Keep up with the daily news in Slovenia by checking the morning headlines here. What to find out what happened last week in Slovenia? Look no further.

The following schedule was prepared by the STA:

MONDAY, 24 February

        THESSALONIKI, Greece - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar will make a working visit to Greece to attend a meeting in support of the enlargement to the Western Balkans in view of the proposal for a new enlargement methodology.
        BRNIK - The police force will accept a new helicopter at a ceremony attended by Police Commissioner Tatjana Bobnar, Interior Minister Boštjan Poklukar and PM Marjan Šarec.
        LJUBLJANA - A protest will be held in front of the UK embassy as a hearing starts in London to decide whether to extradite WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange. Meanwhile, a translation of his memoir will be launched at an event attended by former Human Rights Ombudsman Matjaž Hanžek and Amnesty International Slovenija director Nataša Posel.
        LJUBLJANA - The Statistics Office will release the business sentiment index for February.
        LJUBLJANA - The Mountaineering Film Festival will get under way, until 1 March.
        LJUBLJANA - A week-long winter break starts for primary and secondary schools in the eastern half of Slovenia.

TUESDAY, 25 February
        LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor will hold a second round of consultations on the potential to nominate a PM-designate before the deadline expires and a snap election is called. He will only meet the SDS, SMC, NSi, DeSUS and SAB, as other parties have already opted for a fresh election.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - Foreign Ministry State Secretary Matej Marn will attend a session of the EU General Affairs Council discussing the future EU-UK relationship and the proposal to reform enlargement process.

WEDNESDAY, 26 February
        LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Foreign Policy Committee will debate a report on development cooperation and the National Assembly's international activities.
        LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Finance Committee will discuss harmful effects of privatisation at a session called by the Left.
        GENEVA, Switzerland - Foreign Ministry State Secretary Matej Marn will take part in a ministerial session of the UN Human Right Council. He will discuss the effects of artificial intelligence on human tights.
        LJUBLJANA - National Assembly Speaker Dejan Židan will receive Lord German, a member of the UK House of Lords.
        LJUBLJANA - The newspaper Finance will hold a panel debate on the European green deal.
        LJUBLJANA - A round-table debate on violation of principles that authorities should observe when drawing up laws and regulations, Public Administration Minister Rudi Medved to be on hand.
        PIRAN - A concert featuring Italian violinist Salvatore Accardo and the New Ferruccio Busoni Chamber Orchestra will mark the 250th anniversary of the death of composer Giuseppe Tartini.
        LJUBLJANA - The STA and the National Football Association will host a debate on the centenary of organised football in Slovenia.

THURSDAY, 27 February
        LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Culture Committee will discuss the impact of the alleged Hungarian financing of media with ties to the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) at a session called at the behest of the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ).
        LJUBLJANA - The outgoing government is expected to convene a weekly session.
        LJUBLJANA - The Pension and Disability Insurance Institute (ZPIZ) will debate its report for 2019.
        LJUBLJANA - The shareholders' meeting of tourism company Sava Turizem will decide on absorption of hotel operator Hoteli Bernardin and on a recapitalisation. Hoteli Bernardin shareholders will decide on the merger a day later.
        LJUBLJANA - The Culture Ministry will announce the shortlist for the 2025 European Capital of Culture.
        LJUBLJANA - The National Gallery will launch an exhibition of Dachau drawings by Zoran Mušič.

FRIDAY, 28 February
        LJUBLJANA - The 30-day window in which President Borut Pahor can put forward a PM-designate to prevent an early election will expire.
        LJUBLJANA - The Statistics Office will release data on GDP growth for 2019 and the consumer price index for February.
        LJUBLJANA - Insurance group Sava Re will present its operating results for 2019 and its strategy by 2022 at a press conference.
        KOPER - Port operator Luka Koper will release its financials for 2019.
        LJUBLJANA - Call M for Macbeth, a production directed by Matjaž Pograjc based on William Shakespeare's Macbeth, will premiere.

SATURDAY, 29 February
        LJUBLJANA - A talk with German author Bernhard Schlink will launch the international literary festival Fabula; until 8 March.

SUNDAY, 1 March
        LJUBLJANA - House of Tolerance, a festival organised by the theatre Mini Teater and the Ljubljana Jewish Cultural Centre, will get under way, to run until 6 March.

The covers and editorials from leading weeklies of the Left and Right for the work-week ending Friday, 21 February 2020

Mladina: SDS puts autocratic tendencies on open display

STA, 21 February 2020 - The left-wing weekly paper Mladina argues in its latest editorial that unlike in the past, the Democrats (SDS) do not even bother to conceal the wolf hiding under their sheep's clothing, immediately revealing their revenge-driven, arrogant and autocratic view of politics and the state.

Things got real much sooner than expected, Mladina's editor-in-chief Grega Repovž says, highlighting the threat issued by SDS MP Žan Mahnič to Police Commissioner Tatjana Bobnar as well as SDS head Janez Janša's statement that the SDS was discussing the editorial policy at the left-leaning daily Dnevnik.

"Coming from any other politician, this would perhaps be understood as a (bad) joke. But not with Janša. Because he already did this. And is doing it," Repovž says in Has the Election Campaign Already Begun?.

"He is interfering in the media all the time, if needed he will sell the nation's silverware (retailer Mercator in exchange for influence on the papers Večer and Delo) or even his own political sovereignty (he did it when he took millions from Hungary to build a media empire)," Repovž says.

Mladina's editor speaks of Janša's obsession with the media and his blaming of allegedly exclusively left-oriented media for his failures, while pointing out that Janša's term at helm of the SDS has been the longest among any heads of serious political parties in Europe.

Repovž argues that the latest developments are only a repeated demonstration of what makes the SDS a party that no serious democratic party is able to cooperate with.

He then turns to the Modern Centre Party (SMC), which he says will make the unoriginal mistake of entering an SDS-led coalition only to gradually disappear while giving absolutely everything to Janša - the latter will in turn say thank you and go to an early election.

Reporter: Deep State & Janša

STA, 17 February 2020 - Reflecting on Janez Janša's chances to form a government this term, the latest editorial of the right-leaning weekly magazine Reporter speculates that a short-lived Janša government may be in the interest of the deep state.

Under the headline Coincidental Prime Minister-Designate, editor-in-chief Silvester Šurla writes that Janša, the leader of the Democrats (SDS), probably has a better chance forming a government now than after an early election unless the balance of power between the left and right changed substantially.

