List of author's articles, page 2
Coalition promises to get EU laws through in time
DESPITE growing disharmony within the coalition, the passage of key legislation before parliamentary elections will not be affected, senior government party leaders have said.Prime Minister and leader of the SDKÚ party, Mikuláš Dzurinda, and leader of the Party of Civic Understanding (SOP), Pavol Hamžík, have said they believe 41 pieces of legislation tied to EU accession will be passed before campaigning for September elections begins and a coalition agreement on cross-party co-operation comes to an end."The SOP is part of this coalition and its priority is support these laws and the fulfilment of the government's programme to the largest possible extent," Hamžík told The Slovak Spectator.
V4 leaders: Orbán went too far with Beneš statements
RELATIONS between Bratislava and Budapest have reached a new low following the cancellation of a meeting of regional leaders scheduled for March.Prime Minister Mikuláš Dzurinda said he would not be attending the meeting of the Visegrad Four nations after Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán called for the cancellation of the Beneš Decrees - a set of laws passed at the end of the second world war that saw millions of ethnic Germans and Hungarians in Czechoslovakia stripped of property.Dzurinda's Czech counterpart, Miloš Zeman, also said he would not attend, while Polish PM Leszek Miller pulled out of the meeting after claiming his presence without the Czech and Slovak leaders would be "pointless".
More S & L closures spark panic
ANOTHER TWO savings and loan funds shut down operations last week following two mid-February crashes. Cabinet now faces intense political pressure, on the one hand to compensate victims, and on the other not to cave in. THE GOVERNMENT is facing the anger of thousands of people terrified they have lost money put into savings and loan funds that have shut down operations.An announcement February 24 that the company AGW had stopped payment of interest and principal to its clients was followed hours later by news that one of the biggest non-banking financial companies in the country, BDV Družstvo, daughter company of the Drukos joint-stock firm, was to close its offices as well.Hundreds of panic-stricken depositors rushed to local branches of the two firms to find the doors already shut.Many immediately rounded on the government for failing to protect their savings. Some said they had invested hundreds of thousands of crowns and were both angry and confused at the potential loss of their money.
Ministries groan under EU load
CABINET says it is confident of meeting deadlines for passing EU-related legislative changes despite claims by a senior parliamentarian that the country is falling behind schedule.DEPUTY Prime Minister for Integration Mária Kadlečíková has denied Slovakia is falling dangerously behind schedule in harmonising laws with existing European Union legislation.Speaking to The Slovak Spectator Kadlečíková admitted that more work had to be done at some ministries in bringing legislation into line with EU norms, but said she was certain the job would be finished by the time a decision is taken on enlargement at the end of this year."Some work needs to be speeded up at the ministries but I have no doubt that we can harmonise the laws in time. But we have to be very disciplined in government and parliament.
Šimko: Zero tolerance of police racism
INTERIOR Minister Ivan Šimko has said racism will not be tolerated in the police force.Reacting to comments from a senior police officer in defence of a policeman who allegedly asked a Roma journalist for a "hygiene certificate", Šimko blasted racism in the force February 14."I will not tolerate racism in the police force, nor any disrespect towards the public. We must investigate every case where there are such suspicions," he said.
Bratislava and Budapest exchange new insults
TENSIONS between Budapest and Bratislava have grown following hints from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán that Slovak Nato entry could be blocked by his administration.In the latest instalment of an increasingly tense stand-off between the two governments over a controversial status law on ethnic Hungarians in neighbouring states, Orbán emphasised that Slovakia's potential entry to Nato "had to be approved and ratified" by Hungary."Bratislava has an interest in integration into Nato, and the entry of Slovakia into the organisation must be approved by the Hungarian parliament as well as the legislatures of other member states.
Ministry's jobless plan plots new labour course
A NATIONAL Action Plan for Employment, unveiled by the Labour Ministry last week, has drawn praise as a credible starting point in the fight against record unemployment.But prognoses for the Slovak labour market remain grim, according to Labour Office figures and economists.The blueprint, which has yet to be approved by cabinet, defines 34 measures to be introduced on the labour market, including strategies to improve people's chances of finding employment, developing businesses and improving the ability of the workers to respond quickly to demand.
Problems mount as EU sends warning
UNRESOLVED privatisation disputes, recalls of top ministers and financial scandals are affecting Slovakia's chances of entering the European Union, according to the Deputy Prime Minister for Integration.Speaking just days after it was suggested Slovakia is viewed as a "problem" candidate state by some EU representatives, Mária Kadlečíková warned of concern in Brussels over the sale of gas giant Slovenský plynárenský priemysel (SPP), non-transparent transactions with state shares and the recent removal of Brigita Schmögnerová as Finance Minister.
Top anti-fraud cop refuses to resign
A BITTER row has broken out between top police officials after the head of the financial police refused to resign his post.Jozef Stieranka has been backed by police unions in his refusal to step down after being told by the National Security Office (NBÚ) that he was unfit to handle confidential documents.The NBÚ's ruling, announced February 6, meant that Stieranka, a former communist secret police agent, would have to step down immediately or lodge a formal protest within two days.
