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This summary is provided by the STA:
Court overturns govt decision not to appoint European delegated prosecutors
LJUBLJANA - The Administrative Court has sided with the two prosecutors picked to represent Slovenia on the European Public Prosecutor's Office as it overturned a government decision to annul the selection procedure. The decision, released today, means that the government must now re-examine the appointment of the two prosecutors, Tanja Frank Eler and Matej Oštir, who initiated the court proceeding, whereby the law requires that it only take note of the result of the selection procedure. The judgement is final. The Supreme State Prosecution, Frank Eler and Oštir now expect the government to immediately take note of the selection and forward both candidates to the European Public Prosecutor's Office.
Monday case count down week-on-week
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia confirmed 979 new coronavirus infections on Monday in what is a drop in the daily case count week-on-week, show the latest official figures. Another eight persons with Covid died. Data released by the government show 426 Covid-19 patients were treated in hospitals this morning, down by five compared to yesterday, including 121 in intensive care, down by one. The 7-day average of new daily cases dropped by eight from the day before to 862 and the 14-day incidence per 100,000 residents was down by 15 to 565, show data by the National Institute of Public Health. There are an estimated 11,965 active cases in the country, down by 325.
Protesters flock to Republic Square, then disperse around Ljubljana
LJUBLJANA - Opponents of the government anti-coronavirus measures gathered in thousands in Republic Square in front of the parliament building, which the police protected and cordoned off after a similar protest turned violent last week. The police used a water cannon and tear gas and the crowd dispersed around the centre of Ljubljana, continuing to protest. Zoran Stevanović of the non-parliamentary Resni.ca party and the organiser of this and last week's rallies repeated his demand for the government to do away with anti-coronavirus measures and call an early election. According to the same source, rapper Zlatko was arrested in the city centre and removed from the protest in a police car.
Pahor honours Merkel with Slovenia's top decoration
BRDO PRI KRANJU - President Borut Pahor presented German Chancellor Angela Merkel with the Order of Merit for Distinguished Service, Slovenia's highest honour, for her personal contribution to deepening the relationship between the two countries and for her credible and trust-inspiring European leadership. "Angela Merkel is capable of what is the most difficult in politics. She inspires trust in people and the belief that all will end well," Pahor said. Merkel thanked Pahor for the decoration and said she was honoured by it, noting that it was a commitment for her and for all future German governments to continue to work for the close, good and friendly relations between the countries and their people.
Hojs calls for more control over who enters EU
BUDAPEST, Hungary - Interior Minister Aleš Hojs called for better control over who enters the EU as he took part in a meeting of the home affairs ministers of the Visegrad Group plus Austria and Slovenia, and said securing EU borders should remain top priority. "Protecting the EU's external borders must remain our absolute priority, to tackle security risks and prevent potential migration pressures. We must not allow a repeat of the 2015 scenario so we must refrain from statements that could represent a pull factor," Hojs said as quoted in a press release from his ministry.
Slovenia's joblessness declines further
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's jobless total fell further in September with only 66,122 people registered with the Employment Service, 4.6% fewer than the month before and a fifth (21.1%) fewer than a year ago. The service registered 4,616 newly unemployed in September, a fifth more than in August and 29% fewer than a year ago. Out of the 7,786 people struck out of the unemployment registry, 5,708 found a job or became self-employed, which is 75.5% more than in August but almost 30% fewer than in September 2020. The inflow into joblessness dropped substantially in the nine months to the end of September; 44,863 registered with the Employment Service anew, 39.6% fewer than in the same period a year ago.
Defence committee approves military resolution, Left opposes
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Defence Committee approved the draft resolution on the general long-term programme for the development and equipping of the Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF) until 2035. Defence Minister Matej Tonin explained that the resolution is the army's key development-guidance document that outlines the plans for the future development of the Slovenian Armed Forces. The resolution is strongly opposed by the Left party, which plans to propose a consultative referendum. Its MP Miha Kordiš noted it envisaged EUR 5.4 billion for the SAF until 2035, mostly for the purchase of weapons "which are not needed in this country, only intended for NATO operations".
Opposition demand answers over wait times in healthcare
LJUBLJANA - The opposition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) and Social Democrats (SD) filed for an emergency session of the parliamentary Health Committee to discuss why waiting times have grown longer despite an increase in the number of doctors and nurses. The parties found the number of doctors employed with Slovenia's 27 hospitals increased from 2,700 15 years ago to just over 4,000 in 2020 as nursing staff numbers rose from 8,200 to 11,000 in the same period. Meanwhile, accessible data shows that the number of cases handled increased by only 10% during that period, SD MP Dejan Židan said.