Being that the ballot to appoint PM-designate is secret and that many MPs are "trembling about where to find new jobs", Janša should not have difficulty securing 46 votes.

"The problem could emerge later; the new government, like the Šarec cabinet would be in the draught all the time. Janša (...) is probably aware of that. It is obvious he desires immensely to be prime minister, the question is whether also at all cost.

"Even more than Janša, a new government is desired by SMC [Modern Centre Party] leader Zdravko Počivalšek (...) polls show it would be hard for the SMC to make it to parliament in a snap election, so Počivalšek is hoping to enhance the party under Janša."

Šurla finds that the biggest problem for a new Janša coalition is the SMC because it is still not clear how many MP votes the party can secure with at least two or even half of the SMC's ten MPs rumoured to be opposed to a Janša-led coalition.

The paper notes that the Marjan Šarec minority government saw the start of its end when the Left denied its support, wondering whether the leader of the Left Luka Mesec might have been ordered to make the move because of a new master plan ready in the background.

"Considering that the opportunity for a new government literally landed in Janša's arms even though parties left of the centre have as many as 52 members in parliament this term, the potential role of the so-called deep state should not be overlooked.

"What if it is in the interest of the uncles behind the scenes to have Janša return to power for a short while so that his government take some urgent, unpopular measures, which would spark off a revolt in the form of 'popular uprisings' that would bring new faces of the 'transition left' back to power?"

All our posts in this series are here

STA, 22 February 2020 - Ana Soklič will represent Slovenia at the Eurovision Song Contest in Rotterdam in May after winning the Slovenian EMA contest on Saturday with the song Voda (Water).

 Soklič was picked by televote in a super-final that also featured Lina Kuduzović, who as a 12-year-old placed third in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in 2015 after winning the first season of Slovenia's Got Talent at the age of 7 in 2010.

The contest, hosted by comedian and impersonator Klemen Slakonja, saw a total of twelve acts, ten of which were selected by a jury from among 74 entrants with additional two picked among up-and-coming artists in an online competition EMA Fresh.

The two super-finalists were selected by a jury comprising Darja Švajger and Nuša Derenda, Slovenia's highest ranked Eurovision entrants to date in 7th in 1995 and 2001, and Maja Keuc, who made it to 13th in 2011.

STA, 22 February 2020 - The Slovenian team finished second in the Ski Jumping World Cup event for women in Ljubno ob Savinji, finishing only behind Austria, as the two-day meet at Savina Ski Jumping Centre started on Saturday with some 8,000 spectators in attendance.

Nika Križnar, Špela Rogelj, Katra Komar and Ema Klinec, who led the standings after the first round, combined for a total of 1,005.1 points, while the Austrians scored 1,008.7.

The second place for Slovenia repeats the success from last year, although this time the women's team was much closer to the first place, which they had to concede to the favoured Austrians.

Led by Chiara Hölzl, who currently leads the World Cup standings, Austria overtook Slovenia to claim the first place, while Norway, headed by the Olympic champion Maren Lundby, were third (960.2).

Križnar had the best performance in the Slovenian team, and the second-best individual result overall. "I had two really excellent jumps today. I tried to do my best ... and the final jump, which was more relaxed, was really good."

Klinec, currently the best Slovenian in the World Cup, said that the home venue had provided her with an additional momentum, "making everything much simpler" and adding that it was "really an excellent competition."

Head coach Zoran Zupančič is satisfied, too. "We had aimed at a podium finish, while being aware that the Austrians are absolute favourites. The girls worked exceptionally hard, they 'exploded', which is what must happen in team events."

The two-day meet in northern Slovenia will conclude on Sunday with an individual competition, which in addition to Klinec and Križnar, two of the top ten competitors this World Cup season, will see another seven Slovenians competing.

Ljubno ob Savinji is hosting the women's World Cup for ninth year in a row, with the organisers expecting that up to 15,000 spectators will show up in the two days.

* Results of the World Cup team event in Ljubno ob Savinji:
1 Austria      1,008.7 points
(Iraschko-Stolz 85.5/90, Kramer 85/90, Pinkelnig 93/92, Hölzl 80.5/88.5)
2 Slovenia     1,005.1
(Križnar 92/94, Rogelj 89/86, Komar 83.5/82, Klinec 88.5/89)
3 Norway         960,2
(Odine Ström 86.5/89, Björseth 82.5/75, Opseth 88.5/85, Lundby 84.5/91.5)
4 Germany        916.4
5 Russia         913.4

Check the date at the top of the page, and you can find all the "morning headlines" stories here. You can also follow us on Facebook and get all the news in your feed.

A schedule of all the main events involving Slovenia this week can be found here

This summary is provided by the STA:

Počivalšek says talks with SDS to conclude soon, regardless of outcome

MARIBOR - Zdravko Počivalšek, the head of the Modern Centre Party (SMC), discussed for Večer the talks with the Democrats (SDS) on the formation of a new coalition, saying that they would be soon concluded either in the sense of an agreement or the four parties parties realising that no constructive conclusion could be made. In an interview for the Maribor-based paper, the economy minister has said that the talks, which also feature New Slovenia (NSi) and the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS), were nearing the end when it comes to the programme. Počivalšek was also asked about the collapse of the Marjan Šarec government, of which the SMC was a part, saying that the way in which the coalition had been managed was inappropriate.

Two Slovenian passengers from Diamond Princess arrive home

LJUBLJANA - Two Slovenian passengers from the quarantined cruise ship Diamond Princess were flown home on a chartered flight, touching down in Maribor after being airlifted from Japan to Germany, Andrej Šter of the Foreign Ministry told the press. The two, who will be in self-isolation at home for two weeks, were tested for the novel coronavirus at the Maribor airport, and the results were negative. They flown in from Berlin Tegel airport, to where they arrived in an Italian military aircraft from Tokyo along with citizens of seven other European countries. Of the total of six Slovenian passengers on the ship, two have tested positive and have been admitted to a hospital in Japan. Another two Slovenians had returned home earlier on a commercial flight and had been placed under a two-week quarantine after renewed tests for the virus turned out negative.

Janša wants National Security Council session over coronavirus

LJUBLJANA - The head of the Democrats (SDS) Janez Janša called on the caretaker government to call a session of the National Security Council to discuss the spreading of the novel coronavirus COVID-19. Janša said on Twitter on Saturday he also expected a "crisis staff" to be established and include all who can help the cause, and effective control to be carried out on the critical entry points to Slovenia. He also said that he expected from the government to update the public on the developments related to the novel coronavirus.

