Archive of articles - February 2012, page 6
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Slovakia honours three Spanish police officers for valour
Slovakia’s Interior Ministry will give medals for selfless deeds in memoriam to three Spanish police officers who died near A Corunna at the end of January while they were trying to save a Slovak citizen from the rough seas, the TASR newswire reported.
Gorilla Protest leaves the streets
AFTER the third Gorilla Protest in Bratislava saw less than half of the number of protesters who turned out previously at the city’s SNP Square, the organisers announced they were shifting discussion about their demands prompted by suspicions of high-level political corruption in Slovakia from the streets to round tables. They say that even though protesters are now set to discuss issues such as new rules for referendums, calls for the dismissal of Štefan Harabin as president of the Supreme Court, or demands that the president appoint general prosecutor-elect Jozef Čentéš, they could still return to the streets. However, the protest leaders themselves seem to be struggling to speak with one voice, after several splits emerged.
Democracy level unchanged in 2011
THE LEVEL of democracy in Slovakia during the second half of 2011 stayed at the same level as in the previous six months, when it received a mark of 2.6, according to the Barometer survey conducted out by the Institute of Public Affairs (IVO). Although the state of democracy was unimproved, the representatives of the think tank said that the outcome still represented Slovakia’s highest score since 2008, the SITA newswire reported.
Labour gets organised with mixed results
Last year, representatives of at least two key professions expressed their dissatisfaction with their status in society and, more importantly, with the figures on their wage slips. Even though the country’s Confederation of Trade Unions (KOZ) organised several rallies to protest against changes to the Labour Code and reforms planned by the centre-right government to the country’s tax and payroll-tax system, it was the direct action taken by hospital doctors that had the biggest effect.
BioEko Tech SK eyes Slovakia
POLISH firm BioEko Tech SK plans to build a plant to make special construction materials in Šaštín-Stráže. Radovan Prstek, the mayor of Šaštín-Stráže, explained that the company decided to do so because of the exceptional quality of the sand in local deposits. The new plant should produce mortars, coatings and other mixtures used in construction, the SITA newswire wrote in mid November.
Employment law changes, but outlook remains doubtful
The road to recovery is proving much bumpier than market watchers forecast a year ago and it is now clear that expressions such as hiring freeze, caution and stagnation will remain in use in the labour market's vocabulary for 2012. Many businesses are now wiser following their experiences tackling the 2009 downturn but the prospect of a return to recession means firms remain cautious in their plans and ambitions. At the very least, long-term plans and take-it-for-granted predictions are definitely out of fashion for 2012, and companies will first of all try to play it safe, observers say.
Lipšic applauds work of police
INTERIOR Minister Daniel Lipšic has said he considers the achievements of the Slovak Police Corps in 2011 to have been “a groundbreaking success”, the TASR newswire reported.
Real income falls in 2011
There was no extra spending power for most workers in 2011 as inflation ate away at nominal wage increases. The outlook for 2012 is for tamer inflation but since the Slovak economy is not expected to generate many new jobs the high level of unemployment and employers’ concerns about another economic crisis will put a brake on wage growth.
Another twist in the saga of the Gorilla file
THOUGH the Gorilla protestors – fuelled by the public’s indignation over allegations of high-level political corruption – have departed from the streets on the heels of an apparent split among the protest organisers, daily developments around the so-called Gorilla file, which contains the alleged transcripts of conversation between various Slovak politicians and a businessman covertly recorded by the country’s SIS spy agency in 2005 and 2006, remain a central issue as Slovakia’s parliamentary elections approach in March.
Highway construction remains a hot topic
AFTER the economic crisis hit the construction sector in Slovakia, many construction companies hoped that state orders, especially in highway building, would provide enough work to keep them afloat. New highways could also be of a considerable benefit to the whole country and its economy, with Slovak businesses and foreign investors alike keen to see the backbone highway connecting Bratislava and Košice via Žilina finally completed. However, an uninterrupted multi-lane road connecting the country’s two biggest cities still remains a fairly distant prospect. This is not only because of a lack of money but also because of constant changes in the state’s approach to highway construction. One analyst is calling for highway construction to be freed of political influence and for experts to be left to continue projects started by previous governments.
