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

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This summary is provided by the STA:

Parliament endorses tax cuts

LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly endorsed amendments to the income tax act that bring higher take-home pay across the board, lower tax on capital gains, and a lower top tax rate. The legislation was slated for passage late last year but was put on the back burner because the coalition did not have a majority in parliament and due to the threat of a referendum pushed for by the Left. After Prime Minister Janez Janša raised the prospect of holding the referendum along with the general election in April, the Left abandoned the plan.

Pahor repeats call for diplomatic solution to Ukraine war

ANTALYA, Turkey - Addressing the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, President Borut Pahor issued an appeal for an all-out effort to end the war in Ukraine and find a diplomatic solution to the conflict, as he repeated that he was against NATO imposing a no-fly zone in Ukraine. "We must do all in our power to bring about an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and to encourage the two sides to find a diplomatic solution," Pahor said. He also reiterated that it would be wrong to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine, saying Ukraine needed to be helped in other ways. Pahor also held talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Janša tells Bloomberg "much more" needs to be done about Russia

PARIS, France - Prime Minister Janez Janša has told Bloomberg TV that it is evident war crimes are taking place in Ukraine and that Russia is denying it. "We should not tolerate this, we need to do much more than we are doing now". "We have seen such horrible pictures also in the recent history, in Vukovar and Sarajevo, and the same denying and the same propaganda going on," Janša said in an interview for the US television network on the sidelines of the EU summit in Paris.

Minister calls for immediate embargo on Russian oil and gas

LJUBLJANA - Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec called on the EU to impose an embargo on the imports of Russian oil and gas as soon as possible, arguing that the only way to secure peace in Ukraine is to stop funding Russia's aggression with oil and gas purchases. "Peace does not and cannot have a price in the EU. Human life does not have a price," he said. Slovenia will try to get additional gas supplies from north Africa via Italy and Croatia.

Hungarian official raises dust by saying Mura is border with Slovenia

LJUBLJANA - High-ranking Slovenian politicians have condemned a statement by a Hungarian Secretary of State for National Policy Árpád János Potápi, who labelled Mura as the border between Slovenia and Hungary, although the river actually runs between 20 and 30 kilometres from the current official border. The Foreign Ministry immediately summoned Ambassador Andor F. David and demanded an explanation. The Hungarian embassy said the statement was a "slip of the tongue".

Vasle says ECB decisions aimed at stabilising inflation at 2%

LJUBLJANA - Banka Slovenije Governor Boštjan Vasle commented on Thursday's decision of the European Central Bank (ECB) to keep key interest rates at a record-low level saying that the goal was to stabilise inflation in the medium term at the two-percent target. The Slovenian central bank governor said that members of the ECB General Council had adjusted the monetary policy given the solid economic activity, increasing inflation and growing uncertainty.

Constitutional Court stays Swiss franc act

LJUBLJANA - The Constitutional Court stayed a controversial act on Swiss franc loans, legislation challenged by nine banks which say it is be detrimental to banks and the economy as a whole. The court said enactment of the law, which entered into force at the end of February, was suspended until it has reached a final decision.

Staff protest as new editor named at public TV web portal

LJUBLJANA - Jadranka Rebernik, the new editor-in-chief of news programme at TV Slovenija, has appointed Igor Pirkovič as acting editor of the public broadcaster's web portal MMC. This has invited protest from the staff, who say Pirkovič is biased in favour of the ruling party and is not qualified for the job. Questions have also been raised about the appointment procedure, which has been described as unlawful.

Daily Covid cases up 19% week-on-week

LJUBLJANA - A total of 2,225 new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Slovenia on Thursday, a 19% increase on the same day a week ago. This is the seventh consecutive day that the case count has been rising week on week. Hospitalisations meanwhile continued to decrease, totalling 249 this morning, down by nine. This includes 68 Covid patients requiring intensive care, or six fewer than the day before. Five Covid patients died yesterday.

Task force established to coordinate assistance to Ukraine

LJUBLJANA - The government established at a correspondence session on Thursday an inter-ministerial task force to coordinate assistance to Ukraine, including the collection, storage, transportation and handover of humanitarian and technical aid to the affected population in the country. The task force is led by the defence minister.

Charter flights from Italy to revive Maribor airport in summer

MARIBOR - The Maribor airport has not seen charter flights for three years and things are expected to change this summer as the Slovenia Guide agency announced weekly charter flights from Bolzano, Pisa and Naples, with the first arrival scheduled for 30 June. As the project manager and director of the tourism company BMG Božidar Dokl told the STA, the idea was to connect providers of tourist services from the east of the country, while also not neglecting the rest of Slovenia.

