STA, 15 November - The search by the Slovenian police for a 61-year-old fugitive sentenced for fraud is over after 17 years as the Slovenian woman was recently found and arrested in Ghana in cooperation with foreign security authorities. She was extradited from the African country to Slovenia on 13 November and taken to the Ig prison.

The Ljubljana District Court had been searching for the fugitive since 2004, initially as a witness, and later for criminal proceedings for the criminal act of fraud, and in another case for her to serve a prison sentence, also for fraud.

In both cases, a national warrant, an international warrant and a European Arrest Warrant were issued against the fugitive, whose information was also published on the Europol website in 2019 as part of the EU Most Wanted campaign.

In recent years, the case was picked up as a cold case by criminal investigators from the Fugitive Active Search Team of the International Police Collaboration Sector of the General Police Directorate.

After a series of inquiries, it was established that the fugitive was hiding in Ghana. The security authorities in the country informed Slovenia on 27 October that she had been apprehended in the capital of Accra, where she had resided illegally for ten years.

In Monday's press release announcing the extradition, the General Police Directorate praised the cooperation with the authorities in Ghana through the international police collaboration channels provided by Interpol.

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Number of Covid beds rising to 1,200

LJUBLJANA - Slovenian hospitals are increasing their bed capacities for Covid patients to around 1,200, of which 280 in intensive care units, as they are coping with an increasing number of patients amid the fourth wave of the epidemic. Covid hospitalisations rose to 1,008 with 229 treated in intensive care as another 1,815 people tested positive on Sunday and 11 patients died. According to the National Institute of Public Health, the 7-day average of new cases rose by 76 from the day before to 3,224, and the 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 people is up by 27 to 2,030.

PM says main problem is parallel mechanisms controlling state

LJUBLJANA - Asked in parliament about corruption and allegations that mafia is running the country, Prime Minister Janez Janša told the MPs that Slovenia's main problems today stemmed from "UDBA-mafia or, as is the newly-established term, parallel mechanisms managing large parts of systems and sub-systems without elections and without legitimacy." Janša thus answered a question from Matej T. Vatovec of the opposition Left, who said that the Democratic Party (SDS), when it was in the opposition, had presented itself as the party that would do away with corruption in Slovenia.

PM says tax avoidance not the point in Vizjak tape leak

LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša assured MPs in questions time that the government was not supporting tax avoidance as he commented on controversial statements made by a minister in a conversation with a powerful business executive 14 years ago. He said taxes were not at the heart of the matter. Janša was challenged by Marko Bandelli, an MP for the opposition Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB), to say what message sent out Andrej Vizjak, the incumbent environment minister whom a leaked tape has exposed for telling the CEO of the spa company Terme Čatež in 2007 that it was "stupid" to pay taxes. Janša said he did not support calls for tax avoidance.

Pahor confirms good bilateral relations during visit to Luxembourg

LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg - President Borut Pahor met in Luxembourg President of the Chamber of Deputies Fernand Etgen and Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn. Confirming the excellent relations between the two countries, the officials shared similar views on the EU's core values, including the rule of law and media freedom. Pahor stressed that Luxembourg had been an important ally and friend of Slovenia since the latter's independence. On Sunday, Pahor met Jean-Claude Juncker, former president of the European Commission and long-serving prime minister of Luxembourg, and current Prime Minister Xavier Bettel.

Centre-left opposition demands explanations over energy industry staffing

LJUBLJANA - The centre-left opposition filed for an emergency session of the parliamentary Public Finance Overight Commission over what they described as unprecedented political staffing in the energy industry. They see the fact that Robert Golob failed to get endorsed for another term as CEO of Gen-I without an explanation and without his successor being appointed as a sign that the government is trying to ruin one of the largest and most successful energy companies in the country. Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec said in response that in Slovenia, corporate management was structured in a way that prevents politics from interfering in staffing and management of companies, for which supervisory boards were in charge.

Supervisors deny Elektro Maribor boss sacked due to political pressure

MARIBOR - The supervisory board of the electricity distributor Elektro Maribor rejected the allegations that its members had been pressurised by politics to dismiss the long-time chairman Boris Sovič. "The decision was made solely on the basis of facts," chief supervisor Samo Iršič told the press. Citing the corporate governance policy, Iršič said the "supervisory board cannot and must not disclose new facts. However, we can say that no pressure was put on any of the members of the supervisory board, be it political or any other."