Slovenia advances the most in Bloomberg Innovation Index

NEW YORK, US - Slovenia has advanced ten spots to place 21st in the 2020 Bloomberg Innovation Index, which is the greatest improvement among all 60 countries surveyed for the list. Slovenia scored a total of 73.93 points out of the 100 possible, compared to 88.21 by the first-ranked Germany, faring the best in value-added manufacturing (8th). "Big winners among 2020's ranked economies were led by Slovenia, which gained 10 spots to No. 21 on the back of a 34-tier improvement in patent activity," Bloomberg noted. Placing the highest is Germany, which has overtaken South Korea after the latter's six year streak as the most innovative nation.

FM thanks Slovenians in Sweden for preserving language, identity

STOCKHOLM, Sweden - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar attended a meeting of the Slovenian Association in Sweden as part of his working visit to the country. Cerar thanked his compatriots in Sweden for preserving the Slovenian identity and mother tongue, the Foreign Ministry said. "The Slovenian community in Sweden is one of the largest Slovenian communities in this part of Europe," the foreign minister said as he addressed the meeting. Cerar stressed that the compatriots in Sweden were key in bringing Sweden and Slovenia closer together, and expressed support to their work and promotion of Slovenia in culture, business, science and education.

Slovenia second at women's Ski Jumping World Cup team event in Ljubno

LJUBNO OB SAVINJI - The Slovenian team finished second in the Ski Jumping World Cup event for women in Ljubno ob Savinji, finishing only behind Austria, as the two-day meet at Savina Ski Jumping Centre started, with some 8,000 spectators in attendance. Nika Križnar, Špela Rogelj, Katra Komar and Ema Klinec, who led the standings after the first round, combined for a total of 1,005.1 points, while the Austrians scored 1,008.7. The second place for Slovenia repeats the success from last year. Led by Chiara Hölzl, who currently leads the World Cup standings, Austria overtook Slovenia to claim the first place, while Norway, headed by the Olympic champion Maren Lundby, were third (960.2).

Visiting Ljubljana? Check out what's on this week, while all our stories on Slovenia, from newest to oldest, are here

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

If you're not in town for the week of this guide (24 February - 1 March, 2020) then you can see all the editions here, and if there's event or activity you want to promote in a future edition of What's on in Ljubljana please get in touch with me at flanner(at)total-slovenia-news.com or try and find me on Facebook. If you want something a little different and easy to print, then a comprehensive PDF of events for the next seven days, as prepared by Ljubljana Tourism, is here. If you're in town and want to follow the news then check out our regular morning headlines for Slovenia here.

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Eurovision will soon be upon us, and this week there’s a chance to see last year’s entry from Slovenia, now performing under the name ZALAGASPER, presenting their new album at Kino Šiška, 20:00, Thursday 27 February.

Why would anyone want to eat Dinner in the Dark? Learn more about this unique experience in Ljubljana here.

Thursday, 27 February, 19:30 the Križanke Summer Theatre will host Lara Oprešnik (piano) and Aris Vehovec (oboe), in the free to enter 10th concert of the international music cycle Young Virtuosi, with a programme that includes Mozart, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Bach, Poulenc, and Oprešnik. Same evening, same time, but in Cankarjev dom and for a price, you can hear a programme of Beethoven, Haydn, and Mozart, with the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra, Ibrahim Yazici (conductor) and Fazil Say (piano) – tickets. The same show is on Friday. The following piece will be played.

From Friday to Sunday the Ljubljana International Swing Academy will be happening, and “amazing dance/party weekend that will bring you lots of good dances, great music, new friends, new knowledge and an authentic Slovenian experience. Details.

Friday Kino Šiška, 20:00, the French post-metal duo Alcest will be appearing here, with support from + Birds In Row and Kælan Mikla. Friday is also Jazz Night at the Castle, and this week it’s Gabrič-Kampl-Leonardi.

Friday and Saturday SNG Opera and Ballet have Verdi’s Luisa Miller. The overture’s above. Friday and Saturday also see extra performances of the Pocket Teater’s (sic) very popular and usually sold out vaudeville show, Matilda Let’s Do it. Details.

Saturday, 29 February 2020, there’s Maslenica Festiva(l) – as shown at the top of this story - a free and fully public event in the Central Market, between Triple Bridge and Dragon Bridge, closer to the former and on the Castle side of the river. Here you can enjoy performances of Slavic traditions, folklore, singing and dance groups presented by all participating countries. Stalls selling souvenirs and handicrafts will be arranged plus the opportunity to attend workshops and learn the skills involved in producing them. There will also be stalls selling typical food dishes from far and wide". Looks like a good place to buy Russian food and drink, along with pancakes. Some more details.

Saturday night is K4 Roza: Taste of Berlin at Klub K4, with the sounds provided by Ady Toledano, Touché, aMinus and Holomondo.

Want to advertise in this space? Learn more here.

Still open until 5 March, 2020, Magic Ice-rink Lumpi Park offers 600 m2 of the covered ice surface and 180 m of ice-skating paths which enable you to skate through the Sports park Savsko naselje, at Kranjčeva ulica 24. Details here.

New, new-ish and notable movies in town this week include the following, while Onward starts in March. Kinoteka also continues its Nicolas Cage season, including Adaptation and Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans.

A new book came out recently that tells some of the stories of Trubarjeva cesta – you can learn more about it here. If you want to buy a copy, look / ask around on your next visit to the street.

Ljubljana is forecast to be the fastest-warming city in the world over the next few decades.

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 How much do tourists spend in Slovenia? Find out here

You may have heard about Free Tour Ljubljana, the tour company that’s #1 on TripAdvisor for the city and gives away its main product. What’s the deal with that? Find out here.

While the Old Town is quaint, and full of music, where does Ljubljana really shop? One popular answer is BTC City, a vast complex of malls, entertainment facilities and more, including more than 70 different food vendors, offering everything from Slovenian to Thai, Indian to Italian, Mexican to Chinese. Check out a visit before the recent renovation was finished for some idea of what's on offer here.

You're in the town of Slavoj Žižek, but do you find yourself lost when conversation turns to the philosopher? If so, check out our collection of quotes and clips to learn more.

