January 30, 2019

In 1810 the French army seized and then executed a group of bandits called rokovnjači, who had previously attacked them in Črni Graben.

The first wave of this organised banditry in central Europe occurred during and after the 30-year War (1618-1648). The rokovnjači problem in what is today Slovenia was particularly pressing between the years 1808 – 1813 during the French occupation of these territories, when the bandits were even assisted by the Austrian court, and then after Austria regained its territories from Napoleon’s army the problem turned on her in an ever stronger fashion between the years 1825-1853. Rokovnjači were most numerous in Upper Carniola and in the Kamnik area, but could also be found in the Littoral.

The main causes of the phenomenon lay in the 1770 Maria Theresa decree which replaced her army of mercenaries with a 30-year period of military service for everyone poor and uneducated enough not to be able to avoid it, and the 1785 Joseph II abolition of serfdom, which freed the serfs not only from their masters but also from their land. These young deserters who were later joined by a variety of other social outcasts joined the ranks of rokovnjači, and lived lives revolved around hiding in the remote places of dark forests and their night hikes to towns and villages, where they begged, robbed, and terrorised the population.

The name Rokovnjači, sometimes also rokomavhi, comes from the folk belief that these bandits carried an arm (roka) of an unborn baby in their bags (mavha) which would then give them some magic powers such as make them invisible when in trouble or giving them a light in the dark that only them could see. It was believed that rokovnjači would cut babies out of pregnant ladies, chop their arms off and then dry them over a juniper berry wood fire, which is why no pregnant woman was allowed to wander around on her own. Belief in the magic of a child’s arm was not only present in the area of present-day Slovenia but, just like rokovnjači themselves, across Southern Germany and Austria as well. Jakob Grimm – the elder of the two famous brothers – describes in his book on German mythology (Deutsche Mithologie, 1835) the magic properties of the fingers of a pre-born baby; if they are set on fire the resulting flame would put everyone in a house to sleep, preventing them from waking up.

It was not against the interests of rokovnjači to be feared among the locals, who preferred to cooperate and support them in goods and information than to risk violent repercussions. On the other hand, they also tended to be helpful in poor farmers’ fights against the various forms of exploitation coming from the church, landowners and forceful conscriptions. Rokovnjači were well organised, which included a sort of a proto-Marxist ethics – that theft was justified by the ideas of equality and the right to survival. They also had their own secret language, which was a mix of various European ones, including German, Italian, Hungarian, Croatian and Slovenian. For example, “Ti lobov kumer'č, d'tej prefak upetov!” stood for “Ti slab človek, da ti je duhovnik ubežal!” (You bad man, let the priest escape you!).

In 1810 rokovnjači attacked and robbed a group of French soldiers in the Črni graben valley, which was a reason for the French army to retaliate. Not all of them were caught, but those that were were hung on today’s date in 1810. On February 12, Napoleon decided to establish gendarmerie stations in the most affected areas, known by the locals as “ravbarkomanda”.

In the third wave of banditry between the years 1825 and 1853, rokovnjači multiplied to the point the skirmishes began even among their own ranks. The affected population began to beg the authorities to do something about it. In 1850 the long awaited hunt of Austrian gendarme for the out-of-control bandits began. The new imperial decree, which reduced the military service to eight years in 1845 and again to six years in 1850, helped to reduce their ranks as well. No more was heard about rokovnjači after 1853.

A novel Rokovnjači (1881), written by Josip Jurčič and Janko Kersnik, continues to serve as an inspiration for various stage adaptations, one of them, a coproduction of the National Theatre of Nova Gorica and Prešeren Theatre Kranj, is embedded in the video below.

STA, 30 January 2019 - The Slovenian pharmaceutical company Lek, a subsidiary of the Swiss giant Novartis, has announced that it had a very successful 2018 compared to the set objectives, while failing to reveal concrete business results. It did say that it employed an additional 370 people last year to increase the workforce to 4,085.

Lek, which is headquartered in Ljubljana, said in a press release on Wednesday that it was expanding the range of production of healing agents for innovative pharmaceuticals.

Last year, the company launched at the Mengeš location the production of three healing agents for innovative pharmaceuticals, which will enter the market in the coming years.