Poklukar presents Slovenia's fight against Covid at WHO summit

GENEVA, Switzerland - Attending a virtual WHO summit on evidence-based policy making in health Health Minister Janez Poklukar presented Slovenia's experience in implementing "effective and innovative evidence-based" measures in different phases of the Covid-19 epidemic. Poklukar, who participated in the panel discussion of health ministers on behalf of the WHO European Region and as a representative of Slovenia's EU presidency, highlighted the role and work of the Covid-19 task force and enhanced inter-ministerial cooperation in Slovenia.

Anti-graft watchdog checking drafting of construction act amendments

LJUBLJANA - The Commission for the Prevention of Corruption will launch a preliminary inquiry after receiving a report that the Neffat Law Firm firm, which has been contracted to draft amendments to the construction act also represents Branko Simonovič, a DeSUS MP who would be able to use these amendments to legalise a house he has illegally built on the coast. The commission will check whether there are suspicions of violations that fall under its purview.

Steel group SIJ's revenue up a third in first nine months

LJUBLJANA - Steel group SIJ said it had increased its sales revenue by 34.2% to EUR 714.6 million in the first nine months of the year, while EBITDA reached EUR 73.5 million. Almost EUR 41.5 million was channelled into investment in the January-September period. To diversify its financing, SIJ is examining the option of a new, eighth issue of commercial papers. A final decision is yet to be taken.

NGO urges EU to do more in wake of Glasgow conference failings

LJUBLJANA - Umanotera, an environmental NGO, called on the EU on Sunday to increase its carbon emission reduction goal to at least 65% and reach climate neutrality in the decade before mid-century, in the wake of the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, which the organisation finds did not meet the great expectations. The measures in the national action plans put forward by the countries will still lead to an increase in emissions by 2030, said the organisation.

Vox Populi poll: Ruling SDS would win election ahead of opposition SD

LJUBLJANA - The ruling Democrats (SDS) would garner 17% of the vote if a general election was held this Sunday, followed by the opposition Social Democrats (SD) at 13.9% and the Left at 8.1%, the latest Vox Populi survey shows. The share of undecided voters has however increased to almost a third. The opposition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) would place fourth at 7.3%, coalition New Slovenia (NSi) polled at 6.6% and the opposition Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) at 4.3%.

Ljubljana budget revised, city to end year with EUR 5m deficit

LJUBLJANA - The Ljubljana city council endorsed a revised budget for this year, under which the municipality will end 2021 with a EUR 5.3 million deficit instead of a EUR 1.2 million surplus. Saša Bistan, the head of the city finance department, said that revenue was set at EUR 390 million and expenditure at EUR 395 million. This year, EUR 63 million is expected to be earned through the compensation for the use of building land, and revenue from the tourist tax is expected to stand at EUR 2 million, one million less than in the previous budget.

Fraud fugitive found in Ghana after a 17-year search

LJUBLJANA - The search by the Slovenian police for a 61-year-old fugitive sentenced for fraud is over after 17 years as the Slovenian woman was recently found and arrested in Ghana in cooperation with foreign security authorities. She was extradited from the African country to Slovenia on 13 November and taken to the Ig prison. The Ljubljana District Court had been searching for the fugitive since 2004, initially as a witness, and later for fraud, and in another case for her to serve a prison sentence, also for fraud. The woman had been living in Ghana illegally for ten years before the arrest.

STA, 15 November 2021 - The Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SAZU) and representatives of the medical profession made a renewed call for vaccination on Monday as the country is struggling to increase Covid bed capacities amid a severe fourth wave of the coronavirus epidemic. A similar call was made by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS). 

SAZU holds the situation is so severe that it calls for immediate action by all residents in order to prevent a health catastrophe and many new, unnecessary fatalities.

The academicians thus call on all people to protect their own lives and the lives of others by complying with all the preventive measures.

They moreover call on those who have not yet been vaccinated to do so, while recommending those vaccinated getting a booster shot.