K-pop band Red Velvet came to Ljubljana - with English subtitles

Contents

• Cinemas and films
• Clubbing
• Live music
• Theatre and dance
• Harm reduction and drug testing
• Things to do with children
• LGBT+ Ljubljana
• Ljubljana Castle
• Museums and galleries
• Other things to do in Ljubljana
• Daytrips
• Getting around
• Emergencies

Cinemas and films

You can read about all the cinemas in town here, while a selection of what’s playing this week is below, and note that kids' movies tend to be shown in dubbed versions, while non-English language movies for older viewers will have Slovenian subtitles.Parents should also pay attention to Kinobalon, which is Kinodvor's regular weekend series of film screenings and events for children, from babies on up, with special parent/child events, "first time in a cinema" screenings, and babysitting. Learn more about it here, and see the current schedule here.

Note - most children's films will be dubbed (sinhronizirano) - for subtitles look for 'podnapisi'.

Kinodvor –This is an arts cinema, not far from the train station, that shows new features as well as hosting the occassional festival.

Kinoteka – And not far from Kinodvor you can find this revival cinema, which shows art house classics along with some deep dives in the archives.

Kino Bežigrad - A relatively small theatre, but one which usually has the biggest of the new releases.

Kolosej -The multiplex out at BTC City Mall shows all the big movies, with well over a dozen titles on the schedule, although note that there are far more movies than screens, so some of the older ones mayonly be playing once or twice a week.

Komuna – The cinema in a basement behind Nama department store shows two or three different features a week, usually including the biggest titles.

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In town and looking for a gift or souvenir? Take a look at Cook Eat Slovenia - the book.

Know that big triangular building behind the train station? Learn what's inside here.

Photo: Genius loci d.o.o.

Clubbing

Compared to some European capitals it can seem that nightlife in Ljubljana ends rather early, especially along the river, but there are still bars that stay open late and clubs were you can dance until dawn, and perhaps the best place to stumble across something interesting is the legendary Metelkova. Be aware it's a grungy kind of place and not for all tastes, but also that there's considerable variety to found within the various clubs there, from death metal to electropop, gay cabaret to art noise. You can read "the rules" of the place here. And if you're curious about how the place started then read our story, and look at some pictures, about last year's 25th anniversary.

Božidar - DJ events aren't too common here, but when they happen they often have a big name.

Channel Zero – DJs shows here include regular dub nights as well as electronic music.

Gala Hala – Another Metelkova venue, you can sometimes hear bhangra and Bollywood here, but more often funk, hip hop, breakbeat and so on.

Klub Cirkus – The more commercial end of clubland, and a venue that aims to serve the student party scene. Expect house, anthems, and bangers.

Klub K4 – The home of techno, old and new, along with various other electronic genres,

Koncertna Dvorana Rog– There are irregular DJ sets at this underground (not literally) venue at the far end of Trubarjeva cesta, and they range from techno to goa to drum'n'bass.

Orto Bar– 80s and 90s throwback nights can often be found here, along with rock-based DJ sets.

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Live music

Balassi Institute – Free Hungarian music, when available, from the Hungarian cultural institute just a short walk downriver from Dragon Bridge.

Cankerjev dom – The main arts venue in the country hosts classical, opera jazz, folk and occassinally pop.

Cvetličarna – Regional pop and rock concerts can be found here.

Channel Zero – This Metelkova venue sees live shows from punk and rock bands, as well as others.

Gala Hala – Another Metelkova venue with indie bands of various styles.

Kino Šiška – One of the top live venues in the city, with a varied programme that include indie, rock, pop, experimental, hip hop, and so on.

Klub Gromka – Live music is often metal, from sludge to stoner, death to thrash, while punk bands also appear, as do others.

Križanke – The venue that hosts the Ljubljana Festival often has classical music, and some rock, in the open air.

Orto Bar– The home of live rock, metal, punk and other guitar-based genres.

Pinelina dnevna soba – LIve music is rare here, but it does happen.

Slovenska filharmonija– Classical music in the centre of town.

SNG Opera and Ballet - As the name suggests, here you'll find the best of opera and ballet in the country.

Španski borci - While dance is more common here, they also have some contemporary and experimental music shows.

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 Slovenska cesta, 1968. Wikimedia. See more pictures of Old Ljubljana here

Theatre and dance

Cankerjev dom- The main arts venue in the country always has something of interest going on.

Gledališče IGLU - IGLU Theatre – Saturday night this group is usually putting on an English improv show somewhere in town, but it’s generally promoted after this is written, so check the Facebook before putting on your shoes.

Kino Šiška – One of the top live venues in the city also hosts some dance performance, often of the more experimental variety.

Mini Teater Ljubljana –The English schedule of varied performances, for adults and children, for the month is here.

Ljubljana Puppet Theatre - Puppetry has a long and noble tradition in Slovenia, and you can see performances for children and adults (including non-puppet shows) drawing from the Theatre's rich repetoire as well as new productons.

SNG Opera and Ballet - As the name suggests, here you'll find the best of opera and ballet in the country.

Španski borci - The home ofcontemporary dance(and the EnKnapGroup) in Slovenia.

Pocket Teater Studio– There are regular flamenco evenings at perhaps the smallest venue town, but note that the number of seats is very limited, and thus you should make a reservation via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 070 325 522.

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Harm reduction and drug testing

Alcoholics Anonymous has an English language meeting every Tuesday, 19:00 in Poljane – email for more details: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Drogart is an organization that aims to minimise harm on the party scene, and offers drug-testing services and reports on their webpage. It’s in Slovene, but you can Google translate it or work things out yourself, and our story on the group is here.You can find the latest warnings on fake drugs and high strength pills and powders (in Slovene) here. However, be aware that all the usual drugs are illegal in Slovenia.

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Photo: Igor Andjelič. See more of his work here

Looking for something different to eat? Trubajeva cesta, running right by Dragon Bridge, has the greatest concentration of "ethnic food" places in Ljubljana, and thus perhaps the country. Check out our walk through guide as of June 2019.

In warmer days than you'll see this week. Photo: JL Flanner

Things to do with children

You can find our Top 12 list of things to do with kids in Ljubljana here. If want to read more about the philosophy behind the wonderful House of Experiments look here, while our trip to the Museum of Illusions is documented here, and there’s always riverside walks, pizza and ice cream. With regard to the latter, take a look at our guide to six places that serve good ice cream in winter, and thus are serious about the dessert.

Mini Teater Ljubljana – The season sees a lot of puppet performances for children, in Slovene, at this theatre not far from Križanke. The English schedule for the month is here.

Ljubljana Puppet Theatre - The puppet theatre near the Central Market and next to the Castle funicular has a full programme or shows, for children and adults, with the schedule here.