At other locations in Slovenia, Lek launched the final phases of production of innovative biopharmaceuticals, the press release says.

In Mengeš, located some 10 km north of Ljubljana, the company is building a EUR 38m facility for the production of biological agents, which "will boost the role of the location as a key Novartis centre for biotechnology".

Since 2003, Novartis has invested more than EUR 2.3bn in Slovenia, with more than half intended for development, and the rest to modernisation and expansion of the production facilities.

Lek also announced that it employed an additional 370 people last year, with the number of employees standing at 4,085 at the end of 2018, while "continuing to optimise and adjust the production network in Slovenia."

"By increasing the market share to 30.1% in 2018, Lek has solidified its position as the second largest provider of generic drugs in Slovenia and strengthened its position of the market leader in the non-prescription drug segment," the release reads, the full text of which can be read here.

STA, 29 January 2019 - Peter Svetina, a 53-year-old special education expert and social entrepreneur, was overwhelmingly endorsed as Slovenia's fifth human rights ombudsman in parliament on Tuesday as 89 MPs voted in favour and none against. He succeeds Vlasta Nussdorfer, whose five-year term ends on 23 February.

"I never expected such strong support," Svetina commented on the vote, pledging to perform this important and responsible job to the best of his abilities to serve humaneness.

He would not say what his priority areas would be because "they are all equally important and interconnected, so it's hard to set one of them apart". But he said his priority would be the cases open at the ombudsman's office.

He said the team working at the Human Rights Ombudsman's office numbered many able professionals, while he would also consult members of the civil society.

In endorsing Svetina, deputy factions invariably praised his wealth of experience and professional background that allowed him to learn really well about the needs of vulnerable groups of the population.

Svetina is a social entrepreneur who has been working with persons with special needs for all his professional life both practically and theoretically.

He graduated in special education from the Ljubljana Faculty of Education in 1989, and after graduation worked as a primary school teacher for several years.

He moved to Austria's Klagenfurt in 1995 to work as a teacher in a Slovenian minority association to get acquainted with the issues of the Slovenian community in the province of Carinthia. He was also a member of the local association of teachers.

Svetina returned to Slovenia in 1999 to work in institutions for persons with physical and mental disabilities, also cooperating with their parents, relatives, caretakers and NGOs. In 2007-2008 he was an adviser in the office of the minister of the environment and spatial planning.

Since June 2015, he has been running Grunt, a social entrepreneurship establishment in the countryside, based in Komenda, north-west of Ljubljana. He is also a co-founder of the non-profit, established in 2014.

Since 1999 he has also been mentoring students at various colleges in Ljubljana and Maribor. He has co-authored several handbooks on work with persons with special needs and participated in the drafting of legislation in the field of their employment and work.

When President Borut Pahor opted to nominate Svetina as one of nine candidates, his office said he had "a lot of practical and life experience in working with vulnerable groups and is characterised by compassion to fellow human beings".

"He is firm in his beliefs, but ready to accept arguments which manage to convince him. He is a person of dialogue, but he is relentless when people suffer injustice," the office added.

Pahor said that Svetina was a person with a high degree of integrity and public reputation, and with proper expertise, arguing that he would "perform the post honourably, responsibly, professionally and independently."

Before the vote in parliament, Svetina presented his vision for the Office of the Human Rights Ombudsman to the media, saying would be a proactive ombudsman. He said that in his jobs so far, he had always pursued one goal - respect for human beings.

The newly-appointed human rights ombudsman said he had dedicated his entire life and career to working with vulnerable groups, mostly people with mental and physical disabilities.

"I've always made an effort to give people dignity," he said, noting he had tried to enable people to be as independent as possible, including financially.

Svetina said he had constantly stumbled upon violations of human rights of vulnerable groups and their families, fighting small battles against the violations.

He believes he will be able to continue on this path, but he does not think the ombudsman should protect only the rights of vulnerable groups, so he pledged to promote humanity and justice for all.

Svetina mentioned the link between labour rights and poverty, and pointed to environmental issues or children's rights. He stressed though that those who had been waiting to be tackled for a long time should be addressed first.

He also believes the ombudsman needs to speak up against violations, at the same time being open to different proposals and opinions and not shying away from criticism.

