STA, 15 March 2021 - The Traffic Safety Agency (AVP) handed over 16 cardboard cut-outs of police officers holding radar guns that get drivers into thinking they are approaching an actual speed trap. The agency believes that putting them in certain critical road segments would improve safety as traffic is being intensified with the warmer weather. 

AVP director Jože Hribar told the press on the occasion that, as warmer and clearer days were coming, traffic on Slovenian roads would only grow heavier, with the number of pedestrians, cyclists and motorcycle riders also increasing.

"Cut-outs of police officers make drivers slow down. The measure has shown to be very effective," he said, adding that statistics showed that speeds at locations where cut-outs were put were lower by as much as 20% than elsewhere.

Ivan Kapun, the head of the traffic police sector, noted that cut-outs had shown to be effective in the past, adding that, as the motorcycle season was approaching, traffic was expected to intensify around tourist destinations and on scenic roads.

The police will decide on their own where to put the cut-outs, and they already have certain sections in mind, including along the Soča river in the west, and the city of Koper on the sea coast, as well as other roads attractive to bikers.

"It is a more lenient approach that encourages drivers to respect road traffic rules before they even run into a police patrol. I hope we will be able to prevent many road casualties," added Kapun.

On the occasion, the AVP presented road safety statistics for this year, noting that the number of accidents that took place by 5 March was down by 39% compared to the same period last year. Eight people were killed, compared to 11 last year.

However, the statistics for pedestrians is worrying, as they have been involved in 66 traffic accidents this year, and four have been killed, and 13 sustained grave injuries and 34 light injuries. One pedestrian was killed in the same period last year.

STA, 15 March 2021 - Renovation work on the eastern tube of the Golovec tunnel, located on the south-eastern section of the Ljubljana ring road, got under way on Monday after work on the western tube was completed. The upgrade, during which the tube will be closed to traffic, is expected to take two months with replacement train transport available at discount prices.

The renovation comes after the western tube was already modernised last summer. The work on the second tube was supposed to start in summer this year, however national motorway company DARS decided to capitalise on an epidemic-driven decrease in road traffic and went ahead with the project earlier.

During the renovation, all traffic will be redirected to the western tube, however the tunnel will be off limit to vehicles heavier than 3.5 tonnes, which will have to opt for other sections of the ring road.

According to DARS, traffic will be organised in a 2+1 fashion, with the format adjusted to peak hour periods.

The eastern tube will be closed to traffic until 15 May. During the next two months, DARS will offer, in association with rail operator Slovenske Železnice, a discount of 50% on train tickets for Kočevje-Ljubljana and Novo Mesto-Ljubljana lines.

Drivers will be notified of any renovation-related congestion via online platforms, media and special signs situated at the main intersections on the ring road.

Slovenian builder Kolektor CPG is in charge of the entire project, whose price tag is estimated at EUR 8.56 million, VAT excluded.

DARS explained that the renovation was very much needed since it was the first since the tunnel opened in 1999. The eastern tube will get the same facelift as the western did last summer - replacing concrete with asphalt and setting up LED lighting and a thermal traffic detection system for traffic incidents, among other things.

What also lies in store is an upgrade of a link road connecting the BTC shopping district and motorway. DARS entrusted the project to Slovenian Trgograd and its Croatian partner GP Krk for more than EUR 2 million, VAT excluded.

STA, 15 March 2021 - As part of its preliminary procedure, the corruption watchdog has established there were no corruption risks or breaches of the integrity law when Interior Minister Aleš Hojs bought a piece of land on the Slovenian coast in July 2020.

The Commission for the Prevention of Corruption said in Monday's statement that based on the preliminary procedure, the case will not be further processed.

The commission launched the procedure late last year after receiving a report of suspicion of irregularities in the Koper municipality's sale of a piece of land.

It then obtained explanations and documents from the municipality and the Slovenian Institute of Auditors, checked the sale procedure and talked with the appraiser of the land, only to conclude that no breaches within its purview could be established.

It did however detect "certain risks", so it recommended to the municipality to ask appraisers to clearly state in their reports whether the price as appraised includes VAT or not.

Hojs's purchase was problematised last September by Mladina weekly, which alleged he had bought it cheaply because Mayor of Koper Boris Popović was his acquaintance.

It said the city of Koper had decided to sell a building plot which could not be even accessed by road, arguing that had it serviced it before selling it, it could have asked more than EUR 300 per square metre for it rather than just EUR 67.5.

At the April 2017 auction, the land was bought by Rjeckon, a company owned by Russian citizen Marat Idrisov, as the only bidder at the asking price of EUR 262,920 (VAT excluded).

