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This summary is provided by the STA:
Report: PM Janša formally indicted over 2005 real estate deal
LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša has been formally indicted of abuse of office over a property sale carried out in 2005, a decision by the prosecution that comes more than six years after an inquiry was launched, Večer reported. Janša is one of the three persons indicted in a case that case revolves around a plot of land in the Trenta Valley that Janša sold in 2005 and that was subsequently resold several times, in what the prosecution believes was a chain of related transactions that ended up unlawfully benefiting Janša. The alleged criminal offence carries an eight-year prison sentence.
Janša expects EU show of solidarity with Greece, Cyprus and Belarus
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Prime Minister Janez Janša arrived at the EU summit hopeful that the EU would be able to mount a united show of solidarity with Greece and Cyprus in their dispute with Turkey. As for Belarus, he was hopeful that EU leaders would be capable of supporting the democratic desires of the people of Belarus and speak up for protection against any sort of repression. Janša also expects that European unity will be within reach when it comes to redefining the bloc's relations with China, noting that commercial and strategic interests should be decoupled.
175 new coronavirus cases in Slovenia on Wednesday, two deaths
LJUBLJANA - A total of 175 new coronavirus infections were confirmed in Slovenia on Wednesday after 2,899 tests, meaning 6% of the tests were positive. A total of 86 people were in hospital, including 15 in intensive care. Two people infected with coronavirus died, the government said. There are currently 1,807 active cases in the country.
Koroška added to Germany's Covid-19 red list
LJUBLJANA - Germany added on Wednesday the northern Koroška region to its list of Covid-19 high-risk areas after doing the same a week ago for the western region of Primorsko-Notranjska. Passengers entering Germany who spent time in Koroška in the past 14 days must quarantine unless they can present a negative coronavirus test that is not older than 48 hours.
Pahor urges faster progress in women's rights
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor pointed to the need to accelerate attaining women's rights as he addressed an online UN summit marking the 25th anniversary of the historic Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. He acknowledged there was still much room for improvement, highlighting the coronavirus epidemic as an impediment to gender equality, and pointed to women as the majority workforce in healthcare being in the first lines fighting Covid-19, which could affect their work-life balance in the long-run.
Govt urged to replace NIJZ head Krek, Covid-19 spokesman Kacin
LJUBLJANA - SocDem leader Tanja Fajon called on the government to reconsider the appointments of National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) director Milan Krek and of coronavirus spokesperson Jelko Kacin, criticising their style of communication and questioning their expertise. She complained about "confused, inconsistent and unprofessional communication of the measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus". While Kacin declined to comment, Krek said what the NIJZ needed most right now was help and support rather than criticism.
No end to dispute over Poček training area
POSTOJNA/LJUBLJANA - The Postojna municipality reiterated on Wednesday its call for the Defence Ministry to solve the issue of Poček, the main training area of the Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF), as locals are increasingly unhappy with the noise during military exercises. The ministry is willing to talk about all open issues bar Poček's full closure - Postojna's main demand.
Report: District court stops legal procedure in Rupnik case
LJUBLJANA - The Ljubljana District Court has stopped legal proceedings in the case of Leon Rupnik, a Nazi collaborationist general, the newspaper Dnevnik reported. According to Dnevnik's unofficial information, the court made the decision based on the criminal procedure act, which says legal procedures stop if the defendant dies. This comes after the Supreme Court annulled the death sentence of Rupnik in January, a decision which raised a lot of dust.
Another initiative for Slovenia to notify legal succession to AST
LJUBLJANA - An initiative for Slovenia to notify its legal succession to the Austrian State Treaty (AST) was filed to parliament, just days before the centenary of the Carinthian plebiscite, which left a portion of Slovenians in Austria after WWI. The 1955 treaty obliges Austria to provide for their minorities' rights. The initiative is spearheaded by legal expert Ivan Kristan and sociologist Niko Toš, who hand-delivered it to Speaker Igor Zorčič on behalf of over 100 public figures.
Slovenian minority in Italy warns of problems in education
TREVISO, Italy - The Slovenian Cultural and Economic Association (SKGZ), one of the two umbrella organisations of the Slovenian minority in Italy, has urged the authorities in Trieste and Slovenian ministers to address the issues of Slovenian education in Italy. It says that under-aged members of the Slovenian community do not have access to normal education, urging the Slovenian government to start bilateral talks with Italy regarding the many unsolved problems of Slovenian education in Italy.
Fuel prices fully deregulated
LJUBLJANA - Fuel prices in Slovenia became fully deregulated as the decree on administered prices for regular petrol and diesel at service stations outside motorways and expressways has expired and has not been extended by the government. Fuel providers are now able to set prices on their own, with the prices being published on the web portal goriva.si.
EBRD substantially downgrades economic forecast for Slovenia
LONDON, UK - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) forecast a 7.5% contraction of Slovenia's GDP in 2020, a downgrade of two percentage points from May. Partial recovery is expected in 2021 when the economy is projected to grow by 3.5%, which compares to 5% in the May forecast, said the EBRD, highlighting that in the first quarter of the year GDP was down 2.5% at the annual level, one of the biggest drops in the region.
EUR 95m available as part of new Covid-19 Fund of Funds
LJUBLJANA - The Economy Ministry and SID Bank, Slovenia's export and development bank, signed an agreement to finance the Covid-19 Fund of Funds as part of which EUR 95 million will be available to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic through microloans as well as loans for R&D and innovation. The new fund is designed to eliminate or mitigate the negative impact of the pandemic and encourage investment.
Charges over Lonstroff plot sale dismissed
LJUBLJANA - The specialised prosecution service has dismissed charges over the sale of a plot by the state-owned bad bank to Japanese-owned Swiss company Lonstroff for an elastomer plant in Logatec, reported the newspaper Delo. The prosecution received an anonymous complaint against Janez Škrubej, a former executive director of the bad bank over the deal two years ago.
Director of reconciliation study centre resigns
LJUBLJANA - Andreja Valič Zver has resigned as director of the Study Centre for National Reconciliation, the institution she has led since its inception in 2008, following allegations of mismanagement, reported the magazine Reporter. The resignation comes just two weeks after the centre's board launched into motion a procedure to dismiss the director over alleged mismanagement. Valič Zver refrained from comment.
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