Archive of articles - September 2013
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88 percent of Slovaks feel affected by crisis
INHABITANTS of Slovakia who claim to have been personally affected by the global economic crisis are growing in number, the Transatlantic Trends 2013 survey conducted by the German Marshall Fund of the USA showed.
Economic sentiment continues to improve
ECONOMIC sentiment in the Slovak economy continued increasing in September, reaching 91.2 points, up by 1.4 points compared to the previous month, the SITA newswire reported.
Wooden houses atop communist-era paneláks
THE ROOFTOP of a communist-era residential high rise in Košice has been selected as a rather curious pedestal for a folk architecture monument.
Sterilisation information to be provided in minority languages
PROPER information will have to be provided to patients before sterilisation in both Slovak and minority languages to ensure that patients fully understand it, according to a Health Ministry directive, to become effective as of November 1, the SITA newswire reported.
Three dogs rescued from Satan’s peak
ON September 10, mountain rescuers saved three dogs trapped on Satan’s peak in the High Tatras.
Exorcising Mečiar's ghost
BACK in 1998 there was hardly a week without Vladimír Mečiar, the then prime minister, dominating the news either personally or indirectly through reactions to his controversial tenure and its colourful tapestry of cronyism, corruption, abduction, human rights violations and worse.
MPs' plane trip to Russia criticised
THE WEEKEND trip of four Smer MPs to Saint Petersburg on a government aeroplane has drawn criticism from several opposition politicians. On September 24, Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) chairman Richard Sulík called on Speaker of Parliament Pavol Paška to publish information about the weekend trip.TV Markíza broke the news about the flight to Russia, with the media speculating that the trip was actually a “hen party ride”.
Countrywide Events
Western SLOVAKIA
My Dog Killer still fighting - this time for the Oscar
THE SLOVAK film Môj pes Killer (My Dog Killer), directed by Mira Fornay, will compete for the prestigious American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Award (AMPAS), otherwise known as the Oscars, in the foreign-language category. The Slovak Film and Television Academy (SFTA) selected it from 12 Slovak films that fulfilled the criteria set by the AMPAS.
Lion commemorating Ottoman-era battle victory damaged
UNKOWN perpetrators damaged the bronze Vozokany Lion statue, located between the municipalities of Veľké Vozokany and Tesárske Mlyňany in Nitra Region, in mid September, possibly in an attempt to steal it. The thieves removed the historical monument from its marble pedestal, after which they attempted to saw it into several pieces, but stopped for no apparent reason.
Jan-Aug tax collection almost €5.7bl
SLOVAKIA’s tax revenue exceeded €5.7 billion over eight months of 2013, based on data of the Finance Administration. Of this, value added tax accounted for €2.88 billion, the SITA newswire reported.
Slovak film director Peter Solan has died
SLOVAK film legend, director Peter Solan, died on September 21. The culmination of his creation came in the 1960s when he shot movies like Boxer a smrť (The Boxer and Death; 1962), Prípad Barnabáš Kos (The Case Barnabáš Kos; 1964), Kým sa skončí táto noc (Before This Night Ends; 1965), and Dialogue 20-40-60 (1968), on which he collaborated with Polish directors Zbyněk Brynych and Jerzy Skolimowski.
'A lot of movement' in Bratislava
THE MODERN dance festival Bratislava in Movement has become a well-established part of the local dance scene. In recent years, the festival was either condensed into a single week – in June or in autumn – or, like last year, split into separate spring and autumn editions.
Land ownership rules to change
SLOVAKIA will remove the last barrier for foreigners wishing to acquire agricultural and forest land, as next year people from other European Union countries will be subject to the same conditions as Slovaks, as part of the latest amendment to the Foreign Exchange Act prepared by the Finance Ministry. Yet, it is possible that the state will require potential applicants to have the relevant education and land management experience.
Agreement on minimum wage fails
THE TRIPARTITE partners were unable to agree on a new minimum wage for 2014 at their September 23 meeting.
Rainbow Pride takes place amid hateful campaign
COLOURFUL parade floats appeared for the first time this year at Slovakia’s so-far-only gay pride march in Bratislava, symbolising the organisers’ belief that conditions for sexual minorities in the country are changing for the better. But the event was also marked by what its organisers have condemned as hate speech, which came directly from parliament.
Misia 14 wants SMEs to export more
SMALL and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) active in Slovakia do not use their full export potential, according to the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO). To support these activities and encourage SMEs to offer their products and services on foreign markets, SARIO, together with Eximbanka, Google Slovensko, Sberbank Slovensko, Slovak Telekom and Zoznam.sk, launched a project called Misia 14 – Made in Slovakia, the SITA newswire reported.
List targets tax dodgers
TAX COLLECTING in Slovakia is far from a fine art, with some of the biggest problems occurring with the value added tax (VAT). In reaction, the Finance Ministry has declared a fight against tax dodging as it seeks to implement new measures for fighting tax fraud and evasion – including a so-called blacklist of businesspeople and firms with large outstanding value added tax bills.
FinMin: Tax collection is improving
AFTER long cloudy economic forecasts and revelations of rampant tax evasion, some brighter news finally arrived in late September. Finance Minister Peter Kažimír, when presenting the latest revenue prognosis, announced: “Tax collection is improving.”
New challenges to auditing and auditors
MORE regulation, greater complexity of the business environment and pressure to reduce audit fees are the biggest challenges faced by Slovakia’s auditing market. Moreover, the relatively high average age of auditors coupled with the expected lower number of university graduates resulting from the lower birth rate may make attracting the best and brightest young people more challenging.
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- Digital Jarvis is real now. He is coming for your to-do list
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- The disinformation scene has become a tool of media capture
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- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- News digest: Violent gang in Bratislava is under arrest
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Digital Jarvis is real now. He is coming for your to-do list
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- The disinformation scene has become a tool of media capture
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- A mayor resigns over €2.7 million fraud scandal at town hall
- Show me your moves! Slovak hockey stars share their best pick-up lines
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- He designed Gatwick. But this is his masterpiece
- Fico praises China and Vietnam as models, says liberal democracy has failed
- News digest: Violent gang in Bratislava is under arrest
- The compass points to Kúty, and people are starting to follow
- 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
- Slovakia plans to restrict access to new medicines amid funding shortfall
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava More articles ›