Soon afterwards, the city started serving it with a road and a sewage system, while Idrisov divided it into smaller pieces and sold it on to four buyers, two of whom were Hojs and Popovič.

Hojs bought his 882 square metre piece of land for EUR 75,910 (EUR 86 per square metre), while the price could have been almost 3.5 times higher, said Mladina.

At the time, Hojs told the left-leaning magazine he had reported the purchase to the corruption watchdog. He also denied Popovič had helped him get hold of the land.

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Slovenian Covid-19 victims commemorated by senior officials

LJUBLJANA - Senior state and religious officials attended a memorial service at Žale cemetery for people who died from Covid-19, on the anniversary of the first death recorded in Slovenia. President Borut Pahor expressed condolences to the victim's families and said the virus had not been defeated yet. "Many people in these merciless times said goodbye in deep and painful solitude," he said. A willow tree was also planted there in memory of the Covid-19 victims, and it was blessed by the head of the Slovenian Bishops' Conference, Ljubljana Archbishop Stanislav Zore. The ceremony was attended by PM Janez Janša, Speaker Igor Zorčič, Evangelical Lutheran Church priest Geza Filo and Nevzet Porić of the Slovenian Islamic Community.

520 new infections confirmed, 7-day incidence increases

LJUBLJANA - A total of 520 new coronavirus infections were confirmed in Slovenia on Saturday in 2,984 PCR tests, with the 7-day incidence of new infections increased by 19 to 697, after dropping steadily over the week, fresh statistics published by the government on Twitter show. The positivity rate dropped by almost five percentage points to 17.4%. The number of hospitalisations was up by two to 438, with 83 requiring intensive care. Five Covid-19 patients died on Saturday.

Janša says SDS will not allow soloing in coalition any longer

LJUBLJANA - Democrats (SDS) president and PM Janez Janša has announced in a letter to the party membership that the party will work in realising the commitments from the coalition agreement, and he expects the same from partners. "Once a decision has been adopted, bringing it down or eroding it with help of opposition votes in the National Assembly is not acceptable. The SDS will not allow this any more," the letter says. He added that the majority of the opposition is destructive like nowhere in Europe, saying its acts in this time of great distress were hateful towards the homeland, nation and state.

France's Noel wins slalom event of 60th Vitranc Cup

KRANJSKA GORA - France's Clement Noel won the men's Alpine Ski World Cup event, while Austria's Marco Schwarz secured the overall win in the discipline by finishing seventh ahead of the season finale in Switzerland's Lenzerheide on 17-21 March. It was a double French win in the slalom event of the 60th Vitranc Cup, as Victor Muffat-Jeandet was second, while third place went to Ramon Zenhäusern of Switzerland, who won the event in Kranjska Gora two years ago. The only Slovenian in the final run was Štefan Hadalin, who finished 25th as he fell 3.88 seconds behind the winner. It was nevertheless the first slalom race in the season in which he finished in the top 30 to earn World Cup points.

Slovenian, Croatian football legends raise money for Petrinja

LJUBLJANA - Slovenian and Croatian football legends played a charity match on Saturday in the Croatian town of Petrinja to raise funds for the area that was hit by a devastating earthquake at the end of last year. The Croatian Red Cross was handed out a donation of EUR 50,000, the Slovenian Football Association (NZS) said. The match was played on initiative of Slovenia's Aleksander Čeferin, the president of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), and Davor Šuker, the head of the Croatian Football Federation. A EUR 5,000 donation was also handed out to the Mladost football club from Petrinja by the NZS.

If you're learning Slovenian then you can find all our dual texts here

The covers and editorials from leading weeklies of the Left and Right for the work-week ending Friday, 12 March 2021. All our stories about coronavirus and Slovenia are here

Mladina: Four liberal centrist parties should merge

STA, 12 March 2021 - Mladina says in its latest commentary that a new party would perhaps not be able to beat the ruling Democrats (SDS) in the next election and proposes instead that a party that would merge the existing four liberal centrist parties might be the answer. But this also opens up a series of questions.

The left-leaning weekly notes under the headline New Old Party that establishing a completely new party that would bet on its purity means recruitment of political novices who have never performed this complex profession.

This is what economist Jože P. Damijan, who initiated the informal Constitutional Arch Coalition (KUL), is aware of. He knows that a party that bears a person's name is able to "seriously dance for one election only."

Mladina also argues that voters have grown tired of the concept of new, "pure parties", and that, if someone other than the Social Democrats (SD) and Left wanted to seriously challenge the SDS, they would need to offer much more than 88 candidate names.

