Archive of articles - October 2007, page 3

'It is not our job to look for the offender'

IVAN Petranský was elected to head the board of the Nation's Memory Institute (ÚPN) in February 2007. The Slovak National Party (SNS) nominated him to the post.In the past, Petranský worked in the historical institute of the Matica Slovenská national heritage organisation, which has been seen as a nationalist group, and he had also been an archivist in the Archdiocese Office in Trnava.

Cabinet approves minimum hospital network

Hungary: Scholarship for Roma graduates

Slovakia at risk of Iran's missiles: Bush

US PRESIDENT George W. Bush said Slovakia is among the countries at risk of a future missile attack from Iran, in a lecture in Washington on October 23.Bush said the Central-European region, including Slovakia, could benefit from the planned American missile defense system if an Iranian attack takes place, the Sme daily wrote on October 24.

Power utility gets record loan

SLOVAKIA's major power utility has jumped into the largest company-financing project in the country's history.The Enel-owned Slovenské Elektrárne has concluded a seven-year revolving line of credit totaling €800 million (Sk26.6 billion) to finance its investment plans in Slovakia. It plans to start drawing the credit in 2008."With this loan, we will be able to fulfill our investment plans," Slovenské Elektrárne general director Paolo Ruzzini told the Czech newswire, ČTK.

Bratislava Jazz Days saves the best for last

THE BRATISLAVA Jazz Days festival, which offered three days of diverse jazz by local and international musicians, ended on October 21. The last evening of the event was the most memorable, the Sme daily wrote on October 23.The last evening began with a performance by French musician Bibi Tanga, who heated the scene up with grooves that mixed funk, reggae, and afrobeats.

Culture shorts

Fight against corruption must go on

SINCE he became justice minister in July 2006, Štefan Harabin has tried to dissolve the Special Court, which has dealt with the bankrupt pyramid schemes and other major corruption scandals, and the Special Prosecution Office, calling them unconstitutional.Last October, he also fired seven justices of Regional or District Courts in a span of two days. The dismissals mainly affected courts that supported the justice reforms launched by the previous minister.

Agricultural education gets more international

AGRICULTURE has a strong tradition in Slovakia. Nowadays, the Slovak University of Agriculture (SPU) in Nitra is the country's only university in this field.This unique position has both benefits and challenges, which the university hopes to overcome with innovative teaching methods and partnerships with international schools.

Team appointed to investigate student's murder

Research is about ideas, not location

WATCHING the world ice-hockey championships with his family in Slovakia is one of the things that Aleš Černý, a professor of finance at the Cass Business School in London, misses the most.His childhood dream was to be a goalkeeper. However, as the hockey dream evaporated, mathematics turned out to be the next best thing."I enjoyed solving problems and had a knack for formulating mathematical models that somehow reflected reality," Černý said.

Demand for office space not slowing down

THE DEMAND for high-standard office space in Bratislava has not eased, even though new offices are being built at a torrid pace.The year-on-year increase in administrative premises in 2006 was the highest in history, and more new projects are in the pipeline.

ŠtB documents were falsified

THE NATION'S Memory Institute (ÚPN) has discovered about 30 documents of the communist state secret police (ŠtB) that were falsified. But critics are raising questions about the information on alleged collaborators that is being made public now.The head of the ÚPN, Ivan Petranský, announced the findings at an October 12 press conference.

Smer remains the most popular party

Roma proxy signs agreement with UNDP

Šahy

THE SOUTHERN Slovak town of Šahy was still going through hard times in the early 19th century.

Survey: Bush wants to protect us

Private highways would cost thousands per capita annually

ÚDZS rates health insurers