Archive of articles - January 2012, page 9
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Countrywide Events
Western SLOVAKIA
A year of more openness and a few shortcomings
THE GROUNDBREAKING 2010 measure was prompted by frustration over a series of murky state deals during the last government, like the below-market-value sale of Slovakia’s excess carbon-dioxide emissions quotas to the infamous (and now disappeared) Interblue Group, and the so-called bulletin-board tender awarded to a well-connected sole bidder via a rigged process. Since January 2011 all contracts involving public money and state bodies must be published on the internet in order to be valid.
Large holding company to be formed
THE OWNER of the Istrokapitál investment group, Mario Hoffman, along with Peter Gabalec and Martin Kvietik from Slavia Capital and Sitno Holding, which is owned by former economy minister Ľudovít Černák, will establish a joint holding company with basic capital of €100 million that will include eight Slovak engineering firms, the Hospodárske Noviny daily reported.
The Ján Pálka cabin
THIS BARREN place with an inconspicuous cabin among dense forests does not give the impression that crowds of tourists would flock here. Vrbické pleso (a pleso is a mountain lake formed by a glacier) is the only lake of its kind in the Low Tatras.
School segregation ruled illegal
TEACHERS at a primary school in Šarišské Michaľany say they disagree with a ruling by the district court in nearby Prešov that their school discriminated against Roma children by separating them from other pupils. The court found in favour of the Advisory Centre for Civil and Human Rights in Košice, which sued the school in 2010 saying that it had violated the principle of equal treatment established in the anti-discrimination law, the Sme daily reported.
FNM
FAITH NO MORE fans will be disappointed. It is not their favourite band that is the word of this week. No, the initials stand for the normally much less thrilling National Property Fund, whose boss has found herself in the middle of the ongoing Gorilla scandal. Nonetheless, evidence, the gentle art of making enemies, and a lot of grave digging are all involved in this epic tale that came out of nowhere, but which everyone suddenly cares about so much.
Some fairs and exhibitions at Agrokomplex in Nitra
A selection of fairs and exhibitions being held this year at Agrokomplex in Nitra:
Ministry compensates truck driver
CZECH truck driver Zdeněk Pekara, who had to spend Christmas 2010 in a Turkish jail cell after a failed attempt by Slovak police to net a ring of drug smugglers, has received €25,000 in compensation from the Slovak Interior Ministry for being involved without his knowledge in the police operation, the Sme daily reported.
ÚDZS publishes health-care contract
SLOVAKIA’S HEALTH-Care Oversight Authority (ÚDZS) and the German Institute for Payment Systems in Hospitals (InEK) have disclosed the final contract price for development and implementation of the so-called Diagnosis-Related-Groups (DRG) system in Slovakia. The ÚDZS also posted the contract on its website and on the Central Register of Contracts, the SITA newswire reported on January 11.
New CD and film features ‘Rom-pop’
UNDERNEATH mainstream culture there often is a “stream below the stream” said filmmaker Martin Šulík when speaking about his brother’s most recent documentary film about Roma culture – and a set of Roma songs – called Neve giľa. Šulík specifically likened ‘Rom-pop music’ to the title of Slovak author Dušan Dušek’s short story Potok pod potokom (The Stream Below the Stream).
Fair and expo firms express positive outlook
FAIRS and exhibitions in Slovakia are feeling the sting of global economic problems just like their counterparts in other countries. The number of events staged in Slovakia and the number of exhibitors has fallen and some annual events have moved to a biennial format. Companies engaged in organising and staging fairs and expos are seeking to broaden their business activities by also organising concerts, social events, congresses and company presentations to more fully utilise their premises. These event organisers must also cope with competition from the internet and other new communication technologies, but they are also using these communication methods to improve their fairs and exhibitions. Owners of exhibition premises firmly believe that the opportunity to have face-to-face contact at a fair or expo cannot be replicated by other means and that exhibitors and visitors alike will continue to seek this kind of personal experience.
23rd bridge run draws record numbers
THE FINAL athletic event for 2011 was a mass run across all of Bratislava's bridges on New Year’s Eve, typically called Silvester in Slovakia because December 31 is the name day of Silvester. Nearly 1,000 runners took part in this symbolic farewell to the old year that has now been organised for 23 years. The event again showed that getting some physical exercise rather than just celebrating, feasting and drinking is a popular idea in Bratislava.
Pre-vote jockeying begins as SDKÚ rejects Smer
THE LARGEST centre-right party in the current parliament and the largest party in the current government, the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ), has ruled out governing with the opposition Smer party after the general election in March. Smer hit back by saying that Slovakia needs a different type of government from what its leader called “a right-wing mash-up”. While one analyst suggested that the SDKÚ was only restating the party’s long-standing position, another observer said it had been spooked by the fear of losing right-wing voters.
