Archive of articles - January 2008, page 6
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The First World War
OLD family albums can hold a lot of photos like this one. They date back to the First Word War (1914-1918) and capture sad moments when freshly-recruited soldiers got immortalised on film with their families for the last time, or when they managed to get home for a holiday.
Fico team doubts SPP deal
A GOVERNMENT report says the state was ripped off in the blockbuster sale of 49 percent of its major gas utility, Slovenský Plynárenský Priemysel (SPP), and the deal was not done transparently.
Hvorecký’s play in Hannover
PLYŠ (Plush), a play by young Slovak writer Michal Hvorecký, premiered at the Schauspielhaus Theatre in Hannover on January 11 after a successful run at the Aréna Theatre in Bratislava. Hvorecký was in attendance at the opening of City, as the play is called in German.
New press act causes confusion
PRIME Minister Robert Fico and his government are not known for their good relationship with the media, yet they are trying to introduce a new press act – something that has not been done since the fall of communism in Slovakia. Fico’s cabinet approved the bill on the new press act on January 9.
Countrywide Events
Western SLOVAKIA
Mob boss catches a break
A COURT in eastern Slovakia’s Košice has halted an extortion case against a local organised crime boss based on a controversial interpretation of the country’s criminal law.
Country’s top security men go biometric
INTERIOR Minister Robert Kaliňák and director of the National Security Office (NBÚ) František Blanárik, are the first Slovak citizens to hold new passports with a biometric security feature. They got the passport with a digitised black and white facial image on January 15, the SITA newswire wrote. The second biometric feature, fingerprints, will appear in Slovak passports next year.
Toll tender drives ahead with five firms
AFTER a rocky start, the mega-tender to build and operate Slovakia’s first electronic highway toll system has taken a new turn.
Radiation tool not needed, ministry says
MOST countries in Europe have at least one hospital that uses the Leksell Gamma Knife: a device that treats brain tumours and lesions with radiation beams instead of invasive surgery. But while Health Minister Ivan Valentovič acknowledges its advantages, he has blocked a doctor’s plans to create a health facility in Slovakia that uses the device.
Justice ministry compensates Holocaust victims
THE JUSTICE Ministry is intensifying its reimbursement of people who were deported to Nazi concentration camps. The ministry estimates the sum to be paid for compensations this year at Sk20 million, ministry spokesman Michal Jurči told the SITA newswire.
Slovakia’s highest hotel room a new tourist draw
WANT to get away from it all? A Slovak cable car company may have just the place: a room for rent on top of Lomnický Peak, the second highest peak in Slovakia.
Belinda Carlisle opens ball season
AMERICAN singer Belinda Carlisle opened the ball season in grand style at the historic Slovak National Theatre building on January 12.
Flying with Captain Fico
NO ONE entertains the delusion that Bratislava airport will some day be one of the region’s strategic air hubs. The M.R. Štefánik airport is too small for that, but many still hope to see it grow.
Contract dispute leaves hospitals in the lurch
SOME Slovak hospitals have hit a serious hurdle in their quest for funding. Slovakia’s largest health insurer, Všeobecná Zdravotná Poisťovňa (VšZP), has refused to sign contracts with them for 2008.
For Bratislava music scene, summer starts early
THE PAST few summers in Bratislava have seen performances by some world-class music stars, whose arrival usually marks the start of the city’s Cultural Summer arts cycle.
New health rules might be bad medicine
SLOVAK patients will once again have to make an extra stop before they see a cardiologist, neurologist or surgeon. A recent amendment to the law on health care has reinstalled the rule requiring patients to get a referral from their general practitioner before they turn to a specialised doctor.
Some mayors earn more than the president
INCOMES of mayors in some Slovak towns exceeded the wages of Slovak government members in December. Some town councils approved their mayor’s year-end benefits amounting to hundreds of thousands of crowns, the Pravda daily wrote. Marián Michalec, the mayor of the 20,000-strong town of Púchov, received a benefit of Sk540,000. Much bigger regional capitals were not so generous, and some of their mayors were even left without any extra money.
Courts too charitable to mafia
The Košice district court on January 8 halted criminal proceedings against Róbert Okoličány for extortion, reasoning that it would be “ineffective” to continue because the reputed Košice mafia boss and his accomplices face more serious charges of murder and attempted murder before the Special Court for organised crime.
Odds are good for euro adoption, analysts say
THE CHANCES of Slovakia adopting the euro in January 2009 went up in December, reaching their highest level since the middle of last year.
Slovakia gets its first pet cemetery
SLOVAKIA’S first place of rest for departed pets has opened near Prievidza.
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Legendary captain Zdeno Chára inducted into IIHF Hall of Fame Video
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- Liberal MP's boxing challenge backfires as far-right MEP seizes the moment
- From eight to thousands of runners. How Košice marathon rose to prominence Photo
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- From eight to thousands of runners. How Košice marathon rose to prominence Photo
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Iconic Slovak barn still draws crowds. Without donors, it might have been lost Photo
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- Fico praises China and Vietnam as models, says liberal democracy has failed
- News digest: Violent gang in Bratislava is under arrest
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Legendary captain Zdeno Chára inducted into IIHF Hall of Fame Video
- Liberal MP's boxing challenge backfires as far-right MEP seizes the moment
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- News digest: Prosecutor seeks jail for NBS Governor Kažimír as his political support wanes
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- News digest: Fico’s bloc wants to save money by restricting electoral access More articles ›
