(source: SME.sk / Hej,ty)
Good evening, and happy 2023! Here is the Monday, January 2 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
Slovaks know they can do better, analyst says
Political analyst and former journalist Marián Leško. (source: SME - Marko Erd)
In an interview with The Slovak Spectator, veteran political commentator Marián Leško says that if Slovak society does not look the way that people in Slovakia want it to, we must all share some of the responsibility. Leško looks back on Slovakia’s 30 years of existence, which the country marked yesterday, January 1.
Here’s an excerpt from the interview:
If you had to describe 30 years of Slovakia in one aphorism, what would it be?
I have the feeling that the best aphorist in Slovakia is Tomáš Janovic. I would use one of his aphorisms, which is particularly close to my heart. And that is: “If only they stole while creating something, but they steal while stealing.” I don’t think I could describe it better than Janovic.
Fedor Gál, former head of the People Against Violence (VPN) political movement [which played a leading role in ending communist rule in 1989], said this about the division of the federation 10 years ago: “It was wrong, but whatever.” Do you agree?
If we really lived in a country where politicians do not try to profit from conflicts, I would agree with that. But when I think about how many people were waiting to see how they would use possible Czechoslovak disputes for political profit, I will say that it was not so wrong, because people of ill-will have always tried and will always try to profit from conflicts. Maybe it saved us from much worse things that we cannot even imagine today.
Letter: British Ambassador Nigel Baker shares some advice and reassurance with the newborn Slovakia, in a letter from the future.
Commentary: The Slovak Spectator’s editor-in-chief Michaela Terenzani writes that the present look back may be the dose of hope that people in Slovakia need.
More stories from The Slovak Spectator website
Poll: Every third Slovak feels hopeful about 2023.
Military: Slovakia may produce NATO-funded ammunition for Ukraine.
Awards: 28 people received state awards from President Zuzana Čaputová on January 1. One of them was photographer Yuri Dojč.
Automotive:Volvo’s investment in eastern Slovakia puts the region on global investors’ maps, says Katarína Miňová of AmCham Slovakia.
Culture: Read some of the good stories from the last year that you may have missed.
If you like what we are doing and want to support good journalism, buy our online subscription. Thank you.
FEATURE STORY FOR MONDAY
Every teaching activity is a potential source of positive emotion
This year's ESET Science Award laureates (l-r): Miroslav Almáši, Outstanding Scientist in Slovakia Under the Age of 35; Silvia Pastoreková, Outstanding Scientist in Slovakia; and Professor Ľubomír Tomáška, Outstanding Academic in Slovakia. (source: ESET/Linda Kisková Bohušová)
In an interview with The Slovak Spectator, Ľubomír Tomáška, an award-winning scientist and professor, talks about his research on how cells communicate, what it takes to be a good teacher, and if students are the same as they were years ago.
IN OTHER NEWS:
Pizza margherita was the food most commonly ordered by people in Slovakia in 2022, the Wolt food delivery company announced. However, people in Bratislava preferred burgers.
The total final price of electricity for households will change only slightly, by about 2.5 per cent, compared to 2022, the Regulatory Office for Network Industries announced.
Every third company is looking for lost invoices at the end of year, a Digitoo survey has revealed. Only 3 per cent of companies in Slovakia have fully digitised accounting, despite the fact that the law has allowed this for a year now.
Slovakia is likely to hold early elections, President Zuzana Čaputová said in her New Year’s address. For many, the change is associated with concerns about the ongoing developments in society, but only what we allow to occur will happen, she added.
Soldiers fire a 20-gun salute on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Slovak Republic on the Danube embankment in Bratislava on New Year's Day, January 1, 2023. (source: TASR - Pavol Zachar)
On Monday Ukrainian Deputy PM Iryna Vereshchuk visited a humanitarian centre in Gabčíkovo, southwestern Slovakia, where Ukrainian refugees have been staying since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The Slovnaft refinery’s CEO Marek Senkovič told the Index magazine that the firm has not found a reliable partner to supply the refinery with oil, explaining that it is not possible to sever Russian supplies so quickly. Slovnaft imports from Russia a fraction of what other countries import, he noted.
Thank you for reading The Slovak Spectator.
P.S. If you have suggestions on how this news overview can be improved, you can reach us at editorial@spectator.sk.