"Standing on the other side is the SDS party machine, which has a strong people and media network, and a lot of money. In 2022 (if the election is held on the scheduled date), this machine will be even stronger."

This calls for an attempt for a merger of the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ), Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB), Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) and perhaps the Modern Centre Party (SMC), but this, of course, opens up many questions.

"Are Alenka Bratušek and Marjan Šarec ready to withdraw from party president posts and find a shared, powerful party leader? Is the SMC able to make a turnaround before the election and give up on the current leadership?

"Is DeSUS capable of realising that they may survive only with the merger? Are all of them together capable of finding a leader, a serious independent person?"

The four weak parties would become a strong force, and voters are actually looking for a liberal conservative political party. All these parties are advocating similar economic and political viewpoints anyway, Mladina says.

The SD and Left would also breathe more easily if liberals became what they actually are, and perhaps the moment is right. It seems that everybody in that part of the political spectrum started realising that there is not much time left.

Demokracija: EU should focus on vaccines, not Slovenian media

STA, 11 March 2021 - Demokracija says in its latest commentary that instead of dealing with vaccination, the field in which it has utterly failed, the European Commission is "saving democracy and freedom of the press" in Poland, Hungary and Slovenia. It adds that the final goal is elimination of the natural reality.

"The EU has failed an exam again. This is logical, as its priorities are elsewhere (well, the virus is not going anywhere): saving democracy and freedom of the press in Poland and Hungary and, as of recently, in Slovenia."

Under the headline Treasonous Elites, the right-wing weekly adds that displaying Slovenia as an "oasis of evil" is not a mirage, as the drive of the progressive MEPs (with help from media "experts") is a result of pure malice.

It argues that the purpose of this propaganda is to demonise the centre-right Slovenian government by means of manipulation and lies that have been circulated for years by the "independent" media.

According to Demokracija, the final objective is elimination of the natural reality, with the Slovenian, Hungarian and Polish prime ministers being the last ones who stand in the way.

"The Brussels elites want to replace it with a new world without roots. The price of globalisation is identity suicide, and elimination of sovereignty of individual countries is just a stage in the implementation of the sick objectives of the corrupt international bandits. This game is really dangerous."

The analysts who criticise the Slovenian government's attitude to the media are merely "useful idiots" who in the name of democracy, freedom and humanism participate in the destruction of everything that is traditional, the commentary concludes.

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This summary is provided by the STA: 

Five PMs, including Janša, urge EU summit on vaccines

BRUSSELS, Belgium - Five EU prime ministers, including Slovenia's Janez Janša, addressed on Friday a letter to Brussels calling for a summit on Covid-19 vaccines after Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz strongly criticised the distribution of vaccines among EU member states. He said some EU countries were receiving more vaccines than others. The letter, released on Saturday, was also signed by the prime ministers of the Czech Republic, Latvia and Bulgaria. The European Commission issued a statement today saying the most equitable solution is on the basis of a pro rata of population of each member state, a solution it had proposed. However, member states then decided to depart from the proposal by adding a flexibility which allows agreeing on a different distribution of doses, taking into account the epidemiological situation and the vaccination needs of each country. "It would be up to member states to find an agreement if they wished to return to the pro rata basis."

Almost 850 new Covid-19 cases and 3 deaths on Friday

LJUBLJANA - A total of 847 new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Slovenia on Friday from 3,800 PCR tests, for a 22.3% positivity share, while three persons died, the government said on Twitter. The 7-day incidence of new infections dropped to 678. Once it is below 600, the country will progress to a milder, yellow tier of restrictions, as Covid hospitalisations have already dropped below 500. Yesterday, they were at 436. The Sledilnik tracker site data shows there are an estimated 10,227 active Covid-19 cases in the country.

Year since Janša govt was appointed

LJUBLJANA - A year to the day, the government of Janez Janša assumed office, just a day after the coronavirus epidemic was declared by its predecessor in office and which has strongly marked its term. The government survived the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) leaving the coalition in December and an opposition-sponsored motion to oust it. The has also been marked by a troubled relationship between the government and many of the country's subsystems, including the media. Janša formed his third government after PM Marjan Šarec of the LMŠ resigned as his minority government had been struggling to secure a majority on some of the bills in parliament.

SD says it is ready for next general election

LJUBLJANA - The leadership of the opposition Social Democrats (SD) closed ranks at a meeting and strongly supported leader Tanja Fajon as the party is preparing for the next general election with the ambition to win. Fajon said they would do everything to give the people back trust in politics and social democracy, adding the party was open to cooperation with other parties. SD chief secretary Dejan Levanič said the party had recently set up its election headquarters, started compiling a list of election candidates and drafted concrete solutions for Slovenia's development.