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LGBT+ Ljubljana

If you're looking for more general links on "gay Slovenia", including a history of the scene and various projects, then you can find that here, while our stories about the community can be found here.

Klub Monokel – This lesbian bar in Metelkova is open every Friday, although sometimes there are other events

Klub Tiffany –And the gay bar next door is also open on Fridays. Other things coulds also be planned, so click on the name to find out.

Pritličje – This seems to be the only "always open" LGBT-friendly cafe / bar / events space in town, and perhaps the country, so it's a good thing it's such a good one, open from morning to night, and with fliers and posters letting you know what's happening outside the narrow confines of, say, a general interest online what's on... guide.

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Screenshot from Google Maps, showing the location of the Castle vineyard

Ljubljana Castle

The city’s main attraction is said to be the top tourist draw in the country overall, and to my mind it earns a spot near the top just for the history and views. But beyond that the current owners, the City of Ljubljana, have laid out a varied, interesting and enjoyable programme of events, one that rewards regular revisits.

On all 2020 is an Exhibition of Slovenian History, included in the price of a Castle ticket, that takes you through prehistory and the Romans, the Middle and early Modern Ages, the 19th century and WWI, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and WWII, Yugoslavia, independence and after. On until 22 March 2020 you can enjoy an inflatable spatial installation from Nina Koželj (free to enter).

At one of Castle hill there's a many walking and jogging paths, with good views of the city. At the other end, where the Castle sits, there’s a lot more than fresh air on offer. There are guided tours, restaurants, a café, Castle museum, puppet museum, a Watchtower you can climb to the highest point in the city, art shows, dances, live music, movies under the stars, festival days and more – enough to reward multiple trips up the hill through the year. All of these activities and events can be found on the Castle website, while on TSN you can see “25 things to know about Ljubljana Castle” here, and “Ten Ways to Enjoy Ljubljana Castle” here.

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Museums and galleries

Most public galleries and museums are closed on Mondays, although not the National Museum.

Aksioma – On from 19 February 9 March is The Abstraction of Nature by Anna Ridler – “Anna Ridler’s work stands out for her effort to establish a feedback loop between herself and the machine, producing work that displays and thematises the amount of human labour involved in the process, from coding, to producing a dataset, to educating the machine.”

Bežigrajska galerija 2 – Take a trip to Vodovodna cesta 3 and you'll find nothing this week, according to the schedule, as the place will be between exhibitions.

Cankerjev dom – On until 3 March 2020 there's an exhibition on Ancient Greek Science and Technology. Details here.

Plečnik's desk. Photo: JL Flanner

Plečnik’s House is worth a visit if you want to learn more about the architect who gave Ljubljana much of its character, and it's also in a really nice part of town, Trnovo, just a short walk or cycle upriver. Read about our guided tour here. Until 10 May you can see History of the Future. Archetypes of Plečnik's architecture – summarising the ideas of selected Plečnik works.

Balassi Institute – The Hungarian culture centre is next to a Spar and Hofer, and not far from Dragon Bridge, and always has something interesting going on. Learn more here.

City Gallery – On until 5 April there’s a show from Vlado Martek, called Exhibition with Many Titles, the second part of a retrospective exhibition by the Croatian conceptual artist.

City Museum – The Museum in French Revolution Square an interesting permanent exhibition on the history of Ljubljana, from prehistoric times to the present day, with many artefacts, models and so on that bring the story alive.You can read about my visit here. On until August 2020 there’s Book. Reason. Knowledge. From Protestantism to Enlightenment (1500–1800), which presents the processes and events that encouraged and fostered the cultural and spiritual development in Ljubljana from the end of the 15th to the beginning of the 19th century – from humanism and Protestantism to the Enlightenment. More on that here.

The Faces of Ljubljana in the City Museum. Photo: JL Flanner

Drink like a pro - find gallery openings. Photo: JL Flanner

Galerija Kapelica –Eirik Brandal: Electonic sculpture is on until 17 March, with the promotional image shown below.

Galerija Vžigalica – Until 15 March you can enjoy Counter:Movement / Gegen:Bewegung, an exhibition of contemporary artistic positions in Carinthia, selected by the Klagenfurt University Cultural Centre – the Universitätskulturzentrum UNIKUM.

International Centre of Graphic Arts – A show of works by Helena Tahir.

MAO – The Museum of Architecture and Design has much of what you'd expect, along with some temporary shows and a good cafe. On until 31 January 2021 is An Object and a Collection, showing part of the museum’s valuable and extensive collection of objects related to architecture, design, and photography of the 20th and 21st centuries.

Moderna galerija – The main branch of this gallery, to be found near the entrance to Tivoli Park, has a good collection of modern art, as well a nice café in the basement.

Alan Ford was recently at the National Gallery - read more about this comic book here.

National Gallery – The country’s main gallery has “the best” of what’s on offer from the Middle Ages to non-contemporary modern visual arts, and is in a great location for exploring other areas, just by Tivoli Park and opposite the main branch of the Moderna galerija. You can read about our visit to the room containing sacred art from the Middle Ages

The real Robba Fountain can be found in the entrance to the National Gallery - the one you see in the Old Town is a genuine fake, as seen below and reported here.

Photo: JL Flanner

National Museum of Slovenia – There’s plenty to see in the permanent collection here, from Roman times, Egypt and more. Meanwhile, the museum's Metelkova branch, located between one branch of the Moderna galerija and the Ethnographic Museum has some rooms on Church art, furniture and weapons, with the latter including more guns than you'll see anywhere else in town, and quite a thrill if coming from a nation where such objects are not household items. A Millennia of Metallurgy in Slovenia is on until 3 May 2020.

A fragment of a Coptic textile; 5th–6th cent.: Upper Egypt; linen, wool; National Museum of Slovenia. Photo: Tomaž Lauko

Until 24 May 2020 you can see Coptic Textiles from the Collection of the National Museum of Slovenia at the branch in the Metelkova museum quarter, by the Ethnographic Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art. Details.

Natural History Museum – Until 18 June 2020 there’s Enlightened Natural Sciences: Scopoli and Zois, looking at the lives and legacies of two pioneering naturalists, on the both Slovene and global scales, Sigismondo (Žiga) Zois and Giovanni Antonio Scopoli.

National Museum of Contemporary History - Tucked away in park Tivoli, you can see a permanent exhibition on Slovenians in the 20th century.