Svetina also deems it very important to work closely with the civil society and experts from various fields, so he would like to take the cooperation to a higher level.

STA, 29 January 2019 - Two people died in a fire that broke out at the palliative care unit at the general hospital in Jesenice (Splošna bolnišnica Jesenice) in the north-west of the country on Tuesday afternoon.

The fire has been put out by firefighters and the scene is being inspected by police and fire inspectors, Health Minister Samo Fakin, who rushed to Jesenice after being notified of the fire, told reporters.

The minister confirmed that the fire claimed two lives, and that one injured person with severe burns had been taken to UKC Ljubljana, the country's main hospital.

He said the police and the fire inspector working on the scene would look into what caused the fire.

Unofficial information suggests the fire was started by one of the patients.

The minister praised the hospital's staff for their prompt response saying that they "evacuated the patients despite the highly toxic environment".

Twenty employees sought medical assistance due to the fire-related issues but the minister said they did not suffer any major problems.

Robert Kejžar, the head of the intervention, told reporters that the staff started evacuating patients from the building even before the arrival of voluntary firefighters.

Fifty patients had been evacuated from the upper floors before the fire was put out.

The fire broke out in one of the rooms at the palliative care unit on the third floor. The units on the floors above include the paediatric and gynaecological departments.

Hospital director Janez Poklukar said the patients were being moved back to both departments, while he urged the women from the region due to go into labour tonight to report at the Kranj maternity hospital rather than Jesenice.

The palliative care unit where the fire started remains closed until further notice due to the criminal investigation under way. It will also need renovation, Poklukar said.

Neither the minster nor the hospital director or the police would talk about potential causes of the fire until the police have completed their inquiries.

The news web site 24ur.com cites unofficial information in saying that a patient put himself on fire before it caught on his roommate and they both died.

Hospital fires in Slovenia are rare and most have caused only damage to property. However, a 77-year-old patient died in a fire at Izola hospital in February 2011.

The fire was started by a 38-year-old who police established tried to burn the straps the 77-year-old was tied to the bed with.

A fire at an retirement home in Črnomelj in December 2017 also claimed one life as the resident who allegedly caused the fire died.

Below is a review of the headlines in Slovenian dailies for Wednesday, January 30, 2019, as summarised by the STA:

DELO

Culture Ministry
"How to fix Culture Ministry": After the departure of Dejan Prešiček from the Culture Ministry it is time to make some strategic decisions at the ministry, the paper says. (front page, 4)

Brexit
"Theresa May going on a mission impossible": British PM Theresa May has confirmed that her government is trying to persuade the EU to change the Brexit deal reached in November. (front page, 6)

Education
"We are pushing too fast given children's maturity": Increasingly many parents decide to put off their child's first school day amid concerns that children are overburdened at school. (front page, 3)

Jesenice hospital fire
"Fire claims two patient lives": A fire that broke out at the general hospital in Jesenice yesterday afternoon claimed two lives. (front page, 5)

DNEVNIK

Jesenice hospital fire
"Jesenice hospital fire claims two lives, opens many questions": A fire that broke out in one of the rooms at the general hospital in Jesenice yesterday afternoon claimed two lives, while one more injured patient was rushed to the Ljubljana UKC hospital. (front page, 2)

Impeachment against prime minister
"PM Šarec gets away with it without a scratch": PM Marjan Šarec survived on Tuesday an impeachment motion filed by the opposition Democrats (SDS) and National Party (SNS) over delays in the raising of funding for private schools. (front page, 3)

FINANCE

Waiting lines in healthcare
"Waiting in healthcare": The paper looks at the effects of the EUR 100m that have been invested in cutting waiting lines in healthcare. (front page, 4-5)

Energy
"How will we be affected by Germany abandoning coal?": Presenting the responses of German businesses to the proposal to abandon the use of coal in their business, the paper also brings responses from Slovenia. (front page, 2-3)

Trade war
"Trade war affecting global smart phone manufacturers": Although Apple CEO Tim Cook initially said the US-China trade war would not affect his company, Apple was forced to downgrade its revenue forecast this January for the first time in 15 years. (front page, 6-7)