The vaccines are effective, rarely cause severe side effects, while a vaccinated person is ten times less likely to have a severe form of Covid-19, the appeal reads.

Outlining it at a news conference in Ljubljana on Monday, SAZU president Peter Štih said, "We're all aware of the seriousness of the situation."

Health Minister Janez Poklukar stressed vaccination was the only exit "from the unbearable situation in which the Slovenian healthcare has found itself".

Making a case for science, he said it is the core of our civilisation while rejecting it takes us back to the Stone Age.

Immunologist Alojz Ihan provided some figures - if everyone in Slovenia was vaccinated, there would be 200 Covid patients in hospital, and if nobody was vaccinated, there would be between 4,000 and 5,000.

Although it is best to be fully vaccinated, research shows that every day a person has been vaccinated before catching the virus counts, he stressed.

Marko Noč from UKC Ljubljana said 3,670 Covid patients have been treated in intensive care since the outbreak of the epidemic, while their mortality rate is around 50%.

"So if a Covid patient ends up in intensive care, the chance they will die is 50%", whereas the chance that one needs intensive treatment is ten times smaller in those vaccinated, Noč said.

Virologist Tatjana Avšič Županc said vaccination was important because history tells us that viruses whose only host are humans can be eradicated only with vaccination. She said the vaccination rate was also important for the virus not to remain broadly spread in the society.

Tadej Battelino from UKC Ljubljana's Paediatric Clinic also made a call for children to get vaccinated. In Slovenia, the age at which children can get a Covid jab is 12.

In a separate appeal made by the GZS, director general Aleš Cantarutti urged companies to strictly control adherence to the PCT reconvalescent-vaccinated-tested rule and to continue encourage employees to get vaccinated, while enabling remote work when possible.

"It is time for us as society to start acting responsibly. Let's pull the break as society and limit mutual contacts wherever possible. Only if we join forces and act responsibly can we overcome the current wave of Covid-19," he was quoted as saying in a GZS press release.

Pointing to what he termed "today's alarming numbers", Cantarutti said Sunday's new infections were by 530 higher than a week ago, also expressing sympathy with health workers. "It is urgent to show that we are a mature society which does not need government decrees on locking down public life and economic activity."

Get all the latest data on COVID and Slovenia, in easy to read charts, here

STA, 15 November 2021 - Slovenia saw another 1,815 people test positive for coronavirus on Sunday as cases kept climbing week-on-week and over half of the PCR tests came back positive. Official figures also show hospitalisations passing the one thousand mark and another eleven Covid-19 patients loosing their lives.

Data from the Health Ministry shows a total of 1,008 patients were hospitalised with Covid-19 this morning, including 229 in intensive care units.

The figures are up by 165 and 39, respectively, on the same day a week ago.

Eleven patients died yesterday for a total death toll of 5,240.

According to the National Institute of Public Health, the 7-day average of new cases has increased by 76 from the day before to 3,224, and the 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 people is up by 27 to 2,030.

An estimated 42,807 people are currently infected in the country.

As many as 53% of the PCR tests performed yesterday returned positive.

Number of COVID beds rising to 1,200

STA, 15 November 2021 - Slovenian hospitals are increasing their bed capacities for Covid patients to around 1,200, of which 280 in intensive care units (ICU), as they are coping with an increasing number of Covid patients amid the fourth wave of the epidemic.

The expanded capacities will be available today or tomorrow, said Robert Carotta, the national coordinator for Covid beds at hospitals.

Ways of increasing the number of Covid beds will be discussed by hospital director and Health Ministry officials at a meeting scheduled for today.

A new Covid unit is being opened today at one of the hospitals within the system of UKC Ljubljana, the country's biggest hospital. 37 new beds will thus be available at Peter Držaj Hospital.

However, a shortage of staff is even a bigger problem as the country fights the epidemic, with all segments of the health system, healthcare and medical students, as well as the army and Red Cross helping out.

All the latest data on COVID and Slovenia

STA, 14 November 2021 - Škofja Loka Passion Play staged by the Prešeren Theatre Kranj and directed by Jernej Lorenci received the Šeligo Prize for the best production at the 51st Week of Slovenian Drama, while also receiving the audience's choice award and the awards for actors, as the festival concluded in Kranj on Saturday evening.

