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This summary is provided by the STA:
Janša calls on STA director Veselinovič to step down
LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša called on the director of the Slovenian Press Agency (STA), Bojan Veselinovič, to step down. "It is time for the director as a political tool of the extreme left to step down and take responsibility for his unlawful actions. And allow the STA to work and develop normally," Janša wrote on Twitter. The STA turned to the prime minister's office for explanation about which unlawful actions Janša was referring to, but the office would not comment. The Trade Union of Slovenian Journalists denounced Janša's call as unlawful interference in the STA's autonomy.
EP service's internal document provides in-depth analysis on Slovenia
BRUSSELS, Belgium - A European Parliament policy department service compiled an in-depth document on the situation in Slovenia in preparation for Friday's session of the Democracy, Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights Monitoring Group. The document, which is for internal use only, also details Prime Minister Janez Janša's attacks on media. It says "this behaviour is uncommon for leaders of European democratic states". The European Parliament will discuss threats to media freedom in Hungary, Poland and Slovenia on Wednesday.
Hojs says protests in Slovenia not banned
LJUBLJANA - Interior Minister Aleš Hojs rejected claims that protests in Slovenia were banned or that he was interfering in police work. He also told the STA in an interview that the gap between the EU Commission and Slovenia's views on migration solidarity remained wide, and did not expect Slovenia could ensure much progress on it during its EU presidency. In response to the interview, the Legal Network for the Protection of Democracy, said the minister's claims were inaccurate, pointing to a government decree banning any kind of rallies and a turned down petition to hold a small protest.
740 coronavirus cases and seven deaths on Monday
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia recorded 740 coronavirus cases from 4,700 PCR tests performed on Monday. The 7-day average of newly confirmed cases rose by two to 764 and hospitalisations dropped by 21 to 506 as the number of intensive care patients decreased by one to 90. An additional seven Covid-19 patients died, for a total of more than 4,000, according to data from the National Institute of Public Health. Slovenia will remember its Covid-19 victims with a memorial ceremony in Ljubljana's Žale cemetery on Sunday, to be addressed by President Borut Pahor.
Head teachers support Maribor student protesters
MARIBOR - Head teachers from the Podravje region expressed support for secondary school students from the Maribor area who had received fines and court summons for participating in a protest urging return to in-classroom learning in early February. The head teachers sent a letter to that effect to Education Minister Simona Kustec following their meeting on Monday. They supported the freedom of expression and said they expected appropriate constructive communication with them.
EU urged to protect independent journalism in Poland, Hungary, Slovenia
LJUBLJANA - A group of 19 NGOs and associations advocating media and human rights urged the EU to "take decisive action to protect independent journalism" in Poland, Hungary and Slovenia. The call comes a day before the European Parliament debates threats to media freedom in the three countries. A letter addressed to MEPs says that Hungary's ruling Fidesz party has "perfected the procedure to subjugate media by the state in the past decade", while the EU's failure to react has led to similar trends now being witnessed in Poland and Slovenia.
Logar talks bilateral cooperation with Algerian counterpart
LJUBLJANA - Foreign Minister Anže Logar talked with his Algerian counterpart Sabri Boukadoum over the telephone about ways to enhance bilateral cooperation between the two countries. The ministers called for boosting political dialogue and economic cooperation between Slovenia and Algeria. They also touched on regional issues, in particular the latest developments in Libya and the Sahel region, the Foreign Ministry said.
De-bureaucratisation bill ready for government
LJUBLJANA - The Government Strategic Council for De-bureaucratisation drew up a bill envisaging a cap on social security contributions, electronic sending of administrative mail and a registry of regulations. The bill would also increase powers of state secretaries. The ZSSS trade unions voiced concern about reduced legal safety and called for social dialogue, while the Information Commissioner questioned the purpose of collecting personal data of citizens such as e-mails and phone numbers. The government said this was to make communication with parties in procedures easier.
Committee passes controversial water act amendments
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary environment committee passed amendments to the water act changes under which hazardous substances could be used under certain condition by production facilities located in water protection areas. While the government says adequate safety mechanisms are envisaged, the opposition warns of harmful effects for water sources. Another major change is the possibility to allow the construction of public-use facilities on water and coastal properties, and intermittent lakes.
Ombudsman says Environment Ministry violating democratic standards
LJUBLJANA - Human Rights Ombudsman Peter Svetina criticised the procedure whereby the Environment and Spatial Planning Ministry wants to change the environmental protection act. He says the ministry's actions are not in line with modern democratic standards, which has recently become an established modus operandi of the ministry. The ombudsman reviewed the procedure based on a request by a member an environmental NGO, finding a violation of the public's right to participate in public governance.
Top court improves judicial recusal oversight mechanisms
LJUBLJANA - The Constitutional Court said on Monday that it had overhauled its internal oversight procedures to prevent mistakes related to judicial recusal. This was after media reported that one of the judges told the court he had unintentionally not excluded himself from a case. The court's president Rajko Knez said the court regretted the mistakes which had happened unintentionally. He wondered what the purpose of "the intensive media campaign we are subject to" in this case was.
Free testing to be available along Italian border
LJUBLJANA - The government is launching a free-of-charge testing campaign near border crossings with Italy. Rapid antigen testing will be available from Wednesday for commuters, students being schooled across the border and owners of property across the border. Testing will be available free of charge in the towns of Škofije, Kobarid, Solkan, Fernetiči and Rateče every weekday between 7am and 7pm. After a week, the schedule will be adapted to address the demand at individual locations.
Jožef Stefan Institute shares top prize in Pandemic Response Challenge
LOS ANGELES, US - A team of artificial intelligence experts at the Jožef Stefan Institute won the second grand prize at the Pandemic Response Challenge. The Slovenian team, led by Mitja Luštrek, head of the ambient intelligence group, will equally share the total prize purse of $500,000 with a Spanish team from Valencia, which ranked first only due to their exemplary submissions. The competition was held as part of the Xprize challenge in conjunction with the tech firm Cognizant.
Karavanke Tunnel work on schedule
JESENICE - Work on the second tube of the Karavanke Tunnel on the border with Austria is running on schedule. Turkish Cengiz workers have already bored some 550 metres of what is a roughly 3.5-km tube on the Slovenian side. No major problems have been encountered since boring started last August and is expected to be completed in two years. Supervisor Andrej Štimulak from Slovenian company DRI told the press that 6-9 metres of the tunnel is bored a day, depending on geological conditions.
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