Marco Odermatt wins Kranjska Gora giant slalom race

KRANJSKA GORA - Swiss skier Marco Odermatt won today's World Cup giant slalom race in Slovenia's Kranjska Gora after he finished the first run fourth. His fellow countryman Loic Meillard placed second (+1.06), followed by Austria's Stefan Brennsteiner (+1,09) in third place. With a total of 625 points, and just one more giant slalom race on the World Cup schedule this season, Odermatt has taken over as the overall giant slalom leader. Štefan Hadalin placed 18th as the best Slovenian.

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

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FRIDAY, 5 March
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Parliament's Democracy, Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights Monitoring Group held a virtual public discussion on media freedom in Slovenia featuring representatives from Slovenia and the European Commission. Group members expressed concern about the situation and their expectations for the Commission to take action. Before the debate, a European Parliament policy department service compiled an in-depth document on the situation in Slovenia.
        SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina - President Borut Pahor announced a donation of 4,800 Covid-19 vaccine shots to be delivered to the country next week, as he visited the Presidency of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Its chairman Milorad Dodik said Slovenia had again showed its solidarity with and support for Bosnia-Herzegovina.
        LJUBLJANA - Data from the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) obtained by the media showed that one out of three positive rapid antigen tests have been proved false through the more reliable PCR tests after 13 February.
        VATICAN CITY, Vatican - Pope Francis appointed priest of the Maribor Archdiocese Maksimilijan Matjaž as the new Celje bishop. Succeeding Stanislav Lipovšek, who stepped down in 2018 after turning 75, Matjaž has so far been a professor of Biblical studies at the Ljubljana Faculty of Theology.
        ROME, Italy - The Italian Agriculture Ministry addressed a letter to the European Commission opposing Slovenia's draft regulation on the quality of vinegar and acetic acid dilute, which also defines balsamic vinegar. The countries have until 3 June to provide any additional explanations.
        KOPER - The Italian Union, an association of the Italian ethnic minority in Slovenia, urged the government to reconsider imposing new border restrictions in a bid to prevent the import of new coronavirus variants, warning of the impact the step would have on cross-border cooperation.
        LJUBLJANA - Banks and savings banks in Slovenia received until the end of February a total of 28,485 applications under the government's scheme that enables borrowers to request a deferral of loan payments. More than 85% of the applications have been approved, with total exposure amounting to EUR 2.6 billion, the central bank said.
        LJUBLJANA - The insurance group Sava said it had generated EUR 674.9 million in operating revenue in 2020, up 15.5% compared to 2019, while net profit increased by 12.3% to EUR 56.4 million, according to the unaudited results.
        LJUBLJANA - SKB Banka posted a net profit of EUR 34.85 million last year, down 35.6% compared to 2019, in what is largely a consequence of the Covid-19 epidemic that affected all areas of operation of the banking group.
        PORTOROŽ - Spa operator Terme Čatež confirmed that it had sold Marina Portorož but would not disclose the buyer. The media said the buyer came from Japan and the price was below EUR 15 million.

SATURDAY, 6 March
        WASHINGTON, US - The US Department of State told the STA it was monitoring threats against journalists and the integrity of public media in Slovenia closely. Freedom of the press is a fundamental principal of democracy, and the US is looking forward to continuing to partner with Slovenia to promote the open exchange of ideas, it said.
        LJUBLJANA - Police Commissioner Anton Olaj told the newspaper Delo there were indications some police investigations had been politically motivated. He noted that the success of criminal procedure depended most on prosecution. He agrees with the opposition's demand to set up a parliamentary inquiry into alleged political pressure on the police.
        TORUN, Poland - Tina Šutej won silver in the women's pole vault at the European Athletics Indoor Championship, jumping over 4.70 metres to match her best season result. It was the first medal for Slovenia in twelve years at European indoor championships.
        ZREČE - Slovenia's veteran snowboarder Žan Košir won the Snowboard World Cup parallel giant slalom event only days after a disappointing performance by the home favourite at the World Championships at the same venue.

SUNDAY, 7 March
        LJUBLJANA - The Health Ministry, the Government Communication Office and the National Institute of Public Health said they were preparing a Covid-19 vaccination promotion campaign for specific target groups. A website on the vaccination is being set up and a campaign on social networks will be held under the hashtag "CepimoSe" (Let's get vaccinated).
        LJUBLJANA - The latest public opinion poll commissioned by commercial broadcaster Nova24TV showed the senior coalition Democrats (SDS) enjoying 19% support, followed by the opposition Social Democrats (SD) with 12.1%.

