries that represent current trends in European and world cinema. Most films will be shown with English subtitles.The festival is divided into seven categories, each focusing on films from a particular region, a certain genre or paying tribute to a personality. A lure for fans of non-European cinema will certainly be the Mexican films that are being presented this year. Two of these movies - Amores Perros (Love's a Bitch) and Y Tu Mama Tambien (And Your Mother Too) - have already seen success after being released in Slovak cinemas earlier this year."Mexico is a progressive country when it comes to film - it is very successful at home and Mexican filmmakers have also recently won many prizes at major festivals. Thanks to our cooperation with the Mexican Film Institute, we'll be able to show the best [films] from the last two years, including 11 feature films and 17 documentaries," says Ľubica Turčanová, one of the programme coordinators for IFF Bratislava.

Reader feedback: In praise of balanced reporting

Police take on money-lenders

Reader feedback: Let NGOs pitch in on Roma issues

Countrywide Events

BRATISLAVAWESTERN SLOVAKIACENTRAL SLOVAKIAEASTERN SLOVAKIA

How not to waste money on waste

"TAKE OUT the garbage! (Vynes smeti!)." If you live in a block of flats, you often hear mothers shouting this to their children or husbands."Again? (Zasa?)" is the usual reply.The assigned person will finally grab the bag of garbage, go outside and walk the several meters necessary to get to the family's container (kontajner).

Reader feedback: Remembering the homeland

Slovakia gets ticket to Nato

SLOVAKIA was invited to join Nato at the Alliance's summit in the Czech capital Prague, in the biggest wave of eastward expansion in the organisation's 53-year history.Slovakia, along with six other post-communist countries - Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovenia - on November 21 received invitations to become members of Nato, which will boost the Alliance's membership to 26."This round of enlargement will maintain Nato's strength and its vitality," Nato secretary-general George Robertson said at the summit's opening.

Compensation for communist prisoners

Inflation to hit 15 per cent in January

Ministry and regulators row over electricity hikes

THE SLOVAK government's advisor on the privatisation of electricity producer Slovenské elektrárne (SE) is warning that questions over the regulation of the country's electricity prices are complicating the privatisation process.After SE and the Office for Regulation of Network Industry (ÚRSO) agreed on maximum electricity price rises of 18.6 per cent, the plan was met with resistance from large users and distributors, and calls for increased government control over the independent ÚRSO."We are convinced this uncertainty complicates the [privatisation] process," said Peter Mitka, chief of the privatisation team at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), which is advising the Slovak government on the deal.

Mečiar ducks asset declaration rule

Regulators approve gas-rate hike

GOVERNMENT regulators and Slovak gas utility SPP have agreed on steep increases in natural-gas prices for 2003, saying the hikes are necessary to cover justified costs and ensure fair profits as the country's energy market is liberalised.In early November, the Office for Regulation of Network Industry (ÚRSO) approved a draft price plan submitted by SPP that called for average household gas prices to rise by 43.7 per cent, and all categories by an average of 32.7 per cent."Households using natural gas only for cooking must count on an increase in their [gas] expenses of Sk30 ($0.72) per month on average," said SPP spokesperson Dana Kršáková, explaining that this group is the largest among household consumers and will see the highest increase.

House of cards: Nato entry demands stronger democracy

FORMER Slovak Defence Minister Pavol Kanis has restarted work on his massive Bratislava villa, the Plus 7 Dní weekly reports, paying "cash down" for new windows, a paint job and other finishing touches expected to make the mansion habitable by spring 2003.As one of five ministers fired for corruption in the previous Dzurinda cabinet, Kanis was booted from his post in early 2001 after claiming he was financing the Sk15 million ($350,000) project from gambling winnings (his net wage as an MP had been about Sk600,000 a year, meaning the villa would have taken him about 25 years to afford even if he never spent a halier on anything else).The fact that Kanis has been able to quietly continue construction is an embarrassment for Slovakia, which this week received an invitation to join Nato. It is also a sobering thought for current Nato members, who have urged prospective entrants to fix their wagons before hitching them to the Alliance train.

Sario doing better than expected

EU entry put back to May 2004

Local elections only days away

ON DECEMBER 6 and 7 Slovak voters will elect the mayors and council members of their cities and villages in an election where more is at stake than in previous years.In recent months, local authorities have been taking over many of the state's responsibilities - for example in the areas of health care and education - which has increased their importance to the communities they serve and to political parties fighting for power. In these elections, parties can back any candidate, no matter what party that candidate belongs to.Despite the increased power of municipal governments, observers are not expecting a huge voter turnout because most of the electorate is still more focused on national-level politics. A recent survey carried out by the Public Opinion Research Institute shows that only 54 per cent of voters are sure they will cast ballots in the municipal elections.