Cross-country skier Lampič 2nd in World Cup sprint in Falun

FALUN, Sweden - Slovenian cross-country skier Anamarija Lampič finished second in the women's World Cup sprint in Falun, 8.41 seconds behind the winner, Jonna Sundling of Sweden. Lampič was more than a second ahead of another Swede, Maja Dahlqvist.

STA, 11 March 2022 - High-ranking Slovenian politicians have condemned a statement by a Hungarian state secretary who labelled Mura as the border between Slovenia and Hungary. The river actually runs between 20 and 30 kilometres from the current official border between the two countries.

The statement by Secretary of State for National Policy Árpád János Potápi was uttered in the Težišče (Súlypont in Hungarian) show at the national broadcaster TV Slovenija for the Hungarian minority, which was run on Thursday.

MP Jožef Horvat of the coalition New Slovenia (NSi) labelled the statement as an international incident that should be responded to resolutely. He has called Foreign Minister Anže Logar this morning to demand a resolute response.

Horvat, who has also demanded a response from the government, said that "on behalf of Slovenians and Hungarians who have lived together in coexistence for many decades in Prekmurje, I would like to tell the state secretary to leave us alone."

He noted that Hungarians and Slovenians had proven that they knew how to live in coexistence in the north-eastern region that borders Hungary, and that people were disappointed and appalled by such incidents.

Dejan Židan, an MP of the opposition Social Democrats (SD), said that senior Slovenian politicians should immediately respond to such an "aggressive statement".

He noted that he had been warning in the past that action should be taken when senior Hungarian politicians posed in front of a maps of Greater Hungary. Slovenian statesmen are silent about this and agree to something that is unimaginable, he added.

Židan expects an response from the Slovenian government that will protect Slovenia's integrity and stop any attempts of encroachment on it.

Parliamentary Speaker Igor Zorčič responded on Twitter, saying that the "statement is inadmissible" and that it should not go unnoticed by senior Slovenian politicians, and tagging President Borut Pahor, PM Janez Janša and Foreign Minister Logar.

Defence Minister Matej Tonin said on Twitter that he had met the Hungarian ambassador on the sidelines of a Visegrad Group meeting to talk with him "about the inappropriate statement by State Secretary Potápi regarding Prekmurje".

"The Hungarian ambassador apologised for the uttered words, which was allegedly a slip of the tongue. He made assurances that Hungary has no territorial aspirations and is committed to good neighbourly relations," the minister said.

The Slovenian Foreign Ministry said in a press release it had immediately summoned Ambassador Andor F. David and demanded an explanation.

"We noted the sensitivity of the topic. The Mura being mentioned as a border river opens possibilities for different interpretations, which can harm bilateral relations and human relations, especially in Prekmurje," the ministry said.

The Hungarian embassy has already issued a release explaining that the statement was a "slip of the tongue" and that the border between Hungary and Slovenia was indisputably determined by an international treaty.

STA, 10 March 2022 - The opposition Left (Levica) has tabled a bill introducing a tax on empty and large houses and apartments to tackle the shortage of homes as estimates show that there are about 175,000 empty apartments around the country.

According to the party, real estate agents estimate that around 30% of all real estate transactions are purchases of real estate as an investment. "This trend is the consequence of an absence of any kind of housing policy and inappropriate taxation of real estate," the party said.

It noted that revenue from taxes on real estate and other assets were "shamefully low" in Slovenia, accounting for just 1.8% of all tax revenue, while the OECD average is 5.7%.

Estimates show that there are 175,000 empty apartments in the country, while there is demand for 30,000 public apartments that would be offered for rent, the Left said.

The new tax would be paid by real estate owners and could not be transferred to tenants or other users of the real estate.

The tax would be calculated based on the value of the real estate as determined in the mass appraisal of real estate. If the owner or their close family members permanently resided in the building, 120 square metres of residential surfaces would be deducted from the figure, meaning people living in such or smaller apartments would not pay the tax.

The bill proposes different tax rates for real estate depending on their use, with the highest rate envisaged for empty real estate.

STA, 10 March 2022 - Slovenian riders took the lead in two elite stage races that are part of the UCI World Tour on Thursday. Primož Roglič put on the leader's yellow jersey in the 5th stage of the Paris-Nice race as Tadej Pogačar won the 4th stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico race to take the overall lead.

