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This summary is provided by the STA:
EU Parliament's draft Slovenia resolution expresses concern over polarisation
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Four political groups in the European Parliament - Social Democrats, Liberals, the Greens and United Left - have submitted a resolution on the rule of law in Slovenia, on which MEPs will vote on Thursday. Much like a report by the Civil Liberties Committee (LIBE), it expresses great concern over deep polarisation in the country. The 11-page draft resolution, obtained by the STA, which has not been published yet, mentions the concerning level of public debate, an atmosphere of hostility, distrust and deep polarisation, which has undermined the trust in public bodies and among them.
Slovenia not participating in Afghan resettlement scheme
BRUSSELS, Belgium/LJUBLJANA - After European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson announced that 15 EU member states pledged to provide for the resettlement and protection of nearly 40,000 Afghans, the Interior Ministry told the STA "Slovenia has not made a commitment in this scheme". The Netherlands, Spain and France are mentioned among the participating countries.
Vrtovec discusses Fit for 55 transport dossiers in Brussels
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec announced yesterday that the Slovenian EU presidency achieved progress on important Fit for 55 transport dossiers. This was after debate among EU transport ministers showed broad support for ambitious goals in the transition to a zero-carbon society, as well as a commitment to fast-tracking the negotiations. "An agreement on transport dossiers is essential if we want to achieve climate neutrality by 2050 as we will have to reduce transport emissions by as much as 90%," said the minister.
Slovenia happy EPPO is up and running, achieving results
BRUSSELS, Belgium - The EU justice ministers discussed the work of the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), with Slovenia's Marjan Dikaučič, who chaired the session as representative of the EU presiding country, noting that the EPPO "has already opened hundreds of lawsuits for damages estimated at billions of euros". The ministers took note of the work of the EPPO in recent months and expressed satisfaction that the office responsible for investigating and prosecuting crime against the EU's financial interests is already investigating numerous cases of fraud.
Minister Hojs visits Interpol to stress its importance
LYON, France - Interior Minister Aleš Hojs visited the seat of the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) to stress the organisation's importance in the fight against international crime. "Interpol makes a very important contribution to global security," he said. Hojs and Interpol Secretary General Jürgen Stock advocated coordinated activities between Interpol, EU member states and various EU agencies, and praised the excellent cooperation between the Slovenian police and Interpol.
Slovenia on agenda as ALDE meets in Rome
ROME, Italy - As the Council of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) meets for a two-day session in Rome the agenda includes a resolution on respect for liberal values proposed by two Slovenian opposition parties, LMŠ and SAB, and the question of membership of the Slovenian coalition party SMC, which has merged with the Economically Active Party (GAS) into Concretely. In the resolution, the LMŠ and SAB claim the SMC had departed from liberal values after joining the Janez Janša government.
On Human Rights Day, appeal for personal responsibility
LJUBLJANA - As Slovenia joins observation of Human Rights Day, the country's human rights ombudsman, Peter Svetina pointed to the inequalities and distrust reinforced by the Covid pandemic, appealing to everyone to do their bit for society to find a way out of what is a health as well as social crisis. As social rules are put to test, he said it was "especially important to respect the decisions of the bodies that judge which rules should apply in society so that the dignity of everyone will be respected". Justice Minister Marjan Dikaučič stressed the importance of human rights for a more resilient society.
Environment minister supports NGO's container deposit system proposal
LJUBLJANA - Environment Minister Andrej Vizjak supports an NGO's proposal to introduce a container deposit system for waste packaging, saying it is line with the the new environment protection bill. The ministry will thus try to introduce it into the bill - adopted by the government in early November - with amendments in parliamentary procedure. The proposal is also supported by the opposition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ), which says it would save Slovenia some money while facilitating making new products from waste.
Plans for regional hospital in focus as govt visits Gorenjska
KRANJ - The government is visiting the northern Gorenjska region with talks expected to focus on the issues related to a new regional hospital. Other matters the mayors want to discuss are anti-flooding measures, environment issues and protection of architectural heritage. Gorenjska is the only region without a central, regional hospital, Kranj Mayor Matjaž Rakovec said ahead of the visit. Gorenjska is one of the most affluent Slovenian region and unlike the rest of the country has seen a positive natural increase.
New green party Vesna to be set up in January 2022
LJUBLJANA - Another green party is to be established in Slovenia in January 2022 to contest the general election in April 2022. The new party, named Vesna, will be led by a pair of prominent environmental activists, Urša Zgojznik and Uroš Macerl, the head of Ecologists Without Borders and the head of the NGO Eko Krog, respectively. Vesna has received the support of the European Green Party. The new party's programme is based on four pillars: the environment, democracy and transparency, equality and social justice and creativity.
