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This summary is provided by the STA:
12% of coronavirus tests positive for a Sunday high
LJUBLJANA - A total of 169 people tested positive for coronavirus from 1,404 tests on Sunday and two more Covid-19 patients died. Despite the infections being lower than in the previous days, it is the highest increase for a Sunday and the share of positive tests remains high, at 12%. This brings the total number of cases to 8,832, with as many as 3,444 active. A total of 169 people have died. Government data show 149 patients were in hospital, 26 requiring intensive care, however as hospitalisations are expected to increase in coming days hospitals are expanding Covid-19 facilities.
Time is ripe for stricter coronavirus measures, Beović says
LJUBLJANA - The government's chief Covid-19 advisor Bojana Beović said Slovenia is quickly approaching a new stiffening of restrictive measures as envisaged in the final stage of the orange scenario. Given the number of new cases, the next set of measures could have already been adopted, but she added that this was for the government to decide, adding the problem with the existing measures was their inconsistent implementation and lack of persistent inspections. The Jožef Stefan Institute (IJS) meanwhile said in its latest forecast of the development of the epidemic the criteria for Slovenia to start introducing additional restrictive measures from the red phase will be reached in the next seven days.
Slovenian and Hungarian PMs to meet on Wednesday
LJUBLJANA - The Slovenian and Hungarian prime ministers, Janez Janša and Viktor Orban, will meet for a working lunch on Wednesday as ground is broken to construct a Cirkovce-Pince power line connecting Slovenia with Hungary, the Government Communication Office said. Janša will address the ceremony in the Slovenian town of Kidričevo in the north-east and meet Orban on the sidelines. The pair will discuss "the main bilateral topics, the Covid-19 situation and topical EU issues".
Central bank with new moves related to bond holder wipeout
LJUBLJANA - The central bank will consult a group of legal experts to find a solution ensuring the legal protection of the holders of subordinated bonds who were wiped out during the 2013 bank bailout. It has also asked for a constitutional review of provisions allowing it to be audited by the Court of Audit. Banka Slovenije governor Boštjan Vasle said that six years after the bank bailout not much progress in properly regulating the legal protection of the subordinated bond holders had been made. The Association of Small Shareholders meanwhile labelled the announcement a "new legal move and procrastination".
Pahor saddened by defacing of Klagenfurt monument
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor expressed sadness over the vandalising of a monument in Klagenfurt following Saturday's ceremony marking the 100th anniversary of the Carinthian plebiscite. In his tweet, Pahor repeated that fear suffices for hatred while courage is necessary for harmony. The incident, committed by unknown perpetrators, had drawn strong criticism from Austrian politicians, as well as Slovenian PM Janez Janša and representatives of the Slovenian minority.
New head of National Bureau of Investigation appointed
LJUBLJANA - Petra Grah Lazar was appointed acting head of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the third new leader of the specialised police unit for white-collar crime since May. The appointment was made by acting Police Commissioner Andrej Jurič a week after her predecessor Uroš Lepoša stepped down citing personal reasons. Grah Lazar used to work as an NBI investigator in 2010-2014, but most recently served as a financial consulting manager at Deloitte Svetovanje, before which she was corporate security head at the Bank Assets Management Company (BAMC), the country's bad bank. She has been described by multiple media as the favourite of the ruling Democrats (SDS). The opposition parties slammed her appointment as a prime example of politicisation.
Parliamentary committee endorses Podgoršek as agriculture minister
LJUBLJANA - Jože Podgoršek, the candidate for the new agriculture minister and currently a state secretary at the ministry, was unanimously endorsed by the parliamentary Agriculture Committee. If appointed - the National Assembly will vote on his candidacy on Thursday, he intends to boost food self-sufficiency and focus on sustainable development. Another challenge will be a reform of the EU's joint agriculture policy, while he also intends to sort out the situation at Slovenian State Forests. The 46-year-old with a PhD in agrarian economics was nominated for the post by the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) after Aleksandra Pivec resigned as minister and left the party a week ago. Commenting on the unanimous support, he said it would be useful in the busy period ahead.
Delo poll shows SDS firmly in lead, LMŠ returns to second place
LJUBLJANA - The ruling Democrats (SDS) would emerge as the winners if a general election was held now. The opposition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) has meanwhile returned to the follow-up position, shows a poll commissioned by the newspaper Delo. The SDS tops the ranking with 18.7%, which is down slightly from September, whereas the LMŠ has gained more than two points to 10.4%. The remaining opposition parties had mixed fortunes. The SD has lost more than half a point to 9.3% and are now closely trailed by the Left, which has added 1.7 points to 7.9%, while the SAB has inched down to 2.9%. According to Delo, the rankings mean the quartet of parties that have entered talks on a Constitutional Arch Coalition enjoy a combined 30.5%, whereas the coalition parties come to 27.1%.