VEČER

Tourism
"Tourism with differences": Ptuj recently raised its tourist tax to EUR 2.5 per tourist per day, but the new municipal council led by Mayor Nuška Gajšek cut the tax by half for some tourist service providers, which caused a stir. (front page, 15)

Minimum wage
"Consequences of minimum wage rise": Unless the government changes the income tax brackets, those receiving minimum wage will not benefit much from the raise. (front page, 2-3)

Jesenice hospital fire
"Fatal fire ignited by patient": Two men died in the fire that broke out at the Jesenice general hospital yesterday. Dozens of patients had to be evacuated. (front page, 21)

STA, 29 January 2019 - Scoring 60 points, Slovenia ranked 36th among 180 countries in Transparency International's (TI) Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) rankings for 2018, a drop of one point and two spots from 2017, respectively. The country has thus made no major progress since 2012, TI Slovenia said in a release on Tuesday.

Based on independent sources, the CPI ranks the countries according to how corrupt their public sectors are perceived to be.

Slovenia falls one place in talent competitiveness index

STASTA, 29 January 2019 - Slovenia has slid one spot in the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) compiled by the Insead Business School, Adecco temping agency and Tata Communication. The country ranks 29th out of 125 countries included in the survey, a spot down from 2018 and four spots down from the first GTCI index in 2013.

Slovenia scored 54.44 points, more than 27 points less than Switzerland, which tops the ranking. Yemen, placing last, got a score of 11.97 points.

While 29th overall, Slovenia ranks 19th in Europe. Interestingly, it is also one spot ahead of South Korea.

It ranks 38th in terms of enabling talent, 47th in terms of attracting talent from abroad, 34th in growing its own talent and 27th in terms of retaining talent.

The index also compares cities, with Ljubljana ranking 50th, after finishing 49th last year. This is the second time Ljubljana was included in the ranking of cities.

Adecco Slovenija said in a press release on Tuesday that there was a lot of room for improvement in terms of Ljubljana's connectivity to airports and simplification of hiring.

Readers may remember last year, when roadworks on Gosposvetska Street in Ljubljana uncovered a Roman cemetery (as reported here). Now archaeologists are starting to report on their findings in more detail, as seen in a new story from National Geographic. The article, which is titled "Archaeologists puzzle over mystery woman in early Christian cemetery" and can be read here, contains some excellent photographs of the excavation site and artefacts, as well as a brief account of Emona, the Roman city that was on the site of today’s Ljubljana. Of special interest is a 1,700-year old blue glass bowl, “decorated on the outside with grapes, and vine leaves and tendrils. A Greek inscription on the inside of the bowl instructs the owner to “Drink to live forever, for many years!””

Items from the Gosposvetska are now on display at Ljubljana City Museum, and from February 2 to March 31 (2019) you’ll be able to see the blue bowl yourself, as seen in the screenshot of the Museum's website below.

STA, 28 January 2019 - President Borut Pahor and his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vučić confirmed the friendly relations between their countries as they met in Belgrade on Monday, highlighting the good business cooperation. Pahor expressed Slovenia's support for Serbia's efforts to join the EU.

Addressing the press after their meeting, the pair stressed that Slovenia and Serbia had friendly relations which were developing well, in particular in business. Annual trade went up from EUR 500m to EUR 1.3bn in the last ten years, they noted.

Pahor asserted Slovenia supported Serbia's efforts to join the EU, for which Vučić expressed gratitude. Vučić noted that the relations between Belgrade and Prishtina would be crucial in this context, while Pahor urged leaders to further "reconciliation, trust and respect" irrespective of how difficult relations were.

Vučić was asked by the press to comment on last week's statement by Slovenian Foreign Minister Miro Cerar that the latest events in Serbia - a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin and weeks of anti-government protests in Belgrade - raised questions in the EU about whether Belgrade was still persisting on a European path.

Uradni obisk predsednika Republike Slovenije Boruta Pahorja v Republiki Srbiji. https://t.co/LUCASYGt19 pic.twitter.com/VaRV0kd1k8

— Borut Pahor (@BorutPahor) January 28, 2019

"I couldn't believe that he said that. Who knows what got into him that morning, perhaps he got up on the wrong side of the bed," Vučić said about the statement made at a session of the parliamentary Foreign Policy Committee.

He stressed that Serbia stayed on a European path while it simultaneously maintained good relations with Russia, which it would continue to do.