The play produced in cooperation with the Ptuj City Theatre "translates historical sediments and weight of the biblical tradition, which envelops the first Slovenian dramatic text, into a modern, pulsating material that actually puts words into flesh."

The jury added that the play "sets the content of the theatrical event into suffering bodies, which present the canonic story in an original stage language," and that its "suggestiveness and intensity leaves a deep imprint into the collective audience body."

Doroteja Nadrah and Blažu Setnikar, who are part of the line-up in the modern interpretation of the the oldest play in Slovenian, received the awards for the best female and male actors at the festival, conferred for the first time this year.

Škofja Loka Passion Play also convinced the audience, which was able to see eight plays in the competition and accompanying programme, as the production received the audience's choice award.

The other three plays that had been selected to be part of the programme of the main festival featuring productions of Slovenian plays, could not be staged due to production difficulties.

"We are in dark, bleak times, but we have opened up and you have come. I would also confer one award to the audience. Come again," director Lorenci said as he addressed the audience at the closing ceremony.

The special award of the Week of Slovenian Drama, which was also conferred for the first time, went to The Game, a migrant-themed play directed by Žiga Divjak and produced by the Slovenian Youth Theatre and the Maska Ljubljana institute.

Based on testimonies from the Border Violence Monitoring Network database, the play earned the award for the social sensitivity of the performance. "The play does not take place in fictional worlds, but speaks about an actual issue."

Jure Novak, the director of the Prešeren Theatre Kranj, noted that the next, 52nd Week of Slovenian Drama, was expected to start, as is tradition, on 27 March, on World Theatre Day.

Website of the Prešeren Theatre Kranj

Check the date at the top of the page, and you can find all the "morning headlines" stories here. You can also follow us on Facebook and get all the news in your feed.

This summary is provided by the STA: 

New cases up slightly week-on-week, positivity rate at 44%

LJUBLJANA - A total of 2,365 new cases of coronavirus were recorded in Slovenia on Saturday, which is a slight increase week-on-week, with the positivity rate standing at 44.3%, the National Institute for Public Health (NIJZ) announced. The 7-day average of new cases was up by seven to 3,148, and the 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 population increased by 34 to 2,003. The government reported that 990 people are currently treated in hospitals for Covid-19, nine more than yesterday, while 227 persons required intensive care, up by two on a daily basis, as the number of patients in intensive care units reached a new record since the start of the epidemic in March 2020. Another 21 Covid patients died yesterday.

Ministry said major progress made at COP26, further effort needed

LJUBLJANA - The Environment Ministry said that significant progress had been made at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, while further efforts would be needed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. It quoted Minister Andrej Vizjak expressing satisfaction that the Slovenian EU presidency was able to contribute to the overall result. "Now is the time to take courageous and responsible decisions for action - for the good of this planet and the younger generations. We are ready to continue our work," the minister said. President Borut Pahor said "this is only the beginning: now we must all contribute to reach our goals and limit global warming at 1.5°C. Words must become actions."

Climatologist says deal in Glasgow just another disappointment

LJUBLJANA - Commenting on the deal reached at the COP26 conference in Glasgow on Saturday, climatologist Lučka Kajfež Bogataj said is was just another disappointment in terms of reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. On the other hand, she noted the progress in providing financial assistance to the most vulnerable countries and halting deforestation. Kajfež Bogataj does not agree with some estimates that, despite the latest agreement, the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial age is still attainable. "The world is not able to achieve such a major reduction in eight years."

Calls for more inclusive society on Sign Language Day

LJUBLJANA - On Slovenian Sign Language Day, calls were made for a more inclusive society and accessibility of all areas of life for deaf and hard of hearing, as well as for systemic development of the sign language. The Union of Associations of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing noted that, as the Slovenian sign language had been entered in the Slovenian constitution and the national programme for language adopted this year, "we expect that the state will enable systemic development of sign language on the basis of both strategic documents." The human rights ombudsman called on the authorities to draft implementing regulations to put the rights of such persons in practice.