TV Slovenija faces censorship allegation
LJUBLJANA - Public broadcaster RTV Slovenija has become embroiled in a heated debate over whether Ivan Simič, the director of the Financial Administration, violated taxpayer confidentiality laws, after a statement by a prominent expert on data privacy had been cut from a report on the matter without the report's author knowing about it. Amid allegations of censorship, TV Slovenija news programme staff condemned "any attempts to restrict journalistic or editorial autonomy", as the broadcaster's leadership said it respected editorial autonomy.
Pošta Slovenije supervisor alleges political pressure
LJUBLJANA - Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SSH) confirmed having received a complaint against Miha Rebolj, the secretary of the coalition Modern Centre Party (SMC), now the Concretely party, for pressuring a member of the supervisory board of postal operator Pošta Slovenije over the appointment of CEO. Media reports say supervisor Matjaž Fortič alleges being pressured to back the appointment Tomaž Kokot, an affiliate of the ruling Democrats (SDS), as CEO for a full term although he does not have the required experience for the post.
Coronavirus situation keeps improving
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia saw 1,323 new coronavirus infections confirmed on Thursday, almost a quarter less than the same day a week ago, as 19 more Covid-19 patients died. The situation at hospitals improved with 914 Covid-19 patients hospitalised this morning, 34 fewer than the day before. 244 are still in intensive care, government data shows. The 7-day average of new cases dropped by 59 from the day before to 1,507 and the cumulative 14-day incidence per 100,000 people fell by 50 to 1,135.
MPs ask for audit of concession contract for Sava hydro power stations
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Commission for Public Finance Oversight unanimously decided, acting upon a proposal from the centre-left opposition Left, to ask the Court of Audit to audit the October 2020 concession contract for several power stations planned on the river Sava between Ježica and Suhadol. The contract was signed between the government and state-owned power utility HSE for the central part of the Slovenian section of the Sava for nine to twelve power stations to be built between Ježica, north of Ljubljana, and Suhadol, some 50 km to the east, with the first three expected to be constructed in ten years.
Ten-year-old Turkish girl swept away by Dragonja River
PIRAN - The police rescued a 47-year-old Turkish woman from the Dragonja River on Thursday evening, as she was trying to cross it to enter Slovenia with her three children. However, it later turned out her 10-year-old daughter that she had carried on her shoulders fell into the water and was swept downstream. Although a rescue mission was launched immediately, the child has not been found yet.
MPs pass two construction bills
LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly passed on Thursday amendments to the construction act, which are to speed up the procedures to acquire building permits, and the spatial management act, which extends the deadline for new municipal spatial plans until the end of 2024 or until a municipality adopts the new plan. The stated goal of the new legislation is to shorten administrative procedures and speed up Slovenia's sustainable economic development but there have also been allegations of rules being tailored to an MP to legalise his house.
Exports and imports at 10-year high in October
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia exported EUR 3.6 billion worth of goods in October and imported EUR 4 billion in merchandise in what is the highest volume on both sides for that month in ten years. Slovenia recorded a trade gap for the seventh straight month, amounting to EUR 0.4 billion. Year-on-year, exports were up by 14.2% and imports surged by 35.7%, data from the Statistics Office shows. Both exports and imports were also up on October 2019, by 16.9% and 26%, respectively.
Industrial output slightly up in October
LJUBLJANA - Industrial output in Slovenia in October was up by 0.5% compared to the month before and by 6.2% compared to October 2020. It was up in mining and quarrying, electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply and in manufacturing, the Statistics Office said. In October, total turnover in industry was 0.9% higher at the monthly level and rose by 12.2% year-on-year and by 8.7% compared with October 2019.
Top science awards go to women researchers
LJUBLJANA - Statistician Anuška Ferligoj and nanotechnology researcher Julijana Kristi were honoured for their contributions as the Zois Prizes for lifetime achievement in science and research were handed out at Cankarjev Dom. Ferligoj, a researcher and lecturer at the Faculty of Social Science in Ljubljana, was honoured for her work in statistics, while Kristi works for the Faculty of Pharmacy in Ljubljana as a leading researcher and scientist in pharmaceutical nanotechnology. Internet pioneer Borka Jerman Blažič meanwhile received the Puh Prize for lifetime achievement.
Ski jumper Urša Bogataj third in Klingenthal
KLIGENTHAL, Germany - Slovenian ski jumper Urša Bogataj finished third at a World Cup event in Klingenthal, Germany, achieving her third podium finish this season. The winner was Marita Kramer from Austria, who clinched her third win of the season and retained the lead in the overall standings."We achieved another nice team success, all of our ski jumpers got points, with another podium finish for Urša," said Slovenia's head coach Zoran Zupančič.
Polka band from Koroška gets into Guinness Book of Records
SLOVENJ GRADEC - A Slovenian folk music ensemble called Štirje Kovači (Four Blacksmiths) from the northern Koroška region has made it into the Guinness Book of Records as the longest active polka music band in the world. The ensemble has been making music for nearly seven decades, and has been striving to get into the book for a year and a half and this week it finally received a certificate confirming its Guinness feat. The band was formed in 1954 by four young boys who worked at an ironwork company.