Roglič, who rides for the Dutch team Jumbo Visma, finished the 189km stage between Saint-Just-Saint-Rambert and Saint-Sauveur-de-Montagut as 25th, coming in with the first group with a lag of 5:43 minutes behind the winner, Brandon McNulty, the 23-year-old American UAE rider.

The latter broke away 40 kilometres to the finish line, on the climb to the Col de Mure. The tempo proved too hard for Belgian Wout van Aert, who had to concede the lead to Roglič. The Slovenian is now 39 seconds ahead of Briton Simon Yates (BikeExchange-Jayco) and 41 ahead of French Pierre Latour (TotalEnergies).

"This jersey is a big honour. I had to try, that's all we had now with the team. I was talking with Brandon [McNulty] this morning and I knew he wanted to make the break [...] He definitely was the strongest today. If I had gone his pace, I would have quickly exploded," said Roglič for the organisers.

McNulty secured the 14th stage win for the UAE Emirates team this season as his teammate Tadej Pogačar went on to clinch the 15th for his 5th this season by winning the fourth stage of the Race of the Two Seas in Italy to climb from third to first overall.

Pogačar attacked on the last kilometre of today's stage, but no other rider responded to the challenge. Roglič's teammate, Jonas Vingegaard of Denmark, came closest, two seconds behind, as much as Victor Lafay of France and Belgian Remco Evenepoel, who is now second overall, nine seconds behind Pogačar.

"A great effort of the team, we pulled all day, and I was thinking that if I did not give it a go it would be a bad day for us," Pogačar said on Eurosport. "We did it right and in the end it was a good day for the victory."

STA, 10 March 2022 - Prime Minister Janez Janša has said the EU summit in Versailles should commit to Ukraine being guaranteed membership of the bloc similarly as the leaders did for the Western Balkan countries at the Thessaloniki summit in 2003. EU leaders should also pledge to do everything in their power for this to happen as soon as possible.

Similarly as in the case of the commitment to end the EU's reliance on Russian energy, Janša said Slovenia was against talking of one year or the other in debate on Ukraine's application for membership, arguing that promises what would happen in then years meant nothing to the Ukrainians.

Considering the draft statement, EU leaders are to pledge continued political, financial, material and humanitarian aid to Ukraine but are unlikely to give the country any clear guarantees over its membership of the EU that Ukraine wants.

The leaders are to reaffirm the wording from the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement that came into effect in September 2017 and that makes only a vague reference to membership: "The EU acknowledges the European aspirations of Ukraine and welcomes its European choice."

The EU leaders are to note that a few days ago EU member states called on the European Commission to draw up an opinion on Ukraine's membership application in record time. Pending this opinion, and without further delay, the member states will further enhance the ties and deepen the partnership, reads the draft statement.

Asked how far EU leaders could realistically go on the issue of Ukraine's EU membership, given the weak language in the draft statement, Janša said there were several drafts and they were changing, but that even that was a big improvement on the positions two weeks ago that it should not be mentioned at all.

He said they had spoken today with the leaders of most of the Ukrainian parliamentary parties, and he noted the remarkable unity among the Ukrainian people and politics. "Today is a very important day and I hope that the EU summit will be in tune with the times, which have changed drastically in the last two weeks," he stressed.

Asked how likely it was for the EU to offer Ukraine an Association Agreement plus, Janša said that amidst war the Ukrainian Symphony Orchestra played the European anthem in Kyiv's central square on Wednesday, and European flags were flying on many buildings shelled by the Russian army. "In Ukraine they are also fighting for Europe," he added.

He said that today they had also spoken with Petro Poroshenko, the former Ukrainian president, who he said was 100% behind the current President Volodymyr Zelenskyy despite being his political opponent.

Poroshenko said something worth considering, namely that a Ukrainian pilot in an old Mig-29 is doing more at the moment to defend European democracy than ten state-of-the-art F16s in a hangar, Janša said.

"The consequences of what happens in Ukraine will shape the years and decades to come in the EU and the rest of the world," said Janša, adding that the Australian PM had told him recently they were closely following developments in Ukraine, as it would depend on those how China would act in the Pacific.

The Versailles statement, to be adopted by EU leaders this weekend, is in Janša's view a strong document that sets out a political framework for the EU's real strategic autonomy, not only in energy, but also in food security and defence. There are few meetings and political documents of such importance, he said.