MONDAY, 8 March
        LJUBLJANA - After cases of the UK, South Africa and Nigeria variants of coronavirus were confirmed in Slovenia, a variant first detected in Brazil was confirmed as well. "The variant has been detected in the Maribor area, for the time being in three persons within a family with a negative epidemiological anamnesis," government's chief Covid-19 adviser Mateja Logar said.
        LJUBLJANA - Secondary school students in years 1-3 joined their final-year peers as secondary schools fully reopened under model C, meaning half of the class will be in school for a week while the other half will continue learning from home.
        LJUBLJANA - Bars and restaurants in two eastern regions, Posavje and South-east Slovenia, started serving food and drinks outdoor. Guests are served outdoors between 6am and 7pm and they have to leave the establishment by 7:30pm.
        LJUBLJANA - Foreign Ministry State Secretary Gašper Dovžan held a conference call with Molly Montgomery, deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs at the US Department of State. The officials discussed preparations for Slovenia's EU presidency in the second half of the year.
        LJUBLJANA - Only one contractor has submitted a bid for a second part of the planned Koper-Divača rail section, 2TDK, the state-run company managing the project announced, as a consortium led by Slovenian Kolektor CPG valued the works on the Črni Kal-Koper section at EUR 224.75 million, excluding VAT.
        LJUBLJANA - Senior officials called for continued efforts to improve gender equality on International Women's Day, praising women's contribution to the battle against Covid-19. President Borut Pahor noted uncompleted efforts for equality and expressed his "special gratitude for the women's priceless contribution in coping with the Covid-19 epidemic".
        LJUBLJANA - A hospitality bill that has recently been sent into public consultation brings stricter rules for leasing flats and houses to tourists on platform such as Airbnb. Service providers will have to get registered, have an ID number, and obtain certain permits.
        LJUBLJANA - Tatjana Mlakar was appointed by parliament the new director general of the ZZZS public health insurer for a four-year term. She succeeds Marjan Sušelj, who has led ZZZS as acting head after his term expired on 2 March.

TUESDAY, 9 March
        LJUBLJANA - PM Janez Janša called on STA director 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," Janša tweeted. 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.
        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 European 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.
        LJUBLJANA - FM Anže Logar talked with his Algerian counterpart Sabri Boukadoum over the telephone about ways to enhance bilateral cooperation between the two countries. They called for boosting political dialogue and economic cooperation and touched on regional issues, in particular the latest developments in Libya and the Sahel region.
        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.
        LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Environment Committee adopted amendments to the water act changes under which hazardous substances could be used under certain condition by production facilities located in water protection areas. The opposition warned of harmful effects for water sources.
        LJUBLJANA - The government said it was launching a free-of-charge testing campaign near border crossings with Italy. Rapid antigen testing is available for commuters, students being schooled across the border and owners of property across the border.

WEDNESDAY, 10 March
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - European Commission Vice President for Values and Transparency Vera Jourova pointed to continuous attempts to undermine the sustainable funding and the independence of the STA at an European Parliament debate on media freedom. Slovenian MEPs of the centre-right EPP Romana Tomc (SDS) and Franc Bogovič (SLS) rejected allegations about the Slovenian government exerting pressure on Slovenian media.
        SLOVENJ GRADEC - President Borut Pahor said he wished Slovenia were not the subject of debates in the European Parliament, in particular when it comes to freedom of the media. He said media freedom was "foundational to democratic life".
        LJUBLJANA - Karl Erjavec stepped down as president of the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS), saying it was no longer the party he led for 15 years. Until a new full-fledged leader is elected, the party will be headed by Anton Balažek, one of the two vice-presidents. Erjavec recently took a corporate job at telecoms equipment maker Iskratel, where he will advise the CEO on expansion to foreign markets.
        BRDO PRI KRANJU - The government extended the majority of coronavirus restrictions by another week as it prolonged the state of the epidemic by another 30 days as part of its weekly review of measures. The one relaxation the government opted for is allowing all construction services to reopen as of 15 March without the need for workers to be tested.
        LJUBLJANA - Supervisors of Telekom Slovenije appointed a new management board headed by CEO Cvetko Sršen, who comes to Telekom from postal operator Pošta Slovenije. He will be joined by another long-time Telekom employee Mitja Štular, and Tomaž Jontes, who has been with Telekom since 2002.
        LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Justice Committee endorsed amendments to the act on the state prosecution that lay down the selection criteria for Slovenia's two members of the European Public Prosecutor's Office, amidst complaints by the opposition that the required level of knowledge of English was an unnecessary condition.
        LJUBLJANA - Kolektor CPG, which submitted the lowest bid for main works on the first section of the Koper-Divača rail track, was picked as the winner over a consortium led by Austria's Strabag. Kolektor CPG offered to build the Divača-Črni Kal section for EUR 403.6 million, almost EUR 60 million less than Strabag.
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's energy group HSE and its subsidiary TEŠ reached a EUR 261 million out-of-court settlement with the US group General Electric as legal successor to French Alstom over the infamous TEŠ6 generator project, the cost of which has ballooned to EUR 1.4 billion amid allegations of corruption.
        CELJE - Chemical company Cinkarna Celje saw its net profit drop by 12% last year to EUR 18.95 million as revenue remained broadly flat with the year before at EUR 172.4 million, despite a drop in sale prices of titanium dioxide pigment, its main product.
        RIJEKA, Croatia - Chess player Laura Unuk became the first Slovenian woman to win the International Master title awarded by the international chess governing body FIDE, the second highest-ranking title in chess. Unuk won the title by bagging a victory at the chess tournament Mediterranean Flowers.
        LJUBLJANA - Vladimir Kukavica said he would step down as the director of the Foundation for Funding Disability and Humanitarian Organisations (FIHO) on 30 April, citing a lack of transparency at FIHO and some council members acting against the foundation's interests. The development comes after an unfavourable report from the anti-graft commission.

