Archive of articles - December 2006

Czechs to close border if Slovakia late for Schengen

THE CZECH Ambassador to the European Union, Jan Kohout, shocked his Slovak colleagues on December 12 by saying that if Slovakia failed to meet a deadline at the end of 2007 for introducing new border controls under the EU's Schengen passport-free area, "we are politically prepared to introduce controls on the Czech-Slovak border".

Roma succeed in local elections

TWICE as many Roma candidates won seats on local councils or as mayors in the December 2 municipal elections as did in the previous vote in 2002, according to a preliminary forecast by the National Democratic Institute (NDI).

PRESS digest: SME DAILY

Quote of the Week:

Slovak peacekeepers sent home

Fico: Slovakia supports Turkey's accession to EU

Justice minister not backing down

Cervanová witnesses break 30-year silence

LESS THAN a week after the Supreme Court confirmed jail sentences for six men accused of raping and murdering young medical student Ľudmila Cervanová in 1976, a pair of witnesses who saw Cervanová getting into a car with men who did not resemble the accused have come forward.cannot be appealed, but were turned away.

PRESS digest: PRAVDA DAILY

Healthcare Bureau loses independence

MPs approve budget with 2.94% deficit

THE GOVERNMENT of Robert Fico passed the first test of its fiscal sobriety in parliament on December 12, approving a state budget for 2007 that sets a general government deficit of 2.94 percent of GDP. The symbolism of the deficit figure, which for the first time complies with one of the criteria for adopting the euro on schedule in 2009, was underscored by Prime Minister Fico after the vote.

Milinkievic: Slovakia should be Belarus' ambassador in Brussels

THE LEADER of the Belarus opposition and the winner of this year's Sakharov Prize, Alexander Milinkievic, asked for even greater support in the battle for freedom, democracy and adherence to human rights laws in Belarus during a visit to Bratislava on December 10.

Birth rate highest in north

A STUDY of Slovak population patterns released on December 13 by the Demographic Research Centre has found that the north of Slovakia, rather than the east as popularly believed, enjoys the highest birthrate in the country, while the south has the lowest.

New STV director "flattered" by political links to Smer party

THE STV station has a new director - little-known Czech native Radim Hreha - and, according to the media, a new voice for the ruling Smer party in the country's public media.

Special Court to survive after all

THE SPECIAL Court, set up under the previous government to deal with political and organized crime cases, has been given a reprieve from attempts by the Justice Ministry to have it shut down.

Christmas

THIS CHRISTMAS photograph taken in 1935 is from Linhartovce, a village in the Gemer region in eastern Slovakia. The family in it is most likely that of a Czech military officer serving in Slovakia.

Supreme Court confirms verdicts for acid gang

THE SLOVAK Supreme Court on December 7 confirmed two exceptional sentences, one of which one was life in jail, that were handed down earlier this year by the Special Court for organized crime to men accused of dissolving their murder victims in acid.

Our invisible friends and neighbours

FAMILY REUNION, a photo exhibit i about gay and lesbian parents in Central Europe now showing at the Open Society Foundation in Bratislava, might as well be invisible.

Kia unveils new plans for Žilina