?? @JJansaSDS za Bloomberg TV o vprašanjih, ki bi jih morali zastaviti ruskemu predsedniku Putinu. pic.twitter.com/CDOwCtTPjr

— Vlada Republike Slovenije (@vladaRS) March 11, 2022

EU could offset cost of sanctions with seized Russian assets

STA, 10 March 2022 - Arriving for an EU summit in Versailles on Thursday, Prime Minister Janez Janša said an idea was taking shape in the EU to establish a fund to pool the money from frozen accounts of Russian oligarchs and state institutions. The funds would be used to repay the damage sustained by member states due to sanctions imposed on Russia.

Asked about Slovenia's position in the debate on compensation for the cost of sanctions in EU member states, Janša said that as far as Slovenian companies were concerned the Economy Ministry was working on solutions and had been in continuous contact with the affected companies.

When it comes to the European level and threats from Russia, he said the idea was being formed to set up a fund at European level to which the money currently frozen in the accounts of Russian oligarchs or state institutions would flow, and that it would simply be used to pay for the damage.

He regretted this was happening but said that "the one who started aggression must realise that there are two ends to every stick".

Asked whether there was any estimate of the damage suffered by Slovenia this far, the prime minister said that unlike the widely held belief by the public in Slovenia, Russia was not Slovenia's strategic economic partner and Slovenia had larger volumes of goods trade with at least 20 smaller countries.

He did say that any market loss was unnecessary, expressing the hope that the Russian nation, who contributed a lot to the European civilisation through history, would muster the strength to elect leaders who would not jeopardise others.

Commenting on rising food prices, Janša said these were only partly a result of the war in Ukraine and partly of higher energy prices, which had been rising even before Russia's aggression on Ukraine.

However, he said the EU had attained more than 80% food self-sufficiency through the common agricultural policy, which meant there could be shortages of some foodstuffs, but Europe would not go hungry.

Slovenia has recently also made great effort in this direction and has commodity reserves for turbulent times. "There may not be ten types of croissants on the table, but we will not go hungry," he said.

However, rising prices were a reminder that agriculture should be given appropriate attention.

Janša urges EU get rid of Russian energy ASAP

STA, 10 March 2022 - Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša called for the EU to end its reliance on Russian energy as soon as possible as he arrived for an EU summit in Versailles on Thursday. He condemned what he described as a series of crimes against humanity committed by Russia in Ukraine.

Asked by reporters how the EU would respond to the Russian bombardment of the maternity ward in Mariupol and whether time had come to ban imports of Russian gas and oil, Janša said it was not just the hospital's bombardment but a series of crimes against humanity in Russian aggression on Ukraine.

He said an important decision that should be adopted by the EU was to exclude Russian energy products as soon as possible. He said Slovenia was not advocating setting any date, but merely the commitment that this should be done as soon as possible. "Talking about that happening in ten year's time is an insult to those who are dying in the war," he said.

The step is not simple but if the EU joins forces it has some stockpiles for turbulent times and then this can be done in a time when it can still affect Russia's positions on Ukraine, he said.

Earlier, as he arrived at a meeting of the European People's Party held ahead of the EU summit, Janša said that Russia was committing war crimes in Ukraine. "Anyone can see that it is against all conventions," he said as quoted by Reuters.

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:

STA, 10 March 2022 - The Cukrarna Gallery will host an exhibition of works by almost 60 women artists, all either Slovenian or working in Slovenia, from the 1990s to the present day in a highlight of this year's programme. Opening tonight, Returning the Gaze deals with different social topics and presents various artist approaches.

The group exhibition offers an extensive selection of paintings, sculptures, videos, performances, interventions and audio events, as well as an accompanying programme of presentations, film screenings, lectures and discussions; the aim being to shed light on aspects of the Slovenian art scene by creating dialogical relationships between the works of artists from different generations, all using different media, practices and approaches, Cukrarna says on its website.

Blaž Peršin, the head of the Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana, which manages Cukrarna, told the press today that the artists presented had become a constitutive element of Slovenian contemporary art. He said he was glad that the exhibition and the diverse accompanying events would offer an insight into Slovenian contemporary art, not only that created by women.

The artists presented had to overcome many obstacles to "find their place in the sun and they have not only found it but literately owned it", he said.

According to Alenka Gregorič, one of the four curators of the exhibition, artists who live and work in Slovenia are being presented as well as those who have left Slovenia but have been marked by the country. More than 150 artists were discussed and in the end works by almost 60 were picked, including some who are no longer active but their works were either characteristic of a particular period or groundbreaking in their approach or execution.