Slovene Ethnographic Museum – The museum has two permanent exhibitions. One of these is called Between Nature and Culture, and has a great collection of objects from Slovenia and around the world, well worth the trip up to the third floor to see it (as recounted here). Nani in Ljubljana is on until 1 March 2020, in which Nani Poljanec, the folk creator and author of the exhibition, reveals fragments of his life, his roles and his mission. Until the same date there’s also a show on “Ravenski pust”, a Shrovetide custom which, according to village elders, represents an ancient pagan wedding and has been performed for more than a hundred years.

Union Experience – The Ljubljana-based brewer has a museum showing the history of the company, with the ticket also including access to part of the factory and a few samples of the product. You can read about our visit here.

It's not a formal museum, but if you're interested in "Yugo-stalgia" then you'll enjoy a trip to Verba, a small, privately run space that's crammed with objects and pop culture items from the era, and is conveniently located at the start of one of the short walks to the castle. It's also a great place to take pictures, if you leave a donation, and you can read more about it here.

Verba. Photo: JL Flanner

Alternative Ljubljana isn't a museum or gallery, as such, but instead turns the city streets into a museum and gallery. Learn more about their tours of street art, history and LGBT Ljubljana here.

Photo: JL Flanner

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Other things to do in Ljubljana

Learn more about Ljubljana with "25 things to know about Slovenia's green city of dragons", or take a look at our guide to spending from four to 48 hours here.

If you like the city's architecture then check out this great book, Let’s See the City - Ljubljana: Architectural Walks & Tours, with our review here and a page from the book shown above. We took a walk with one of the authors who showed us how much there is to learn and enjoy if you slow down and pay attention - read about that here.

Ljubljana has some beautiful buildings from the early 20^th century, in the Secessionist style, like the one below. Learn where to find them here.

Photo: Neža Loštrek

For something a little more brual, check out Republika trg / Republic Square, in the heart of the political quarter.

Photo: JL Flanner

Photo: JL Flanner

Some view of the city you can only get from the river. If you'd like to take a boat ride then read about my experience here. If you'd like to spend an evening painting with others, then take a look at Design with Wine, which organises painting parties on Trubarjeva cesta,

If you want to see some antiques, then check out the wonderful Antika Carniola, as discussed here. The man behind it, Jaka Prijatelj, has a fine eye for life on this street, as you can see on his Facebook account.

Photo: JL Flanner

If you’re in town and want to go jogging or walking in nature, why not take another look at the Castle, with a brief guide to the trails here. If you want something bigger, head to Tivoli Park.

And if you're bored with the Old Town, why not take a walk, cycle or boat ride to nearby Špica and enjoy the riverside life. Learn more about that here.

visitljubjana.si

Nataraja Studio

Want to stretch and breath? Then check out our list of drop-in yoga classes for tourists, visitors and the uncommitted. We go to Nataraja Studio, by Dragon Bridge, and here's a story about it.

Prefer to have someone else stretch you? The check out the totally legit massages you can get from Sense Wellness - either in one of their spas or in you home, office or hotel. (And - to repeat - these are legit and non-sexual in nature)

There are some golf courses near Ljubljana, but even ones further away are not far, as seen in our list of all the golf courses in Slovenia, which usually run until the first snow.

Photo: maxpixel.net, public domain

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Daytrips

Most of Slovenia is only a few hours from Ljubljana, and you can easily visit Lake Bled, Lipica Stud Farm, Postojna Cave, Predjama Castle, the coast and other locations, while if you'd like to take a photo of from that bench in Bled, then you can learn how to get there here. If you’re looking for something more ambitious, then check out our recent guide to the 17 members of the Association of Historical Towns of Slovenia. We've also written guides on spending from four to 48 hours in Bled and Piran.

Photo: Google Image Search

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Getting around

If you want to get a Ljubljana Tourist Card, which gives you travel on the city buses and entry to a lot of attractions, then you can read more about that here, and if you want to use the bike share system, as useful for visitors as it is for residents, then you can learn more by clicking this. Visitors with reduced mobility will be pleased to find that downtown Ljubljana is generally rated as good with regard to accessibility, and that there’s a free, city-sponsored app called Ljubljana by Wheelchair highlighting cafés, attractions and so on with ramps, disabled bathrooms and Eurokey facilities, which you can read about and download here. Manual wheelchair users can also borrow, for free, an attachment that will motorise their equipment, as reported here.

Screenshot from a Twitter video

If you’re driving into town and don’t know where to park, our guide to how to park in Ljubljana is here.

Emergencies

Ljubljana is a small and relatively safe city, but if need to contact the police then there’s a special number for foreigners, and that’s 113.

Photo: JL Flanner

There aren't many places to eat after midnight, and most of them are by the train station, as reported here.

Want / need cigarettes but the stores have closed? Here's an incomplete list of bars downtown that will satisfy your craving for the demon weed. While if you’re having trouble with the ATMs then here’s a guide to the Slovene you’ll see on screen. If you get a hangover then find out where to get paracetamol (and prescription drugs) in Ljubljana here, while details on emergency birth control can be found here.

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

If you’d like to keep up on the daily headlines then follow those here, or get all our stories in your feed on Facebook.

FRIDAY, 14 February
        MUNICH, Germany - Outgoing PM Marjan Šarec rebuked the EU over excessive self-absorption and inefficiency as he spoke on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. Illustrating, he said the bloc was not even capable of agreeing its expansion to the Western Balkans.
        LJUBLJANA - Outgoing PM Marjan Šarec urged for the chairs of "relevant parliamentary committees" to start actively discussing potentially problematic foreign funding of Slovenian parties and their media outlets. This followed media reports that Hungarian companies were financing media outlets close to Janez Janša's Democratic Party (SDS). Šarec also warned against a potential new Janša-led coalition government.
        LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor announced he would hold a second round of consultations with parliamentary parties on 24 and 25 February to determine whether there is sufficient consensus for him to nominate a prime minister-designate.
        KOMEN - Addressing a World War II commemoration, President Borut Pahor expressed sadness over the "abuse of 10 February, the Foibe Remembrance Day," and regret that senior Italian officials ignored the historical truth Slovenia and Italy established together.
        LJUBLJANA - The Statistics Office reported that the value of construction work put in place in Slovenia increased by 3.3% in 2019, a significant slowdown compared to the 20% expansion in 2018.