THURSDAY, 11 March
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenia saw its average daily increase in coronavirus infections over the past seven days drop to 705 after another 860 people tested positive on Wednesday, 10 March. The situation in hospitals improved further with 453 Covid-19 patients hospitalised. However, officials expressed concern in view of the spread of the new, highly-virulent variants as an additional 155 cases of the UK strain had been confirmed in Slovenia in the past week.
        LJUBLJANA - Spanish FM Arancha Gonzalez Laya pledged her country's support for Slovenia's presidency of the EU Council in the second half of the year as she met her counterpart Anže Logar as part of an official visit. The pair also talked about resilience of the EU and migrations, which are among the presidency's priorities.
        MARIBOR - The newspaper Delo reported that the Maribor Higher Court had dismissed a damages claim by the ruling Democrats (SDS) against the state over the Patria defence corruption trial a second time in a retrial. The court told the paper the judgement had become final on 5 January. The SDS claimed over EUR 886,000 in pecuniary damages.
        ORMOŽ - The Italian group Safilo announced it would close its eyewear production plant in Slovenia in June to adjust production capacities to meet changing demand. A total of 557 workers will lose jobs. The development took both trade unions and the municipality of Ormož by surprise and came after Safilo closed two plants in Italy.
        LJUBLJANA - The new, 27-km railway line between the port of Koper and the Divača hub will cost EUR 1.126 billion, or 6.8% less than initially estimated, 2TDK, the state-owned company managing the country's largest infrastructure project, announced after it has updated the investment programmed from January 2019, when its price tag was EUR 1.194 billion.
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenia Sovereign Holding (SSH), the manager of state assets, published a letter of intent for the takeover of spa operator Terme Olimija, in what is yet another step in the plan to create the State Hospitality Fund.
        LJUBLJANA - The government endorsed the appointment of Tomaž Ivešić as the new director of the Study Centre for National Reconciliation, following the resignation of Andreja Valič Zver, who had led the centre since its inception in 2008. Ivešić was appointed for a five-year term starting on 1 April.
        LJUBLJANA - The government appointed Damjan Žugelj acting director of the Office for Money Laundering Prevention. He will take over on 15 March from Ivan Kopina, who resigned earlier this month after serving as acting director for nearly a year.
        KOPER - The logistics group Intereuropa saw its sales revenue drop by 6% year-on-year to EUR 150.7m in 2020, while net profit was down by 15% to EUR 3.6 million, shows the unaudited annual report.
        CANTERBURY, UK - Media reported that a court in the English town of Canterbury had sentenced at the end of February a Slovenian lorry driver caught smuggling drugs last April to 15 years in prison. A 50-year-old man was reportedly arrested in Dover after 81 kilos of cocaine and three kilos of heroin were found in his truck.

STA, 12 March 2021 - Radio Študent has avoided losing the funding from the University of Ljubljana's Student Organisation (ŠOU) entirely, but says that the EUR 84,000 it will receive for this year nevertheless represents only 70% of last year's sum from ŠOU's budget, which will not be enough for the radio station to function smoothly.

The small independent radio station was at risk of losing funding from the organisation altogether as the first draft of the budget of its founder ŠOU, adopted in early January, envisaged no funds for Radio Študent.

The new version of the budget, adopted yesterday, sees EUR 84,000 earmarked for the radio station, which its the management and editorial board said today posed a threat of serious consequences.

