Archive of articles - January 2011, page 4
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Former mayor of Bratislava quits KDH parliamentary caucus
The past mayor of Bratislava, Andre Ďurkovský, who left that office at the end of 2010 is now leaving the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) and will become a non-partisan MP, the SITA newswire reported, adding that Ďurkovský has pledged to continue to support the governing coalition in parliament.
Slovak actress Fialová remains in a Russian hospital after bomb blast
Slovak actress Zuzana Fialová, who was injured in the suicide bombing attack at the Domodedovo Airport near Moscow, remains hospitalised in one of Moscow’s hospitals where doctors are to decide about her further treatment. The doctors have classified her injuries as moderate to severe, the SITA newswire reported.
Slovak teaching hospital clinics to stop performing abortions
All three gynaecological clinics of the Teaching Hospital in Bratislava will stop providing abortions as of February 1, 2011, even for abortions before the 12th week of pregnancy which are permitted by law in Slovakia, the Pravda daily reported on January 25.
Bank analysts predict better Slovak GDP growth, with 3.6 percent expected in 2011
Bank analysts’ economic growth forecasts for 2011 are more optimistic than they were at the end of 2010. In a regular survey carried out by the National Bank of Slovakia (NBS), the analysts, on average, projected Slovakia’s economic growth at 3.6 percent, up slightly by 0.1 percentage point from December's estimates, the SITA newswire reported.
Slovaks are present at Russian airport blast
AT LEAST four Slovaks were at Domodedovo Airport in Moscow in the moments when a terrorist bomb blast killed at least 35 people and injured another 130 on January 24. Slovak actress Zuzana Fialová suffered minor injuries from the blast and was hospitalised in one of Moscow’s hospitals.
Interior Minister Lipšic says Slovakia could have a new Election Code by next year
A new Election Code is under preparation in a way that will allow parliament to vote on it by the end of 2011 or at the beginning of 2012, said Interior Minister Daniel Lipšic on January 24 after a meeting of the commission that is charged with preparing the changes, the TASR newswire reported. "It should be passed at least two years before the next election, so that the election rules will be given and known in advance," said Lipšic to TASR, adding that discussions on the need for a new Election Code have been taking place for ten years but work on it has only recently begun. The first version of the Code should be drafted by the summer so that there will be enough time for all political parties to discuss it.
KDH party may ask former Bratislava mayor Ďurkovský to vacate his MP's seat
The presidium of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) may call on its MP – and past mayor of Bratislava – Andrej Ďurkovský to give up his MP's mandate over recent issues that have surfaced regarding the Bratislava Waterworks Company (BVS) and the city's PKO Culture and Leisure Centre, an unnamed source from KDH told the TASR newswire on January 24. A meeting of the party's top leaders took place on the afternoon of January 24 with the source saying that calling on Ďurkovský to give up his MP's mandate would be the last resort, to be used only if he failed to provide credible justifications for his actions. If he disregards a call to step down he could be expelled from the KDH parliamentary caucus, added the source. KDH spokesman Matej Kováč told TASR on Monday that party leader Ján Figeľ has asked Ďurkovský to give his version of events. The current mayor of Bratislava, Milan Ftáčnik, said last week that there is every indication that there has been embezzlement at BVS as the volume of water processed has been on a rise while the amounts invoiced have decreased, with BVS’s financial losses increasing at the same time.
Ordinary People faction of SaS to introduce another proposal on dual citizenship
The Freedom and Solidarity party (SaS), a member of the governing coalition, said that it has no substantial problem with an amending proposal to the State Citizenship Act presented on January 24 by four SaS MPs grouped in its 'Ordinary People’ faction, led by Igor Matovič, that enables people to acquire another country’s citizenship without giving up their Slovak citizenship, the TASR newswire reported. "In terms of content we see no problem, we'll talk about this with Igor Matovič at our caucus session," TASR was told by SaS caucus chairman Jozef Kollár. According to the coalition proposal, people who request citizenship of another state should not automatically lose their Slovak citizenship – as stated in the statutes that Slovakia adopted in response to Hungary's dual citizenship legislation. The amendment to Slovakia’s statutes was passed by the former Robert Fico-led government in 2010. Ordinary People's amending proposal introduces another wrinkle to the issue as it only allows people who have permanent residence in another country, who study there, work, do business or have strong family bonds to gain that country’s citizenship. TASR wrote that in effect this means that people lacking such a link to Hungary would still lose their Slovak citizenship by acquiring Hungarian citizenship.