SATURDAY, 15 February
        MURSKA SOBOTA - Addressing an event marking the 31st anniversary of the Democratic Party (SDS), its leader Janez Janša said a new early election was likely close despite the SDS being in talks with the Modern Centre Party (SMC), the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) and New Slovenia (NSi) to form a government.
        LJUBLJANA - The Democratic Party (SDS) polled at 20.1% in a survey commissioned by broadcaster Nova24TV, up 1.8 percentage point from a week ago, followed by the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) at 12.8% (down 4.4pp) and the Social Democrats (SD) at 6.5%.
        LJUBLJANA - Stojan Nikolić, the CEO of the power group HSE, indicated in an interview with Dnevnik that TEŠ6, Slovenia's newest coal-fired generator, was likely to close down early because its supplier, the Velenje mine, was unlikely to be viable after 2045.
        KRANJSKA GORA - Local Meta Hrovat paced third at the Alpine Ski World Cup giant slalom event for the Golden Fox Cup along with Swiss Wendy Holdener, following Alice Robinson of New Zealand in first and Slovak Petra Vlhova in second. Vlhova secured the Golden Fox trophy by finishing first in the slalom on Sunday. The two-day event attracted 10,000 spectators.
        PTUJ - The 60th Kurentovanje carnival, Slovenia's largest, got under way, bringing together more than 2,200 traditional costumed figures or 44 groups from across the world, including four costumes protected by UNESCO.

SUNDAY, 16 February
        MUNICH, Germany - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar attended panels on the Western Balkans and the Three Seas Initiative and held a number of bilateral meetings at the 2020 Munich Security Conference.
        BAD MITTERNDORF, Austria - Timi Zajc placed third at the Ski Jumping World Cup event to secure a second podium at the same venue after finishing second the day before for his third podium finish this winter.
        CHICAGO, US - Luka Dončić scored 8 points in the 2020 NBA All Star Game, contributing four passes for the winning Team LeBron, headed by the legendary LeBron James of the LA Lakers. Team LeBron won the game 157 to 155 against Team Giannis, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks.

MONDAY, 17 February
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar, attending the Foreign Affairs Council, assessed that European Council President Charles Michel's proposal for the EU's 2021-2027 budget was still inadequate for Slovenia despite slight improvements in cohesion policy.
        LJUBLJANA - Jernej Pavlič, secretary general of the Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB), denied the speculation that the party was considering joining a potential centre-right government that is being formed by Janez Janša.
        LJUBLJANA - The Democrats (SDS) gained 2.6 percentage points to 19.6% in the Vox Populi poll to overtake the LMŠ party of the outgoing PM Marjan Šarec, which slipped back 2.3 points to 17.1%. The poll, commissioned by the newspapers Dnevnik and Večer, also showed over half the respondents favoured a snap election.

TUESDAY, 18 February
        LJUBLJANA - A delegation of the parliamentary Commission for Oversight of Intelligence and Security Services, headed by vice-chair Žan Mahnič (SDS), made an unannounced visit to the National Bureau of Investigation examine the allegation that outgoing PM Marjan Šarec and his state secretary Damir Črnčec had abused intelligence and security services to "influence, threaten and extort MPs and leaderships of parties of the potential future coalition". Šarec and Črnčec denied the allegation as fake news propagated by the SDS. Police Commissioner Tatjana Bobnar denied any police spying, accusing Manhič of threatening her as she refused to hand over documentation she said exceeded the commission's powers. In response, parties urged for the allegations to be investigated. The police and the Information Commissioner are looking into the matter.
        BRUSSELS, Belgium - Donald Tusk, the head of the European People's Party (EPP), pleaded with the Slovenian members of the EPP not to waste the chance to take "leadership in both the parliament and the government", after meeting New Slovenia (NSi) head Matej Tonin. NSi is one of the parties in talks to form a government led by the fellow EPP member Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS).
        LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Health Committee and the government were briefed by health officials that Slovenia was well prepared for early diagnosis in case of an outbreak of the novel coronavirus. However, MPs were also told that hospitals could not handle a great number of patients.
        LJUBLJANA - A petition addressed to PM Marjan Šarec and backed by 12,700 individuals and 255 organisations called for the government to take more resolute action to decarbonise the energy, transport and agriculture sectors.
        LJUBLJANA - Police statistics showed the number of cases of illegal border crossing nearly doubled (+85%) year-on-year to 595 in January. Most of the migrants were returned to Croatia.
        LJUBLJANA - The Pension and Disability Insurance Institute (ZPIZ) endorsed a regular annual adjustment of pensions to wage and consumer prices growth as a result of which pensioners will get a 3.2% rise at the end of the month. Higher pensions will cost the pension fund EUR 172 million a year.
        LJUBLJANA - 2TDK, the state company managing the construction of the new railway between the port of Koper and Divača, announced it would ask Markomark Nival, the bidder that won the subsequently annulled tender for the first of several bridges on the planned track, to change its subcontractor which cited flawed reference in the bid. This was after the National Review Commission said 2TDK had been right to doubt the reference but should not have annulled the tender.
        LJUBLJANA - The Trade Union of Journalists and Journalists' Association protested against layoffs at Delo, the largest newspaper publisher in the country, saying the management was demolishing the newspaper and Slovenian journalism by shedding a quarter of its workforce within three years.
        LJUBLJANA - The energy company Petrol confirmed that it had been chosen as the best bidder to acquire E3, the subsidiary of the power distributor Elektro Primorska which is one of the largest electricity sellers in the country. The newspaper Finance reported that Petrol would pay EUR 15 million for E3, which would raise its share in the electricity retail market to 20%.

WEDNESDAY, 19 February
        LJUBLJANA - A group of NGOs successfully challenged the decision of the Environment Agency that no environmental impact assessment is necessary for the 20-year life-span extension for Slovenia's sole nuclear power plant.
        LJUBLJANA - Tourism companies and tourism and hospitality trade unions signed an annex to the collective bargaining agreement to increase the lowest basic wages; these will go up by 5% on 1 March and 5.25% more on 1 July, and the holiday allowance will increase by EUR 100 to EUR 1,150.
        SLOVENJ GRADEC - The 14th annual auction of valuable timber saw a record EUR 2 million worth of logs change hands. More than half of the wood was sold abroad with the biggest buyer coming from China. A 100-year old sycamore maple log was sold to a German buyer for EUR 29,160 or EUR 14,414 per cubic metre, which the organizers described as an absolute record.
        LJUBLJANA - The Ministry of Economic Development and Technology announced Slovenian companies were now able to do business on Amazon Europe. This was after the US tech company made technical adjustments to include Slovenia among supported countries.
        LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Culture Committee called on the corruption watchdog to look into appointments of heads of culture institutions made by the Culture Ministry due to suspicions of politically-motivated staffing. Culture Minister Zoran Poznič denied the allegations.
        LJUBLJANA - Film director Ema Kugler was declared the winner of this year's Štiglic lifetime achievement award in film and theatre directing. She will receive the accolade given out by the Association of Slovenian Directors at an award ceremony on 27 February.