A cut from last year's EUR 120,000, the sum is not sufficient for Radio Študent to function normally, as the core journalist activities, the training programme and many other radio projects will be severely hampered.

Radio Študent added that there were no quick solutions to compensate for the budget cut and that the "development plans for the radio will have to give way to innovative survival strategies due to the reduction of funding by the founder".

The management expects struggle for survival and says it would need to work hard to preserve independence and financial stability of the station, whose survival has been demanded by "almost the entire relevant public home and abroad".

Radio Študent added that the financing problem did not stem from the current financial situation of the founder, but that it was "planned destruction and disciplining of the media outlet that does not bow to the ruling student elite".

Funding of the radio station, launched in 1969, has been on decline for almost a decade. In 2012 it received EUR 230,000, but only EUR 120,000 last year when, during the Covid-29 epidemic, the radio station intensified its reporting and programmes.

The radio station has more than 200 young contributors, who make 17 hours of live radio shows a day.

STA, 12 March 2021 - The government adopted a revised national vaccination strategy at a correspondence session on Friday, making some minor changes after it revised the document adopted on 3 December at the start of March. The strategy now says vaccines will be provided to all residents with permanent or temporary residence, not just to Slovenian citizens.

Soldiers were meanwhile added to the nine groups to be prioritised for vaccines together with police officers, while previously only soldiers leaving for missions abroad were on the priority list.

Earlier in the day, Slovenian Olympic Committee (OKS) secretary general Blaž Perko said the OKS would like Slovenian athletes who will go to the Tokyo Olympics to be vaccinated earlier than planned now.

Under the vaccination strategy, they are in group eight of the nine groups, meaning they will get a jab just before the games, he told the STA.

Perko believes this would be too late for the vaccine to be effective while posing a risk of "potential bodily reactions", so they would like Tokyo candidates to be placed at least at the level of diplomats.

"As ambassadors of the state, athletes represent the state at the international level, so they have to travel and thereby risk getting infected and transmitting the disease".

The strategy was also upgraded with the data about the vaccines in line with the information provided by the country's Agency for Medicinal Products.

What is more, the Oncology Institute in Ljubljana, the country's main cancer treatment centre, was added to the list of vaccination centres.

When the strategy was first revised on 1 March, it was announced that 61 vaccination centres were envisaged, including 13 in hospitals.

Today's revision was needed to bring the document in line with "certain new scientific circumstances related to the vaccines" and to harmonise it with the 7th anti-coronavirus stimulus package, the press release from the Government Communication Office said.

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This summary is provided by the STA: 

Year into office, govt pledges to fight Covid on, implement coalition agreement

BRDO PRI KRANJU - PM Janez Janša pledged for the government to respond to a third wave of the coronavirus epidemic, which he said could realistically be expected, and implement key commitments in the coalition agreement, as he addressed reporters with the other coalition leaders a day before a year will have passed since his government assumed office. "If there are no major surprises, we can make up for last year's contraction in GDP this year," Janša said. He announced that apart from the fight against Covid-19, the government's key projects in the year ahead to the regular election would be de-bureaucratisation, decentralisation, tackling long-term care and reforming the public sector pay system.

Slovenia's exports down 2.8% year on year in January, imports down 8.5%

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's exports were down 2.8% year on year to EUR 2.9 billion in January and imports plunged 8.5% to EUR 2.5 billion for a surplus in external trade in goods of EUR 0.3 billion and exports-to-imports coverage of 113.7%, the Statistics Office said. The trade surplus is the result of more exports to EU countries as well as to non-member countries, with the latter contributing 10% more to the surplus. Slovenia generated almost two-thirds of January's trade with EU countries.

Slovenia not to suspend vaccination with AstraZeneca

LJUBLJANA/VELENJE - The Covid-19 vaccination advisory group of the National Public Health Institute (NIJZ) said there are currently no reasons to suspend vaccination with any of the Covid-19 vaccines, with monitoring showing that they do not cause blood clots and, if they do, this happens very rarely. Today's opinion comes after a few EU member states suspended the administration of AstraZeneca vaccine out of precaution after some vaccinated persons developed complications related to blood clots. It also comes a day after a primary school in the town of Velenje said it would be closed today because 26 teachers took sick leave due to strong reaction to the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Govt changes budget implementation act to finance army

LJUBLJANA - The government adopted on Thursday changes to the 2021 and 2022 budgets implementation act to allow for long-term financing of investments in the Slovenian Armed Forces in line with the long-term programme of army development and the mid-term defence programme. This comes after the Constitutional Court stayed in January the implementation of a new law on EUR 780 million in investments in the Slovenian Armed Forces pending a decision on the constitutionality of the legislation.