Škofja Loka Passion Play declared best production at drama festival

KRANJ - Škofja Loka Passion Play staged by the Prešeren Theatre Kranj and directed by Jernej Lorenci received the Šeligo Prize for the best production at the 51st Week of Slovenian Drama, while also receiving the audience's choice award and the awards for actors, as the festival concluded in Kranj on Saturday. The play produced in cooperation with the Ptuj City Theatre "translates historical sediments and weight of the biblical tradition, which envelops the first Slovenian dramatic text, into a modern, pulsating material that actually puts words into flesh," the jury said.

Slovenia's Slokar earns first win in Alpine Ski World Cup

LECH, Austria - Andreja Slokar won the parallel giant slalom event on Saturday as part of the Alpine Ski World Cup to take the overall lead in the competition. This is the fist career win for Slokar and also the first win ever for Slovenia in parallel giant slalom. The 24-year-old from Ajdovščina beat Thea Louise Stjernesund on Norway in the finals by 0.05 seconds, while Norway's Kristin Lysdahl beat Marta Bassino of Italy in the third-place race. "The race was fun. It is a little bit specific, as there is only one such event in the season and you never know what will happen," she said after the win.

Slovenia beat Cyprus to wrap up 2022 World Cup qualifying

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia beat Cyprus 2:1 to wrap up the qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cup in the fourth spot in Group H. After a scoreless first half, Miha Zajc and Adam Gnezda Čerin scored for Slovenia to close the disappointing qualifiers on a winning note. Slovenia finished the qualifiers at 14 points from ten matches, the same as the third-placed Slovakia. Head coach Matjaž Kek said that it was a "deserved win that could have been even higher. In terms of the overall result, the goal has not been achieved, while we did play some good games, defeating Croatia for instance."

STA, 14 November 2021 - Andreja Slokar won the parallel giant slalom event in Lech/Zürs in Austria on Saturday as part of the Alpine Ski World Cup to take the overall lead in the competition. This is the fist career win for Slokar and also the first win ever for Slovenia in parallel giant slalom.

The 24-year-old from Ajdovščina beat Thea Louise Stjernesund on Norway in the finals by 0.05 seconds, while Norway's Kristin Lysdahl beat Marta Bassino of Italy in the third-place race.

Slokar now stands on top of the women's Alpine Ski World Cup standings as the winner of the first event of the season in Sölden, Mikaela Shiffrin of the US, was absent, as was Petra Vlhova, the winner of last year's parallel giant slalom race.

The Slovenian secured her best career result ever in what was her 19th appearance in the World Cup, after she finished fifth in the slalom race at the world championship in February.

The previous best for Slokar, who became the eleventh Slovenian woman skier in history with a World Cup win, was the 6th place in the finale of the last season in Lenzerheide in the team slalom race.

"The race was fun. It is a little bit specific, as there is only one such event in the season and you never know what will happen. But you could tell that I enjoyed it very much. It's great for the first win," she said after the win.

Slovenian team head coach Sergej Poljšak was excited with the win. "It's a great day for Andreja. It was very tight in the quarter-finals, after which she skied better in each run and was deservedly victorious."

Check the date at the top of the page, and you can find all the "morning headlines" stories here. You can also follow us on Facebook and get all the news in your feed.

This summary is provided by the STA: 

Epidemic not letting up as record 225 patients need intensive care

LJUBLJANA - As many as 3,666 new coronavirus cases were detected in Slovenia on Friday for a 39.8% positivity rate, slightly up from Thursday's 37.6%, and another 20 Covid patients died. The number of Covid patients in intensive care meanwhile hit a record 225 since the start of the epidemic in March 2020 on Saturday, while the overall number is 981. There are now over 41,500 active cases in the country. The 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 population increased by 31 to 1,969. Health Ministry State Secretary Franc Vindišar said there are only nine free beds available in intensive care, so a meeting is planned for this evening with directors of all 15 hospitals treating Covid patients to increase the capacities. "By far the biggest mobilisation is under way in healthcare," he said.