Danube river development hits snag
THE WORLD Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is warning of serious ecological problems in areas along the Danube in Slovakia if plans for developing shipping on the river go ahead.In a report to be delivered to the European Commission and the governments of countries through which the river runs, the environmental group says that "vital wetland ecosystems" will be threatened if plans are approved to construct new canals, dams and the deepening of parts of the river.It also claims that there will be even greater pressure on species, a decrease in the availability of drinking water, and increased levels of chemicals in the river.
Bratislava is second richest EU hopeful
BRATISLAVA is the second richest region among the 12 EU candidate states, according to the EU's research house EuroStat.Figures released on January 29 show that the region has a per capita GDP that is 95 per cent of the EU's average, lagging only behind Prague, which has per capita GDP at 124 per cent of the Union average.But while the figures suggest the Slovak capital is performing well economically, EuroStat's data shows that 52 of 56 regions among the 12 states have GDP levels below 75 per cent of the EU average.
Traffickers caught in countrywide raid
FOLLOWING the first country-wide operation of its kind police say seven people have been charged in connection with alleged trafficking in women.Raids were carried out on 613 brothels across the country in January in an operation involving more than 1,500 officers.Police chiefs say this is the clearest warning yet to women-traffickers that their crimes will no longer be tolerated.
Telecoms dominate advertising markets
DESPITE the release of figures showing massive growth in the Slovak advertising market, industry players and monitors are trying to play down suggestions of a boom in the sector.Reports by monitoring firms ACNielsen and Taylor Nelson Sofres have put growth in the advertising market for 2001 at between 35 and 60 per cent.According to a study by ACNielsen released in late January the market grew by more than a third last year, fuelled by massive growth in the telecoms sector.
Neo-Nazis set warning bells ringing
Despite recent massive police operations against skinhead groups, not enough is being done at government or police level to combat a growing tide of neo-Nazi organisations, human rights activists say.Just weeks before the Interior Ministry plans to release a report on the state of racially motivated crime and neo-Nazism in the country, human rights group People Against Racism (LPO) has said there are as many as 5,000 active neo-Nazis in Slovakia and that the number will grow."This is a big and growing problem and police must devote more resources to dealing with this. Not enough is being done.
Euro bandits add to border concerns
Customs officials are warning that the arrest of two Slovaks attempting to smuggle euros into the country will not be the last such case.On January 22, two Slovaks were detained by Hungarian customs police after trying to bring 1.1 million euros into Slovakia. It was the first case of smuggling of the new European currency outside the Eurozone.Slovak customs police, who were not involved in the incident, say that they are expecting more euro smuggling on their own soil.
Mikloš vows changes to new Labour Code
THE DEPUTY Prime Minister for the Economy, Ivan Mikloš, has warned that a new Labour Code due to take effect April 1 could seriously limit the competitiveness of the economy if not amended.Despite approving the legislation last year, Mikloš has said that his party, the centre-right Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ), will propose amendments to the Code to ensure that businesses stay competitive."The law contains fundamental shortcomings that would lower the flexibility of the labour market, increase the level of unofficial labour and limit the competitiveness of our economy.
ST attacked for proposed internet charge increases
FIXED-LINE telecom monopoly Slovenské telekomunikácie (ST) is being urged not to raise prices for internet connections.A personal plea from Prime Minister Mikuláš Dzurinda in a meeting with ST President Ladislav Mikuš on January 16 has been followed up by statements from opposition parties objecting strongly to planned price increases.While the opposition Real Slovak National Party (PSNS) has declared the rises anti-integrationist, a January 18 statement from the largest opposition party, the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), demanded ST work with the government on the prices.
Schmögnerová quits cabinet post
BRIGITA Schmögnerová has promised to resign from her post as Finance Minister, averting a potential coalition crisis.Having lost the support of her party, the Democratic Left (SDĽ), she said on January 23 she had taken the decision to step down.Reiterating statements she made just a day earlier, she said she had "no wish to be a source of crisis within the government".
Drugs workers jailed for trafficking plan
THREE EMPLOYEES at Slovak pharmaceuticals firm Slovakofarma, one a senior manager, have been charged in connection with a planned attempt to sell millions of euros of drugs illicitly in the EU.Following a 10-month joint operation between Czech and Slovak customs forces, the offices of Slovakofarma's daughter company Intercaps, based in Zlín, Czech Republic, were raided on January 16.Three Slovaks and two Czechs were arrested and more than two kilos of pure temazepam with a market value of two million euros was seized.
SDĽ suggests 'absurd' SPP plan
THE DEPUTY Prime Minister for the Economy, Ivan Mikloš, has dismissed as "absurd" a proposal from the Democratic Left Party (SDĽ) that would halt the largest privatisation in Slovak history."It would mean stopping the whole process. It is absurd," said Mikloš in response to the January 19 proposal from the SDĽ to halt the privatisation of gas utility Slovenský plynárenský priemysel (SPP).The SDĽ leadership has said it wants only 24 per cent of SPP shares sold to a new investor.
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