Good evening. Here is theTuesday, July 16 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
Penal Code amended
Justice Minister Boris Susko. (source: TASR)
With support of 77 MPs, parliament approved an amendment to the Penal Code via fast-track procedure, thus taking into account consultations with the European Commission. As many as 44 MPs abstained from voting.
Parliament approved the application of mandatory prison sentences for crimes against the EU's financial interests, if the upper limit of the punishment laid down in a special part of the Penal Code exceeds six years. The introduction of a conceptual definition of the EU's financial interests was also approved.
When it come to crimes of obstructing tax administration, indirect corruption, and receiving and granting an undue advantage, the amendment proposes to align prison sentences with the relevant European Parliament and the Council of the EU directives.
Justice Minister Boris Susko (Smer) said that the purpose of the amendment is to chiefly protect the interests of the Slovak Republic and minimise the risks that Slovakia might lose any EU money.
Meanwhile, Smer MP Tibor Gašpar said that "the session was held just because the Slovak opposition is making a policy against Slovakia in Brussels", adding that the opposition is providing Brussels with disinformation. The European Commission then comes up with various demands "that we have either already dealt with in our penal code, or are beyond what's required from other EU member states".
Progressive Slovakia chair Michal Šimečka called the session a confirmation of the fact that the opposition and experts were right when they warned that Slovakia might lose access to EU funds. "Now, six months later, even the coalition majority has had to admit that it got it wrong, that it had to be corrected several times and that it was in violation of European law," he said.
Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) chair Branislav Gröhling said that the amendment creates two types of corruption in Slovakia; one is a crime concerning EU funding and the other crime concerning public resources, with the former more severely published.
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FEATURE STORY
A bistro to visit
The bistro has a huge open kitchen. (source: E. S.)
The long-awaited new bistro Ferdinand in Petržalka’s Sad Janka Kráľa, a public park, has officially opened in the renovated premises of a former strip club, which had been dilapidated for many years.
The most interesting part of the bistro is the large open kitchen, where guests can almost see into the chef’s pots.
CONCERT FOR WEDNESDAY
Support the Pohoda festival
The Pohoda festival, near Trenčín. (source: SME - Jozef Jakubčo)
Due to a severe storm, a tent collapsed last Friday at the Pohoda music festival, ending it prematurely. Last year, the festival incurred a loss of €900,000. Thus, the current situation may lead to a worsening of financial problems. In order to support organisers, a series of concerts have been launched. This Wednesday, the Nová Cvernovka venue will host several bands. Admission is voluntary, the entire collected sum to be donated to Pohoda. Find out more here.
IN OTHER NEWS
With 45.7 percent, Slovakia had the highest share of people who could not afford a meal containing meat, fish or a vegetarian equivalent every second day in 2023. Slovakia was followed by Hungary (44.9 percent) and Bulgaria (40.2 percent). On the opposite side of the spectrum, the lowest share was recorded in Ireland (4.2 percent), followed by Cyprus (5.0 percent) and Portugal (5.9 percent). (Eurostat)
A Trnava Prosecutor's Office prosecutor has charged seven police officers centred around investigator Ján Čurilla with the misuse of public officials' powers and other crimes.The elite unit handled the cases of former Smer-led government nominees. (TA3)
On Tuesday, Slovak MEP Martin Hojsík from the Renew Europe faction was elected as one of the 14 vice-presidents of the European Parliament. In total, 393 MEPs voted for him, while 333 would have been enough to be elected. (TASR)
A total of five Slovak and eight South Korean universities signed a memorandum of cooperation, agreeing to developing bilateral cooperation in higher education, research and development. On the Slovak side, these include Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica, the University of Žilina, Alexander Dubček University in Trenčín, the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava and the Pan-European University in Bratislava. (TASR)
The Environment Ministry is set to launch a mass planting of mixed forests that will be resilient to climate change in Slovakia, Environment Minister Tomáš Taraba (SNS nominee) announced on social media. The minister claimed that all international studies warn that the quality and vitality of forests in Slovakia is declining and absorbing carbon dioxide at an ever decreasing rate. (TASR)
President Peter Pellegrini (left) with sports shooter Danka Barteková (right) during a ceremonial pledge. On Tuesday, Slovak athletes from the Olympic and Paralympic expedition to the 2024 Olympic games in Paris made pledge. (source: TASR)
WEATHER FOR WEDNESDAY: Cloud cover will change throughout the day, with temperatures rising to between 30 °C to 35 °C, in northern regions to between 25 °C to 30 °C. Level 1 high temperature warning issued for almost the entire country, with a level 2 warning applying for Dunajská Streda, Komárno and Nové Zámky districts in south. (SHMÚ)
JULY 17 NAME DAY IN SLOVAKIA: Bohuslav
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