Sasanka file draws no further action
NEITHER the General Prosecutor Office nor the Special Prosecutor’s Office have received any criminal complaint over the so-called Sasanka file, a document featuring SMS text messages purportedly exchanged between the leader of Freedom and Solidarity (SaS), Richard Sulík, and businessman Marián Kočner, whose name has surfaced in several previous controversies over the past two decades. Moreover, the prosecutors said they do not plan to start any investigation of the case, the SITA newswire reported.
Tribal dance heats up Bratislava
ON THE freezing night of February 4 an oasis of warmth appeared in downtown Bratislava – and not just thanks to good heating in the My a mama (Us and Mom) teahouse and the thick air within the packed space. Rather the exotic music emanating from within the teahouse and scantily-clad ladies dancing eagerly to its rhythms evoked the atmosphere of a Bedouin tribal reunion somewhere in a sun-scorched desert.
Downgrade brings no shock waves
RATINGS downgrades often come in pairs, Slovakia learned recently. Only one month after international credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded the country’s long-term sovereign debt rating in January 2012, its counterpart Moody’s on February 13 also knocked Slovakia’s rating down one notch from A1 to A2, while changing its outlook from stable to negative. Slovakia was among six eurozone members whose sovereign credit ratings were lowered. Three more countries, Great Britain, France and Austria, had their ratings outlooks changed to negative over what the agency described as a deterioration of the debt crisis and increased macro-economic risks.
Welcome to the Prefab Story!
MASS housing construction in Slovakia, at least in terms of how it is now generally perceived by the public, was very closely connected with the pre-1989 communist regime, under which the lives of Slovaks were tightly controlled by the totalitarian power of the state. But mass construction of prefabricated buildings for residential housing – the building of huge housing estates – was also an answer to changing social and economic conditions after World War II, new technologies available to the construction industry, and the conviction of many architects of that time that every person had the right to some kind of roof over one’s head. And it was not only Czechoslovakia that responded to these forces in this way: many other countries launched mass construction schemes in the aftermath of the war.
Countrywide Events
Western SLOVAKIA
Quote of the week
“Direct democracy is a whip for corruption.”
Holcim and VSH to merge in Slovakia
ROHOŽNÍK-based construction materials producer Holcim (Slovensko) has started the process of merging with Východoslovenské Stavebné Hmoty (VSH) based in Turňa nad Bodvou, the SITA newswire reported on November 3. For now the companies will continue to operate independently with their own managements, but will merge fully in the near future.
Flexible working arrangements, focus on working time
If you ask employers what they would like from an amendment to the Labour Code, most of them would probably reply: More flexibility. The last big amendment, in force since 1 September 2011, has indeed brought more flexible working arrangements to Slovak employment relations. Time will tell how employers make use of this to adapt to a rather difficult economic situation. Working time arrangements especially, if implemented properly, can be very effective.
Making energy efficiency certificates matter
SLOVAKIA introduced an energy certification scheme for buildings at the start of 2008. In doing so it joined efforts within the European Union to reduce the amount of energy consumed in buildings. While much work has already been done, the energy awareness of Slovaks remains low, especially when compared with other countries in Europe, and there are still many areas where improvements can be made. Experts harbour significant reservations about the way the current scheme operates and how certificates are issued, and say meaningful support from the state to achieve better energy performance in buildings is lacking.
From “Orient” to “Tango for Lonely Winternights”
The Austrian female duo JuJu came to play on a freezing Bratislava Friday, the start of a spree of icy weather. They brought, although just for one evening, the sun of Orient, the Mediterranean warmth and the colours and carelessness of Africa, but also the “Complainer-Blues” and the “Tango for Lonely Winternights”. Whether joyful or blue, the main perception and expression of these two young musicians can be called playful. You fell the playfulness even in their version of blues or the tribute to “Vienna waltz” (Wiener Walzseligkeit).
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- News digest: Violent gang in Bratislava is under arrest
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- 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
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- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
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