THURSDAY, 20 February
        LJUBLJANA - Two of the six Slovenian passengers quarantined for over a fortnight on the cruise ship Diamond Princess in the Japanese port of Yokohama tested positive for the novel coronavirus. The other four tested negative. Two of arrived in Slovenia on a commercial flight and were placed under a 14-day quarantine, while two are still waiting to return.
        BRUSSELS - Arriving for an EU summit aiming to reach a consensus on the bloc's budget for 2021-2027, Prime Minister Marjan Šarec said Slovenia could not accept the latest compromise proposal under which it would lose 24% in cohesion funds. He said negotiations would be tough.
        LJUBLJANA - RTV Slovenija, the public broadcaster, warned of escalating attacks on its journalists, editors and other staff in recent days in the form of threatening and offensive phone calls, e-mails, letters and social network posts, condemning them in the strongest terms as an attack on journalism.
        LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's largest bank, NLB reported its group net profit decrease by 5% to EUR 193.6 million last year. The core bank's profit rose by 6.5% to EUR 176.1 million.

All our posts in this series are here

STA, 21 February - Coming out of an EU summit dedicated to the bloc's next seven-year budget, which ended without an agreement, Prime Minister Marjan Šarec told reporters on Friday that the European Commission had presented a technical proposal for the 2021-2027 budget which the cohesion countries rejected. Šarec called the proposal a provocation.

"There is still no deal and we didn't expect it," said Šarec after the two-day negotiations.

He blamed the four net payer countries - Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, and Austria - for the failed talks.

Šarec believes the four countries, which are insisting on 1% of the EU's gross national income (GNI) for the first post-Brexit EU budget, want to cut the budget and are not ambitious enough. "The negotiations came to a standstill because of them ..." he said.

The other group of countries comprises of 17 net receiver countries known as friends of cohesion, which according to Šarec want an ambitious budget and claim that it is impossible to do more with less funds.

"We had two meetings today and we were united on both of them that this does not make any sense at the moment," the PM said.

The cohesion countries agreed that the latest proposal is unacceptable, because it is not ambitious enough and does not allocate enough funds for cohesion. "In addition, Slovenia cannot be certain whether it would get what it wants."

The plenary session, which was postponed several times during the day, was very short. The technical proposal, presented by the Commission, was not even discussed, according to Šarec "because we saw it as a provocation after everything we have witnessed in the last 24 hours".

Šarec said the cohesion countries had been united that there was no point in opening a new round of talks today and that it was better to "go home and make all the calculations again".

"We have to start fresh," Šarec said, adding that no talks were possible until a better proposal was on the table.

The outgoing prime minister reiterated that Slovenia would insist that a 24% cut in cohesion funds compared to the current budget was unacceptable.

EU leaders are expected to convene another meeting in March. It is not clear yet, however, whether this will be a regular meeting or another extraordinary meeting. 5 March is being mentioned unofficially as a possible date for a potential extraordinary summit.

The richest Slovenian couple and the representatives of the right-wing weekly Reporter have been unable to reach an out-of-court agreement on the non-disclosure of private Login family information, reports national broadcaster.

The dispute between the Logins and the Reporter stems from 2017, when the magazine wrote an article about the personal history of Samo and Iza Login, who became Slovenia's richest couple after selling their Talking Tom mobile app to Chinese investors. The article has never been released as the Logins managed to stop its publication through court, before anyone even knew what the exact contents.

The Logins claim not to be public figures and want their personal information, such as their previous names and details of their family members, not to be reported.

According to Silvester Šurla, the magazine’s editor-in-chief, the article "did not interfere with their right to privacy in any way. We wanted to publish some information about their life paths, about their careers, from publicly available sources." Furthermore, added Šurla, "the settlement did not go through because Mr. and Mrs. Login kept making new demands. In the end, they were asking more for the settlement than in the lawsuit.”

The Logins are demanding that Reporter no longer writes about their private life, threatening to sue the magazine for €100,000 in damages for each such intrusion.

"We are not talking about the business part. We are talking about intimacy, personality, private life, family life, relatives. The plaintiffs do not want any interference from the public," the Logins’ lawyer, Janez Stušek, explained.

The trial will continue in mid-April, reports national broadcaster on their MMC multimedia portal, adding that the verdict could have a serious impact on journalistic boundaries, not only when reporting about people who enter public space voluntarily but also others, such as politicians.

STA, 21 February - Police Commissioner Tatjana Bobnar is to file a defamation complaint against Žan Mahnič, a Democrats (SDS) MP and vice chair of the parliamentary Commission for the Oversight of Intelligence and Security Services (KNOVS) after he had accused her of lying about alleged spying on politicians by the police and called on her to resign.

The police said in a press release late on Thursday that Bobnar would lodge a complaint against Mahnič over "misleading and malicious statements and an attack on her honour, good name and integrity".

"It has apparently become a habit of some politicians to try and shape public opinion" by intentionally repeating lies, the police said after Mahnič called on Bobnar to resign.

Mahnič said the fact that the police had launched a preliminary investigation into the spying allegations - Bobnar spoke on Thursday of an investigation against possible spying by individuals outside the police force - was proof that she had been lying to KNOVS members as they had made an inquiry on Tuesday, and should thus resign.

The MP said in a tweet yesterday that the launch of the preliminary investigation in and of itself meant that there is reasonable suspicion that politicians had been spied on.

Bobnar told him and two other KNOVS members, who made an unannounced visit to the police on Tuesday, that the allegations were "fabrications of some web portal and that procedures cannot be launched over every article," said Mahnič in reference to reports about spying allegations published by the SDS-launched weekly Demokracija and the news portal Požareport.

The police responded in the evening, saying that "in line with the principle of legality, police always investigated to see if there is reasonable suspicion for criminal acts of which perpetrators are prosecuted ex officio.

"The police have done this in this concrete case as well, but the launch of a preliminary investigation is far from reasonable suspicion and cannot be launched because of something that has, in Mahnič's words, been known for a long time," the police also said.