SMC staying on in govt with Počivalšek at helm

LJUBLJANA - Meeting over internal tensions for several hours yesterday, the council of the Modern Centre Party (SMC) decided the party is staying in the ruling coalition, according to party leader Zdravko Počivalšek. Coming out of the meeting, he said they had a long, open and thorough discussion, "proving we can unite on key issues". He said they has passed two decisions unanimously: to continue with constructive work in the coalition in order to implement the coalition agreement, and task him with renewing the party for the next election.

7-day average of new infections falls below 700

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia saw another 770 people test positive for coronavirus on Thursday, to push the 7-day average of new cases to 689, data released by the government show. Eight patients with Covid-19 died. Of the 5,222 PCR tests performed yesterday, 14.7% came back positive. In addition, 25,447 rapid antigen tests were performed. For Slovenia to move to a milder, yellow tier of coronavirus restrictions, the 7-day average would have to fall below 600 after Covid hospitalisations have already dropped below 500.

Vaccination strategy revised to cover vaccines for all residents

LJUBLJANA - The government adopted a revised national vaccination strategy at a correspondence session to provide vaccines to all residents with permanent or temporary residence, not just to Slovenian citizens. Soldiers were added to the nine groups to be prioritised for vaccines together with police officers, while previously only soldiers leaving for missions abroad were on the priority list. What is more, the Oncology Institute in Ljubljana, the country's main cancer treatment centre, was added to the list of vaccination centres. The strategy was adopted on 3 December and first revised on 1 March.

Culture ministry responds to media freedom debate in EP

LJUBLJANA - The Culture Ministry, which is responsible for Slovenia's media police, responded to the 5 March public debate in the European Parliament on media freedom in Slovenia with an extensive response. The response says the Slovenian participants made "several incorrect claims", so the ministry wants to present the actual facts and the media situation in the country. For the sake of clarity and length, it limited the response to statements by Professor Marko Milosavljević, as the other Slovenian participants stated similar if not identical claims. The response was sent to all EU institutions, the chair of the Democracy, Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights Monitoring Group Sophie in 't Veld (Renew) and its members.

Committee tightens condition to declare complex migration emergency

LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Home Policy Committee okayed in second reading amendments to the act on aliens that introduce stricter conditions for residence of foreigners in Slovenia and the concept of a complex migration-related emergency. On proposal of the coalition SMC, declaring a complex emergency will require an absolute majority in parliament and not just a simple majority as originally envisaged. A complex emergency means that implementation of the international protection act could be suspended under deteriorating migration-related conditions, and access to asylum could be restricted. The committee also endorsed changes to the international protection act which tighten rules in a bid to eliminate the chance of abuse, while ensuring asylum to those who really need it.

Committee okays four-year declaration on activities in EU institutions

LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary EU Affairs Committee okayed a draft declaration on Slovenia's activities in EU institutions in 2021-2024, although the opposition was critical of the document, saying that it too generalised, leaving too much room for interpretations, and that it covers too long a period. The document focuses on key political topics in the coming period, including sustainable recovery, greater resilience of the EU to new crises, the changing balance of power in the world and EU prospects of the Western Balkans. While previous declarations were limited to one year and a half, the latest one is tied to the term of the European Parliament, i.e. until 2024.

Počivalšek visits Safilo as Ormož plant is slated for closure

ORMOŽ - Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek visited the Ormož-based eyewear production plant after Italian group Safilo announced it would close it in June, with almost 560 jobs to be lost. He said the owner insisted on the closure that comes after Safilo already closed two plants in Italy, but announced that the government would do everything in its power to resolve the situation. The minister said the government had enough funds at its disposal to continue implementing measures to protect jobs, and that solutions for Safilo employees would also include reassignments to other companies.

Pahor, his climate advisors urge closer cooperation with civil society

LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor and his permanent advisory committee on climate policy urged the government and parliament not to fast-track the planned changes to the water act that would allow construction of production facilities using hazardous substances in water protection areas under certain condition. The release from Pahor's office also says that at the end of March, Pahor and the committee will host a conference on the national recovery and resilience plan.

Task group to discuss pay system changes with health unions, says minister

LJUBLJANA - The Health Ministry will appoint a task force to launch talks with the health sector trade unions over an option of changing the pay system for health workers, Health Minister Janez Poklukar announced, noting the system should be upgraded to make health professions more attractive. Poklukar said the ministry's representatives met health sector trade unions this week to discuss healthcare challenges. A special bill to regulate health work and performance bonuses was discussed. If the two sides do not reach an agreement, Poklukar allows for a possibility of the single pay system to remain unchanged.

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