Unemployment in Slovakia is growing due to layoffs in public administration
The unemployment rate in Slovakia is being pushed up by redundancies in the public sector, while the private sphere is bringing it down, Michal Mušák, an analyst with Slovenská Sporiteľňa bank, told the TASR newswire.
Radičová sends Putin telegram of condolence over airport blast
Slovak Prime Minister Iveta Radičová sent a telegram of condolences to her Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in which she said she was shocked to hear about a bomb blast that killed more than 30 at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport on January 24, the TASR newswire reported.
Slovaks also among the injured after blast at Moscow airport
Slovaks are among those injured in a bomb explosion at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport on Monday afternoon, according to unconfirmed information obtained by the Slovakia's Foreign Affairs Ministry.
Sliač Airport in Slovakia will be modernised with financing from NATO
The international Sliač Airport in Banská Bystrica region, which is also used as a military airport, will be modernised, the TASR newswire reported. Based on Slovakia's proposal and NATO's later approval, a facility to store propellants and oils is to be built at the airport by 2012 – an investment worth more than €5 million, said Ivan Rudolf from Defence Ministry's press department.
Second round of dioxin tests for pork imported to Slovakia are negative
The results of the second round of tests for dioxin in pork imported from Germany were negative, as were the first tests carried out at the beginning of January, the Agriculture and Rural Development Ministry informed the TASR newswire on Friday, January 21. "The analyses have shown that all samples were negative for presence of dioxin but more stringent inspections of imported meat and meat products from Germany are still being applied," said Juraj Kadaš from the ministry's press department.
Bomb threat made at Incheba Exhibition Centre in Bratislava
An anonymous male caller contacted Slovakia’s 158 emergency phone number shortly after midnight on Saturday, January 22 stating that a bomb had been placed at the Incheba Exhibition Centre in Bratislava, Tatiana Kurucová of Bratislava's Regional Police Corps Directorate told the TASR newswire on January 23. A ball for exhibitors from the tourism fair, Slovakiatour, and the accompanying Danubius Gastro exhibition was being held at Incheba when the threat was made.
Labour Minister Mihál backs idea of scrapping lunch vouchers for Slovak employees
The lunch vouchers that hundreds of thousands of Slovak citizens receive from their employers on a monthly basis may be scrapped by an amendment to the country’s Labour Code that is currently in the pipeline, Jozef Mihál, the head of the Labour, Social Affairs and Family Ministry told the TASR newswire.
Defence Minister Galko marks 66th anniversary of Nazi atrocities in central Slovakia
On January 23 Defence Minister Ľubomír Galko and other members of the Slovak government took part in a ceremony marking the 66th anniversary of Nazi atrocities carried out against innocent civilians in the central Slovak villages of Kľak and Ostrý Grúň towards the end of WWII, the TASR reported. The events of 'Bloody Sunday' (January 21, 1945) are considered the worst example of Nazi repression in Slovakia. As many as 148 people, including both adults and children, were killed in the two villages. The youngest victim from Kľak was only three months old. The killings, carried out by an SS unit, a Heimatschutz unit and a counter-partisan Edelweiss unit, were a reprisal for the area's support for Slovak partisans.
Slovak parliamentary committee receives first application to head RTVS
The Slovak parliament's culture and media committee has received the first application for the post of director of the newly-established public broadcaster, Radio and Television of Slovakia (RTVS), the committee's secretariat told the TASR newswire on January 22, declining to specify the person’s name. Additionally, two people have submitted applications for seats on RTVS's nine-member board but no details were released. "The envelopes are still sealed; the [selection] commission won't open them until next week," said committee representative Eva Discantini. The deadline for submitting applications, both for the RTVS head and for RTVS council members, will expire on Tuesday, January 25.
Bratislava City Card offers discounts
THOSE with permanent residence in Slovakia’s capital can apply for a Bratislava City Card that can be used to purchase goods or services while qualifying for special discounts.
Dancing in the shadows
ROBERT Fico has introduced his 16-member shadow cabinet to the public. Nevertheless, its shadow ministers will also live in Fico’s shadow and it is unlikely that any of them will independently put counterproposals on the table in response to initiatives by the governing coalition. The boss of Smer is perfectly suited for the post of shadow prime minister and he will fully use this opportunity to create the impression that if anything unpopular happens, he and his shadow ministers are ready to take over.
Japan eyes the Visegrad Four
THE VISEGRAD region is clearly marked on the map of many Japanese diplomats, business leaders, academics and tourists, who are carefully exploring the business and landscape details of the region, including those of Slovakia.
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