Pahor presents Golden Order of Merit to author Milan Kundera

PARIS, France - President Borut Pahor bestowed the Golden Order of Merit, one of the highest Slovenian state decorations, on Czech-French writer Milan Kundera in Paris on Saturday. Kundera was honoured for having raised his voice for Slovenia's independence and for his outstanding contribution to understanding turbulent times in Europe. Since Kundera, 92, could not attend today's ceremony due to illness, the order of merit was accepted by Paris-based Slovenian photographer Evgen Bavčar.

Army and Red Cross to help in anti-coronavirus efforts

LJUBLJANA - As hospitals are under great pressure from increasing numbers of Covid patients, they will be helped out by the Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF) and Red Cross Slovenia, while the government is also in talks with the country's Civil Protection force. The army will provide its medical unit to help treat and nurse Covid-19 patients, while Red Cross will give at the hospitals' disposal volunteers to help at Covid units. As many as its 124 volunteers have responded to the call for help.

National budgets for 2022 and 2023 ready for plenary

LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Finance Committee completed two days of debate on the draft supplementary budget for 2022 and draft budget for 2023, preparing them to be passed at the plenary starting on Monday. The MPs kept the headline figures as planned but backed a redistribution of EUR 45 million in spending for the two years. With five amendments to next year's budget, EUR 37.9 million was redistributed for areas the MPs deemed neglected; EUR 26.5 million will go for local government. The budgets are accompanied by a bill on their implementation, which allows the state to borrow just over EUR 5 billion in 2022 and slightly less than EUR 4.7 billion in 2023.

Slovenian men start chess championship with win

ČATEŽ OB SAVI - The Slovenian teams competing in the European Team Chess Championship got off to a mixed start to the competition on Friday, with the men's team defeating Ireland and the women's team surprisingly losing to Belgium. The top-ranked teams in both men's and women's competition, Russia, predictably notched up their first wins. The championship lasts nine rounds and will wrap up next Sunday.

What follows is a weekly review of events involving Slovenia, as prepared by the STA.

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FRIDAY, 5 November
        LJUBLJANA - Amidst surging infections, the government decided to tighten Covid restrictions instead of imposing another lockdown. New restrictions, applicable from 8 November, include an expansion of the Covid pass mandate, restrictions on opening hours of bars and restaurants, closure of night clubs, and a ban on gatherings.
        LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor announced plans to call the general election for 24 April, the earliest possible date for a scheduled election. Centre-left opposition parties said they would want the election to be held early, but the ruling coalition parties said they were happy with the date.
        LJUBLJANA - The Constitutional Court struck down a provision of the infectious diseases act that formed the legal basis for the closure of businesses during lockdowns. It gave the National Assembly two months to amend the act in line with its decision. In the intervening time, a different provision of the act can be invoked.
        LJUBLJANA - The Constitutional Court ruled in a procedure initiated at the request of the Supreme Court that parts of the Judicial Council act are unconstitutional. The court held that the regulations on disciplinary procedure, when it is initiated by the Judicial Council, do not meet the standards of objective impartiality.
        LJUBLJANA - The supervisory board of Elektro Ljubljana, Slovenia's largest electricity distributor, dismissed on Friday the company's chairman Andrej Ribič. Ribič said he had been offered an early departure at a meeting held in the parliamentary offices of the SDS but declined, which is why he was axed. He will challenge his dismissal in court.
        LJUBLJANA - Mimovrste, Slovenia's largest online retailer, has been acquired by Polish shopping platform Allegro. The latter bought Mall Group, which owns Mimovrste and WE/DO, from PPF, EC Investments and Rockaway Capitaly.
        LJUBLJANA - Ljubljana Mayor Zoran Janković entered a not guilty plea at an arraignment hearing at the Ljubljana District Court in a case of tax evasion concerning the sale of retailer Mercator shares in 2006. His two sons also pleaded not guilty but they did not attend the hearing.

SATURDAY, 6 November
        LJUBLJANA - Foreign Minister Anže Logar was admitted to University Medical Centre Ljubljana for appendicitis. He had surgery and was released from hospital a few days later.

SUNDAY, 7 November
        LJUBLJANA - PM Janez Janša met with Milorad Dodik, the Serbian member of the Bosnia-Herzegovina presidency, to discuss the political situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina and the region. Janša described the meeting on Twitter as a substantive exchange about the situation in the country.