Some of them focus on specific social themes, such as issues of identity, gender and feminism and the way women artists are represented in the art system. Special attention has been paid to the artists who have consistently adhered to a particular style of expression, approach, form or concept.

The curators have identified four main themes: urban and natural landscapes; the body or figure; the art system; and the socio-political environment.

The accompanying programme will start in April and last until the exhibition closes on 21 August.

According to Cukrarna's website, the title of the exhibition alludes to the "eternal question of who is doing the looking and who is being looked at". In his book based on the famous BBC television series Ways of Seeing, John Berger explores the centuries-long history of painting and sculpture, highlighting the ways in which women have been looked at.

"Regardless of whether their role in the artwork is as metaphor or iconographical element, women have consistently been presented as objects of desire intended to satisfy the male gaze. And this has been compounded by the fact that women's artistic creativity has all too often been hidden from the public eye. Denied, misunderstood and, until fairly recently, marginalised," says on the website.

STA, 9 March 2022 - The government adopted on Wednesday a decision introducing temporary protection for displaced persons from Ukraine that effectively grants them a temporary residence permit, access to the labour market, accommodation, education, social care and healthcare.

The decision activates the temporary protection of displaced persons act and comes after EU home affairs ministers agreed last week to activate the relevant directive for the first time ever.

The activation speeds up protection granting procedures, as Ukrainian refugees will not be required to ask for international protection on their arrival in Slovenia.

The government determined the categories of persons to whom Slovenia will provide temporary protection, the date of introduction and duration of temporary protection and the rules applicable to these persons after the temporary protection expires.

Temporary protection will be provided to persons displaced from Ukraine on or after 24 February 2022 as a result of the military invasion by the Russian armed forces, which started on that date, the government said in a press release.

These persons include citizens of Ukraine, stateless persons and third-country nationals who are not citizens of Ukraine and who have been entitled to international protection or other equivalent national protection in Ukraine.

Also eligible are family members of these persons, and stateless persons and third-country nationals who are not citizens of Ukraine and have resided in Ukraine based on a valid permanent residence permit and are unable to return to their country of origin in a safe and permanent manner.

The temporary protection will last for one year and can be extended for a maximum of two times for six months.

The government also decided to establish an accommodation centre for the applicants and persons with approved temporary protection in parts of the premises of the Protection and Disaster Relief Administration in Logatec.

?????

Today marks the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Slovenia & Ukraine. We value the 30 years of freedom, independence & friendship. We fully stand with the brave people of #Ukraine & their leadership fighting against Russia's invasion.#StopRussianAgression pic.twitter.com/P4LkZDyHD7

— MFA Slovenia (@MZZRS) March 10, 2022

MPs adopt resolution condemning Russia's attack on Ukraine

STA, 9 March 2022 - The National Assembly endorsed on Wednesday a resolution on the situation in Ukraine that condemns Russia's aggression against Ukraine and Russia's recognition of independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The resolution also endorses sanctions against Russia and Belarus, and Ukraine's EU accession prospects.

The resolution, which was submitted to the parliamentary procedure by deputies of all parliamentary groups bar the opposition National Party (SNS), was endorsed by 67 of the 74 deputies present, and none voted against.

It condemns Russia's aggression against Ukraine as "the worst violation of international law" and Russia's recognition of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions in eastern Ukraine as independent republics.

In addition, the resolution expresses solidarity with the Ukrainian people as those with the sole right to decide on their future, supports humanitarian aid and calls for peace efforts.

The National Assembly also supported the international sanctions that have been adopted so far against Russia and Belarus, and supported Ukraine's EU accession prospects and its application for EU membership.

The resolution calls for the adoption of a clear plan that guarantees Ukraine EU membership by 2030, provided that the conditions are met.

The Slovenian government has been urged to continue providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine and to support activities in the international community to launch talks between Ukraine and Russia.

In addition to the senior Slovenian officials, the resolution will also be presented to European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The adoption of the resolution at the emergency session, which was attended by Ukrainian Ambassador Mykhailo Brodovych, was preceded by a debate and a minute of silence observed for the victims of the Russian aggression against Ukraine.

During the debate, Foreign Minister Anže Logar welcomed the resolution and its goals on behalf of the government.

"It is up to us politicians that this unjust, unjustified war, this brutal aggression of the Russian Federation against independent Ukraine will not disappear from the daily news," he said.

The chair of the Foreign Policy Committee, Monika Gregorčič of the coalition Concretely, said that any relativisation and justification of military aggression against a sovereign and internationally recognised state was inappropriate.