Slovenia failed to implement any of GRECO's 15 recommendations
STRASBOURG, France/LJUBLJANA - Slovenia has failed to satisfactorily implement or address any of the 15 recommendations the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) made in its 2018 evaluation report. The country has partly implemented only one recommendation, the Council of Europe's (CoE) body said in its latest compliance report on Slovenia. The country has made very limited progress concerning top government officials as it has only made some efforts to raise awareness about integrity, while not introducing any internal mechanism to encourage awareness-raising. Transparency International (TI) Slovenia argued that fighting corruption is not a priority of decision-makers, while the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption said it expected the authorities to take a more active approach in implementing the recommendations.
Fiscal Council: Volume of coronavirus measures three times higher than planned
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's budget deficit in the first nine months of the year reached EUR 2.453 billion, mostly as a result of financing a variety of coronavirus measures. The figure represents 89% of the deficit planned for the entire year, the Fiscal Council said, citing preliminary data. The guardian of the balanced budget rule said the volume of coronavirus measures totalled EUR 2.311 billion in this period, or three times as much as planned for the entire 2021 after this year's budget was supplemented last October. In the absence of the coronavirus measures, the budget deficit in the January-to-September period would have reached only EUR 388 million.
Five schools get Digital School award, union cry foul on World Teachers' Day
LJUBLJANA - Five Slovenian primary and secondary schools were presented with the Digital School award for the promotion of development of digital technology skills to mark World Teachers' Day, and a new tool in support of digital teaching and learning was also launched on the occasion. Meanwhile, the Education, Science and Culture Trade Union of Slovenia (SVIZ) expressed its frustration with the authorities. Teachers are still being ignored despite proving their contribution to a functioning society during the epidemic, said Branimir Štrukelj, the secretary general of SVIZ.
NGO points to discrimination of self-employed in epidemic
LJUBLJANA - The NGO Inšitut 8. Marec brought to the public's attention discrimination of the self-employed, who are not entitled to compensation for the loss of income when they are in quarantine or for taking care of their children when they are sent to quarantine. The relevant law only refers to workers who have an employment contract, which the self-employed do not. Several self-employed workers turned to the NGO when realising they are not entitled to compensation, the NGO told the press. It has asked the ministry whether it intended to address this issue, but has so far received no reply.
Medical chamber, doctor reach settlement over vaccine statements
LJUBLJANA - The Medical Chamber and GP Nada Hiti of the Domžale Community Health Centre have reached a settlement on the doctor's video in which she discussed a problematic heavy metal content in anti-coronavirus and flu vaccines. In a written statement that is part of the settlement, Hiti has distanced herself from her statements. The doctor said that based on the content of heavy metals discovered in the vaccines, it could not be claimed these could dangerously accumulate in the body if a person is vaccinated with these vaccines several times.
Report: Man from Maribor sentenced to prison for sexual abuse
MARIBOR/LJUBLJANA - Media reported that the Maribor District Court had sentenced a man from Maribor, a prominent member of the self-styled militia Štajerska Guard, to a year and two months in prison for sexual abuse of a defenceless person. The trial of the 54-year-old Vlado Čehić started in August and was held behind closed doors due to the sensitivity of the case. The victim just barely turned 18, the newspaper Delo reported, and according to the newspaper Večer, she is the man's daughter. Čehić has been released from custody, while the prosecution has announced an appeal.
Minority poet Maja Haderlap wins Christine Lavant Prize
VIENNA, Austria - Slovenian minority poet and writer Maja Haderlap from Carinthia, Austria, has won the Christine Lavant Prize for her work, including a novel about the battle of Slovenians living in Carinthia against National Socialism in Austria, the newspaper Delo reported. The jury said that the 2021 Christine Lavant Prize was a "tribute to one of the most important Austrian writers". The prize is worth EUR 15,000. Haderlap accepted the award at a ceremony in Vienna on Sunday.
Slovenian art historian gets memorial plaque at Polish Embassy
LJUBLJANA - A memorial plaque was unveiled on the facade of the Polish Embassy to honour Vojeslav Mole (1886-1973), a Slovenian art historian, archaeologist, poet, writer and translator with close links with Poland. Polish Ambassador Krzysztof Olendzki said at the ceremony that Mole "was an extraordinary personality of Polish art history" and "his outstanding life and works are the most beautiful expression of Slovenian and Polish culture".