MONDAY, 8 November
        GLASGOW, UK - The COP26 climate conference is a key step for the future of our planet and younger generations, Environment Minister Andrej Vizjak said at a press conference in Glasgow, speaking alongside European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans. "It's time we act responsibly and move up from good intentions to concrete actions," Vizjak said.
        LJUBLJANA - STA director Igor Kadunc and Uroš Urbanija, the director of the Government Communications Office (UKOM), signed an agreement on the STA's public service valid until the end of the year, ending an impasse that lasted almost a year. Kadunc said this sorted out matters for this year, but everything was still open for 2022.
        LJUBLJANA - Matej Accetto was elected president of the Constitutional Court after his peers voted to give him a three-year term at the helm of Slovenia's top court. He will take over from Rajko Knez on 19 December.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Commission decided to register a European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) called Call to Action - Environmental Protection in All Policies, with Slovenia serving as the leading EU member state in the initiative, which aims at declaring an environmental crisis in the EU.

TUESDAY, 9 November
        LJUBLJANA - The Foreign Policy Committee okayed the government's plan to conclude an agreement with the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation for the purchase of eight-wheeled Boxer armoured personnel carries (APCs). The government intends to purchase 45 Boxer APCs, produced by Germany, for what is the currently estimated price of EUR 412 million.
        LJUBLJANA - Chaired by Slovenia's Andrej Šircelj, the EU finance ministers relaunched the discussion on reforming the fiscal rule, which had been on hold since the outbreak of the Covid-19 epidemic. The Slovenian presidency said interest had been shown for further talks on how to ensure greater simplicity and transparency of rules and favourable conditions for further recovery.
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenian hospitals warned they were filling up fast with Covid patients as the country reported thousands of new cases every day. ICU occupancy rate is projected to peak on 24 November at over 250, significantly higher than at any point during the pandemic.
        LJUBLJANA - The association of Slovenia's urban municipalities called on the National Assembly to pass legal basis to allow the government to adopt scientifically supported measures to contain the Covid outbreak. The mayors suggested considering introducing the reconvalescent-vaccinated rule (PC), arguing the country is a "hostage of a minority of 200,000 people who oppose vaccination".
        LJUBLJANA - The shareholders' meeting of GEN-I, Slovenia's largest power supplier, failed to re-appoint Robert Golob as CEO after the supervisory board of Gen Energija, which owns half the company, did not give its consent for the reappointment. Golob later accused the government of trying to get rid of him because Gen-I had produced a decarbonisation plan that the cabinet did not wish to accept.
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's Jewish community has finally got a place of worship as the Ljubljana Synagogue opened in a residential building in Trubarjeva Street in a joint effort by the Austrian Jewish community from Graz and the Slovenian Jewish community.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium/LJUBLJANA - The European Commission said it would keep a close eye on the situation at the STA after the agency signed a public service agreement for November and December with the Government Communication Office. Spokesman Christian Wigand said the Slovenian authorities must ensure that the independence of the agency is fully preserved.
        GLASGOW, Scotland - Slovenia ranked 50th on the Climate Change Performance Index ranking for 2022, an improvement by one spot, however scientists warn that the country's performance in fighting climate change is still quite poor.
        MARIBOR - More than a hundred criminal investigators from across the country conducted a series of house raids as part of a criminal investigation into allegations of bribery and abuse of office. Two doctors were detained on suspicion of taking bribes to issue more than 10,000 illegal medical certificates over several years.