Slovak wines showcased in Pezinok Castle
FAIRS and exhibitions are organised to show or trade products and services and to make new business contacts. In general they are temporary, but there are some exceptions. One of them is the Slovak National Collection of Wine (NSV) in Pezinok, which offers the best 100 Slovak wines, drawn from the winners of selected competitions nationwide. The collection, which changes each year, is housed in historical wine cellars in the town of Pezinok, near Bratislava, and offers all its wines for tasting.
Court rules against publishers
A LONG legal dispute between several Slovak publishers and an agency that monitors the news on behalf of clients has an initial victor. At the beginning of January the Bratislava Regional Court confirmed the verdict of the lower-level district court which had ruled that the Storin news monitoring agency did not violate Slovakia’s copyright law when it used articles from the publishers’ newspapers to prepare its monitoring reports.
Some fairs and exhibitions at Expo Center in Trenčín
A selection of fairs and exhibitions being held this year at Expo Center in Trenčín:
Nuclear stress-test process to continue
WHILE shocking images from Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant, which suffered multiple meltdowns after being hit by an earthquake and subsequent tsunami last March, have now disappeared from the front pages, the effects of the disaster are still being felt in Europe. Slovakia’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority (ÚJD), like counterpart organisations across the EU, sent its final national report on the stress tests for the nuclear power plants in Slovakia to Brussels by the deadline of December 31.
Things will never be the same
SOME say things will never be the same in Slovak politics after Gorilla, the eponymous file suggesting widespread political corruption, leaked to the public. In fact it would be the worst possible scenario if Slovakia’s political arena remained unchanged.
New Year's peak climb
UNLIKE in cities where New Year’s Eve was marked by feasting, drinking and celebrating in the streets, quite a number of people in rural areas decided to spend the last hours of the departing year climbing their local mountains.
Philharmonic back in Reduta
AFTER spending more than two years in a ‘borrowed’ venue – the historical building of the Slovak National Theatre – the Slovak Philharmonic (SF) Orchestra and Choir will soon return home. The old “Reduta” building just opposite the national theatre, where the SF has been resident since 1949, has been undergoing a complete renovation and is almost ready to welcome the ensemble back.
- Ambulance hit by Russian drone goes on display in centre of Bratislava
- Slovakia’s public finances remain in deep trouble
- Confetti, chants and history: Hejková’s dream goodbye after nearly 40 years at the top
- Bratislava’s embassy-backed events you don’t want to miss
- US giant pulls plug on Slovak factory, axing 137 jobs
- “Return not,” the ocean cried. But I returned for her
- The British Film Institute shines a light on Slovak cinema’s boldest chapter Video
- Hundreds of people ousted from Bratislava’s Volkswagen
- “Return not,” the ocean cried. But I returned for her
- Ambulance hit by Russian drone goes on display in centre of Bratislava
- Bratislava’s embassy-backed events you don’t want to miss
- The British Film Institute shines a light on Slovak cinema’s boldest chapter Video
- Slovakia's latest basketball star is destined for great things in the USA
- When to shop over Easter: Opening hours for supermarkets in Slovakia
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- US giant pulls plug on Slovak factory, axing 137 jobs
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- “Return not,” the ocean cried. But I returned for her
- Hundreds of people ousted from Bratislava’s Volkswagen
- The British Film Institute shines a light on Slovak cinema’s boldest chapter Video
- Weekend: What to make of Easter in Slovakia
- News digest: Finns air unseen video of Fico shooting, PM’s bloody jacket driven away by minister
- US giant pulls plug on Slovak factory, axing 137 jobs
- Slovakia's latest basketball star is destined for great things in the USA
- “Return not,” the ocean cried. But I returned for her
- German shoemaker Lowa joins wave of factory closures in Slovakia
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- A café in an ice cellar, sand dunes and a flower shop at the border
- US giant pulls plug on Slovak factory, axing 137 jobs
- Hundreds of people ousted from Bratislava’s Volkswagen
- When to shop over Easter: Opening hours for supermarkets in Slovakia
- Danish shoemaker to shut Slovak factory, axing 650 jobs in fresh blow to struggling region
- Confetti, chants and history: Hejková’s dream goodbye after nearly 40 years at the top
- Slovakia’s public finances remain in deep trouble
- Ambulance hit by Russian drone goes on display in centre of Bratislava
- Why this gorge deserves a spot on your bucket list Photo
- The British Film Institute shines a light on Slovak cinema’s boldest chapter Video
- Bratislava’s embassy-backed events you don’t want to miss
- Water supply to be cut in parts of Bratislava’s Old Town in late April
- Slovakia's latest basketball star is destined for great things in the USA More articles ›