Nik Prebil of the opposition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) noted that despite the unity in Slovenian politics shown in the condemnation of the Russian aggression, "there are some who use the state of war for their own political self-promotion".

The coalition New Slovenia (NSi) regretted that the resolution did not receive all 90 votes, as Russia is not threatened by NATO enlargement, but by the "expansion of democracy, freedom and prosperity," as MP Blaž Pavlin put it.

Opposition SAB MP Alenka Bratušek criticised the government of Janez Janša for what she sees as the failure to take care of Slovenian citizens residing in Ukraine, which Logar dismissed, and for "inadmissible mistake of dividing refugees to first- and second-rate ones".

"It seems that the communication of our prime minister related to the Ukrainian tragedy is not really about Ukrainians, but about addressing voters at home and their emotions," she said.

Matjaž Nemec of the opposition Social Democrats (SD) said that this was Russian President Vladimir Putin's war and that sanctions should prevent the Russian leadership and its circle of supporters from continuing to finance the war.

Matej T. Vatovec of the opposition Left said that the war in Ukraine signalled one thing - that militarisation, increase in military and armaments expenditure was not the solution, but the main cause of all problems.

Some Left deputies said that they would not endorse the resolution because of its "one-sidedness", as by doing so Slovenia was publicly and clearly taking one side in the conflict.

The SNS similarly announced that its MPs would abstain from voting, with Dušan Šiško noting that while the party supported humanitarian aid to refugees, Slovenia must remain neutral. "Slovenia should distance itself from this senseless war."

A decision condemning Russia's military attack on Ukraine and the assistance by Belarus was also adopted today by the National Council, the upper chamber of parliament, which also expressed solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

The National Council said after the session that it joined the response of the international community by supporting the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine's internationally recognised borders.

It expressed support for Ukraine's EU accession prospects and called for "an end of aggression with the ambition of all parties involved to work for a peaceful solution to the conflict through diplomatic channels".

STA, 9 March 2022 - Following last year's on-line edition, the Ljubljana Documentary Film Festival will be organised in hybrid form this year to feature 22 feature-length documentaries and three shorts between 9 and 16 March.

The documentaries, five of which will be vying for the title of the best film dealing with human rights, will be screened at the Cankrajev Dom arts centre, while roughly half of them will also be available for on-demand streaming.

Cankarjev Dom director Uršula Cetinski has said the hybrid solution would help bring viewers back into the cinemas while at the same time providing access to audiences outside of Ljubljana.

The docs running for the Amnesty International Slovenia Award - hand-picked by programme director Simon Popek, who stressed these were not the only films dealing with human rights this year - include The First 54 Years. An Abbreviated Manual for Military Occupation, an exploration of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by Avi Mograbi.

The Monopoly of Violence, which David Dufresne started shooting during the yellow vests protests in France, Nuclear Family, a take on US aggression of the past century by Traviss and Erin Wilkersonm, Children of the Mist by Ha Le Diem, who sheds light on child marriage in Vietnam, and Reconciliation by Slovenia's Marija Zidar are also in the running.

The latter, a Slovenian, Serbian, Kosovar, Montenegrin co-production, which deals with deep-rooted patriarchy in the Albanian highlights, will open the festival.

Other topics explored in the remaining segments of the festival include workers' struggle in modern capitalism, a theme of Srdjana Kovačević's Factory to the Workers as well as of a panel debate to be organised in cooperation with the Ljubljana-based Institute for Economic Democracy.

Festival visitors will gain insight into teaching methods for refugee children in a small German town via Maria Speth's Mr. Bachmann and His Class, the life of prisoners in Slovenia's Dob prison as explored by Boštjan Korbar and Matjaž Pikalo, and the skiing enthusiasm of Afghan girls as portrayed in another Slovenian co-production, Melting Dreams by Haidy Kancler.

The Myths, Icons, Media section will feature a documentary by Tosca Looby on Australia's sole woman prime minister so far, which Popek argued portrayed the toxicity of the political environment and fitted well with the pre-election period in Slovenia. A retrospective will honour the 100th birthday of documentary film giant Jonas Mekas.

The jury of the festival is comprised of Dutch director Margje de Koning, Slovenian director and journalist Siniša Gačič and Kaja Atanasova of Amnesty International Slovenia, which will also organise a panel of the rights of Palestinians as part of the accompanying programme. A workshop for documentary film makers will be held as well.

See the full programme and get tickets at the official Ljubljana Documentary Film Festival website