WEDNESDAY, 10 November
        LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly appointed Rok Svetlič a judge on the Constitutional Court. Svetlič received 46 votes with only 46 MPs picking up their ballots because the centre-left opposition boycotted the vote. The coalition was joined by the SNS, DeSUS and minority MPs in endorsing the candidate.
        LJUBLJANA - Defence Minister Matej Tonin announced that Environment Minister Andrej Vizjak could no longer count on the support of his party New Slovenia (NSi) following the statements he made in a leaked conversation with a spa company boss 14 years ago. He said it would be best if Vizjak resigned.
        LJUBLJANA - Some 35,000 health and social care employees will benefit from a pay rise under an agreement initialled by two trade unions representing the staff and the government valued at nearly EUR 123 million. The deal brings higher wages to more than 80% of the employees in healthcare, 80% of employees in social care and 40% of support employees in those two activities.
        MARIBOR - An employee of the Specialised State Prosecutor's Office was arrested on suspicion of having leaked confidential information to key members of the Slovenian cell of the Kavač Clan, a Montenegrin crime syndicate. The woman, reportedly a secretary, had access to confidential information about orders for house searches and covert surveillance measures.
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenia will donate 300,000 shots of the Covid-19 vaccine produced by Moderna to Covax, the global initiative aimed at equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines, the government decided. Africa was designated as the priority region.
        LJUBLJANA - The prosecution dismissed a report against former STA director Bojan Veselinovič over alleged abuse of office related to a compensation contract with the newspaper publisher Dnevnik. Veselinovič said he had expected such a decision because the report had no merit.
        LJUBLJANA - Ljubo Žnidar, an MP for the coalition Democrats (SDS), resigned. The party said he stepped down for personal reasons and decided to continue his professional career in the corporate sector.

THURSDAY, 11 November
        LJUBLJANA - Students who refuse to wear masks or self-test will study from home under new rules that will enter into force on 15 November, Education Ministry State Secretary Damir Orehovec said after schools expressed concern over the lack of a legal basis for action against those who violate rules.
        LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša dismissed the opposition's allegations about government misconduct during the course of the coronavirus pandemic, telling a parliamentary inquiry that its decisions were based on opinions by experts.
        LJUBLJANA - NLB bank reported net profit almost doubling to EUR 205.5 million in the first nine months of 2021 compared to the year before. CEO Blaž Brodnjak said the results enabled the bank to "to search for new growth opportunities" in the bank's home region in SE Europe, including potential mergers and acquisitions.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Commission projected in its autumn economic forecast that Slovenia's GDP would expand by 6.4% in 2021, a 0.7-point upgrade from its July forecast. In 2022, the country's GDP is to grow at 4.2%, a downgrade of 0.8 points.
        LJUBLJANA - XLAB, a company providing remote desktop access and solutions for IT-automation and digital transformation, won the Delo Business Star award. The jury praised it for its good reputation in the IT industry and its ability to market products on foreign markets.

STA, 12 November 2021 - The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) has welcomed the signing of a contract that ended the financial crisis at the Slovenian Press Agency (Slovenska tiskovna agencija - STA), while raising concerns that the current conditions of the deal could leave the STA in a financially weaker position in the long term as it performs its vital public service.

The MFRR noted in a press release on Friday that the agreement between the new acting director of the STA and the director of the Government Communication Office (Urad vlade za komuniciranje - UKOM) "brings to a close a gruelling 10-month crisis".

During the crisis, the "STA was forced to operate without legally-mandated state funding for 312 days and narrowly avoided bankruptcy," it said, noting that UKOM had been repeatedly appealed to reinstate the financing and the issue raised at the EU level.

"While our organisations welcome the end of the immediate crisis, the issues for the STA are far from over. Ultimately, these payments were always due to the agency under two separate laws," the MFRR said.

It noted that several outstanding issues in the contract needed to be resolved and a new business plan and agreement for 2022 need to be approved.

"Moving forward, based on UKOM's handling of this dispute, we also retain concerns that its new oversight of STA's financial activities could infringe on editorial independence. Observation must not morph into interference."

The MFRR added that the crisis had left the STA "drained psychologically as well as financially", and that, "despite pressures and smears from top government officials", its journalists had continued to work with great professionalism and dignity.

The press release also takes note of the crowdfunding campaign for the STA of the Association of Slovenian Journalists (DNS) and the Slovenian Journalists' Union (SNS) that has raised a total of EUR 385,000 to keep the national press agency afloat.

"However, the unavoidable conclusion is that this funding crisis should never have reached this point. We maintain that this manufactured dispute was driven primarily by an effort by the government to try and exert greater control over the STA."

The statement has been co-signed by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), Free Press Unlimited (FPU), International Press Institute (IPI) and OBC Transeuropa.