Archive of articles - January 2011, page 13
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PM, FM divvy up EU affairs
PRIME Minister Iveta Radičová and Foreign Minister Mikuláš Dzurinda have agreed on the division of decision-making powers between their offices on EU-related matters. Under the new arrangement, the EU agenda will be handled at two levels within the cabinet, the SITA newswire reported.
Privatisation returns to the agenda
THE CHANGE of drivers at the wheel of government in July re-opened the issue of privatisation in Slovakia. Compared to the negative attitude of former prime minister Robert Fico, the Iveta Radičová government wants to sell stakes held by the state in selected companies. But in its four-year programme it has excluded privatisation of what it calls strategic companies.
Finnish publishing house sells titles
THE FINNISH publishing group Sanoma Magazines International sold its publishing business-to-business activities in Slovakia to the Ecopress publishing house in mid 2010, the SITA newswire reported. No financial details were revealed. Ecopress publishes, among others, the Hospodárske Noviny financial daily.
Court rules on Kotleba leaflet case
A BANSKÁ Bystrica district court has stopped further criminal prosecution of Marián Kotleba, the leader of the People’s Party - Our Slovakia (ĽSNS) and former leader of the far-right organisation Slovenská Pospolitosť, in a case involving text written in election leaflets in 2009, the SITA newswire reported.
Countrywide Events
Western SLOVAKIA
The news from Facebook
BREAKING a story on a social network that allows one to write only 140 characters per post might have seemed like a foolish way to engage in journalism only a few years ago. But at the beginning of 2011 there is no question that journalistic work has changed tremendously and journalism is now peering through the lenses of Facebook and Twitter. Slovak journalists are not lagging behind and are increasingly using social networks as both sources of news and as publication vehicles. That offers many positives and ways to improve the work of journalists but also poses some challenges and questions yet to be answered.
Bankruptcies rose in 2011
A RECORD number of companies went bust in Slovakia over the last year, with 340 companies filing for bankruptcy, an increase of 55 compared to 2009. Observers agree that the higher bankruptcy numbers are a result of the global financial crisis, but say they are not necessarily negative for the economy, public broadcaster Slovak Radio (SRo) reported.
Pilgrimage to Rajecká Lesná
IN THE 17TH and 18th centuries religious pilgrimages started to be organised on Slovak territory thanks to several monastic orders. The destinations of these pilgrimages were places associated with legends of appearing saints, of sick persons being miraculously cured, or of curative waters rising out of the earth. Chapels and churches were built to commemorate these sites and each year pilgrims from a wide region headed to the sites. These entourages were colourful and very varied; festively dressed pilgrims sang songs typical for their specific region.
Making language legal
ONCE you fasten one button on your vest incorrectly, then your whole vest is obviously buttoned-up wrong, said Rudolf Chmel, the Deputy Prime Minister for Human Rights and National Minorities, in describing the tensions that have surrounded Slovakia’s State Language Act. His office began officially working with stronger powers on November 1 and among its first legislative initiatives is an amendment to the law on minority languages which was presented for public discussion shortly before the end of 2010. The right to use one’s mother tongue as well as the regularly erupting conflicts between Slovaks and ethnic Hungarians and the problems of socially-excluded Roma communities were among the topics Chmel spoke about with The Slovak Spectator just before the Christmas holidays.
Television
The proportion of people who watch TV was 89 percent according to the results of the MML-TGI survey.
Quote of the week
“In fact we saved him.”
Nation's Memory Institute to focus mainly on communist repression
The Nation's Memory Institute (UPN), which oversees Slovakia's archives from its periods under totalitarian rule, will in 2011 focus on the repressive structures of the former Communist Party of Slovakia (KSS) during the so-called 'normalisation' period which followed the crushing of the Prague Spring in 1968, ÚPN board chairman Ivan Petranský announced at the beginning of January.
Pensions to rise by 1.8 percent as of January
State pensions will rise by 1.8 percent from January, state social insurance provider Sociálna Poisťovňa (SP) announced on January 5, the TASR newswire reported.
Christians celebrate Epiphany, Orthodox believers Christmas
The Christian festival of Epiphany, or "Three Kings/Sages" (Traja králi), as it is known in Slovakia, was celebrated on Thursday, January 6.
Collective wage bargaining starts at Slovenská Pošta
The state-run postal services company Slovenská Pošta has started collective bargaining with employee representatives on a basic wage increase for 2011. The company reported on Wednesday, January 5, that collective bargaining began at the request of the trade union organisation Mail and Logistics.
Slovak postal market should be fully liberalised by 2012
If approved, a new law on postal services should become effective in January 2012 which will scrap postal restrictions in Slovakia and fully liberalise the postal market a year earlier than planned, the SITA newswire reported.
Smer comments on prosecutor’s decision to end SDKÚ financing case
The opposition Smer party said it respects the decision of the Special Prosecutor's Office to halt the investigation into the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union’s (SDKÚ) financial practices even while stating that it reserves its own opinion on the matter, Smer spokesperson Silvia Glendová told the TASR newswire on January 5, adding that the party will not comment further on the decision made by Special Prosecutor Ján Sant. According to Sant, SDKÚ fully backed up its claims that it received and repaid a loan in a standard manner by submitting relevant accounting documents and annual reports. It was Smer chairman Robert Fico who alleged in early 2010 that SDKÚ had engaged in shady financing practices, stating that Mikuláš Dzurinda's party was laundering dirty money.
Finance Ministry proposes strengthened powers to fight VAT fraud
Slovakia’s Finance Ministry has submitted for interdepartmental review ablueprint of a plan to fight VAT frauds, stating that its current efforts and tools to eliminate tax fraud, particularly regarding VAT, are insufficient, the SITA newswire reported. The ministry has tailored a series of measures aimed at efficient elimination of opportunities for fraud and prevention of its further escalation. However, the ministry said its proposed measures do not pose administrative obstructions to business conduct of companies that observe laws.
Slovakia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry condemns government actions in Belarus
The latest actions taken by the top officials of Belarus go against the values of democracy, the principles of the rule of law and the protection of basic liberties, including freedom of speech, said a statement released by Slovakia's Foreign Affairs Ministry on Wednesday, January 5, the TASR newswire reported. "Slovakia will back all EU tools, including the restoration of sanctions, when it comes to the creation of European Union policies in response to the altered situation in Belarus and to decisions made by Belarus's top representatives," reads the statement, as quoted by TASR.
New Roma political party is registered in Slovakia
A new political party to represent the interests of Slovakia's Roma community has been established as the Party of the Slovak Roma Union (SRÚS) was registered with the Interior Ministry on November 30, 2010, the party's plenipotentiary and chairman of the Slovak Roma Union, František Tanko, told the SITA newswire on January 5.
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