Medical Chamber boss, SD MP test positive
LJUBLJANA - Zdenka Čebašek-Travnik, the head of the Slovenian Medical Chamber, and Gregor Židan, an MP for the opposition Social Democrats (SD), are among those who have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. The chamber said Čebašek-Travnik learnt of the test result on Friday after she and her husband got tested the day before. The husband probably got infected at the hospital where he works. Meanwhile, Židan became the first National Assembly deputy confirmed to have tested positive for the novel virus. He was on leave last week so none of his colleagues have been required to quarantine.
CoE finds shortcomings in Slovenia's coronavirus data processing
STRASBOURG, France - A Council of Europe report identifies a number of shortcomings in the protection of privacy and personal data in government efforts to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. It also mentions Slovenia, highlighting Slovenia, Greece and Hungary as the countries parties to a relevant convention where health authorities share the lists of patients with police. Digital Solutions to Fight Covid-19 also says Slovenia appears to be the only country that made the use of the proximity and contact tracing app mandatory by law, while making it voluntary later, before it was actually introduced.
SocDems retain mayoral seat in Velenje
VELENJE - The Social Democrats (SD) succeeded in holding down the mayoral office in the blue collar town of Velenje in Sunday's byelection as Deputy Mayor Peter Dermol won 64.3% of the vote to succeed Bojan Kontič, a fellow party member that has stood in for him since his death in August. Darko Koželj, who ran with the support of the Democrats (SDS), New Slovenia (NSi), Modern Centre Party (SMC) and the non-parliamentary People's Party (SLS), won 23.55% and a third candidate secured 12.15%.
Slovenian-Chinese business council concerned by govt plans for Huawei
LJUBLJANA - The recently established Slovenian-Chinese business council at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS) expressed concern in a public letter over the government's alleged plans concerning Chinese company Huawei. According to unofficial information, the government could label Huawei a high-risk supplier in the coming weeks. In the letter addressed to PM Janez Janša and the cabinet, the council says an open, stable, predictable business environment providing equal opportunities is crucial for good functioning of the economy, even more so in the period of post-pandemic recovery. It also pointed to the risk of damage for Slovenian companies if China decided to retaliate, and the damage that could be caused to the bilateral relations with China.
Don't Forget to Breathe wins top Slovenian film prize
LJUBLJANA - The 23rd Festival of Slovenian Film closed with an awards ceremony on Sunday, with the best live action feature going to Martin Turk's youth film Don't Forget to Breathe. The judging panel did not confer the Vesna Awards for best feature film, best directing, best screenplay, best female lead, best makeup and best animated film. Antigone - How Dare We! won three Vesnas, including for best documentary and for best male lead (Primož Bezjak). Konrad Steinbacher, an author of animated shorts, received the Metod Badjura Award for lifetime achievement.
Artists Cibic and Hriberšek win B3 biennial awards
FRANKFURT, Germany - Two Slovenians are among the laureates of this year's B3 Biennial of the Moving Image, running in Frankfurt until 18 October. Jasmina Cibic received the B3 Award for Best Immersive and Time Based Art for her video installation entitled The Gift, while Evelyn Hriberšek's art installation Eurydike won the B3 Award for the Best VR/AR/MR Experience. Cibic's work is currently on show at the Metelkova Museum of Contemporary Art (MSUM).
Poet Barbara Korun receives 2020 Mira Prize
LJUBLJANA - The women's section of Slovenian PEN has bestowed this year's Mira Prize for outstanding women authors on poet and activist Barbara Korun, who has been, according to the jury, shedding light on the opuses of Slovenian and foreign women poets and promoting feminist readings. The EUR 2,000 prize was awarded in Ljubljana on Saturday evening. Korun has been widely translated and has been featured in more than 70 poetry anthologies in over 20 languages.
Bad weather causing problems in north, north-west
ČRNA NA KOROŠKEM - Wet snow, rain and wind caused disruption in the high-altitude areas of the northern region of Koroška during the night, with uprooted trees blocking local roads and a part of the area losing power supply due to damaged transmission infrastructure. The worst hit was the upper Mežica Valley, which had seen the most snowfall. The north-western region of Gorenjska also saw several local roads blocked by trees that collapsed under the weight of wet snow.
Slovenia beat Kosovo on the road in Nations League
PRISHTINA, Kosovo - The Slovenian men's football team defeated Kosovo 1:0 in Prishtina on Sunday in the third round of play in Group 3 of League C of the UEFA Nations League, for what is a second win in a row for Slovenia in the competition. On Wednesday, Slovenia will face Moldova at home after the latter lost 0:2 to Greece. After three rounds, Slovenia and Greece are tied at the top of the group at seven points, while Kosovo and Moldova still have only one point each.
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