"As you can see, I answer to you, who come from the EU, the same way I answer to Putin, to the Americans and all the rest. Serbia doesn't have two policies, only one, and this is the policy of Serbian interests ... which are being on the European path and speeding up our development, our economy," Vučić said.

The presidents also discussed the summit of the Brdo-Brijuni Process which is to be held in Albania's Tirana on 7 and 8 May. According to Vučić, this will be an important meeting for the entire region.

Moreover, the pair touched on the status of the Serbian community in Slovenia, with Pahor saying that "Slovenia will do all it can to allow these citizens of Slovenia to preserve their identity".

He said Slovenia was big enough to be a homeland to everybody but added that "changing the constitution because of this is neither necessary nor possible".

While suggesting this was not an issue in bilateral relations, Vučić said Serbia would of course wish for Serbs in Slovenia to have more rights, pointing out that - contrary to Serbs in Slovenia - the 4,033 Slovenians living in Serbia are recognised as a national minority, with Serbia "striving to help them feel well".

V izjavi sta predsednika poudarila, da so odnosi med državama prijateljski in da verjameta, da bo obisk dodal nov zagon poglabljanju odnosov na vseh področjih. Posebno pozornost sta sogovornika namenila srečanju voditeljev držav procesa Brdo-Brijuni, ki bo maja v Albaniji. pic.twitter.com/Fg8b5SL8SF

— Borut Pahor (@BorutPahor) January 28, 2019

Meanwhile, Pahor is accompanied by a business delegation featuring around 100 representatives of companies interested in digitalisation of business and administration.

They met Serbian executives at a business forum, which featured around 600 participants and was opened by Pahor and Vučić after their meeting.

Boštjan Gorjup, the president of the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told the STA that the forum, focusing on SMEs and the fields of digitalisation, the circular economy and tourism, had been a success.

Elaborating on cooperation in the circular economy, Gorjup pointed in particular to Slovenian waste processing companies, which see an opportunity in the additional EU funds headed to Serbia to improve this field.

"Our companies can be good partners in the exchange of best practice, in joint investment and sale of technologies," Gorjup told the STA.

The tourism debates revolved a lot around positive experiences with glamping, another field where Slovenian and Serbian businesses could join forces.

Meanwhile, Pahor also met National Assembly Speaker Maja Gojković as well as representatives of all parliamentary parties and addressed Serbian MPs at a session held especially in his honour.

In his address, he urged cooperation and trust among all the countries in the Western Balkans and those on its edge, saying in the context of the region's EU ambitions that "no other power or even super power can do this in our place".

Pahor understands Serbia's right to independently choose its security policy and thus also respects its cooperation with Russia.

However, he added that such circumstances meant that the pace and success of Serbia's negotiations with the EU would also depend on the settling of relations between the EU and Russia.

As to the Belgrade-Prishtina situation, Pahor said negotiations needed to be conducted peacefully, without threats or use of force and bring a result that will allow peaceful implementation without collateral security consequences in the region.

The Serbian press agency Tanjug reported that several opposition MPs boycotted the session, protesting not Pahor but the manner in which the session was convened as well as some of the statements made by Vučić after the meeting with the Slovenian counterpart.

Pahor will wrap up the official visit on Tuesday by laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on Mt Avala.

STA, 28 January 2019 - The Ljubljana municipality plans to increase the prices of several services provided by its companies, including public transport, parking fees in the city centre, and cemetery fees.

A single bus ticket would go up by 10 cents to 1.30 euro, Mayor Zoran Janković said at the city's news conference on Monday.

The city also intends to introduce an annual public transport pass, which would cost 365 euro, and an annual pass for pensioners, to cost 220 euro.

If the new prices are endorsed by the city council in February, they would take effect in April or May, the mayor said.

Peter Horvat, director of the city's public transport company LPP, said the goal was not to increase prices but the number of public transport users and the number of bus pass holders, from 70% at the moment to 90%.

Javni Holding Ljubljana director Zdenka Grozde said the services provided by Ljubljana's companies were of very high quality, comparable to other European cities.

"To attain such top quality services, investments into development, technology and infrastructure are needed," she said, thus revealing the reason for the price rises.

She said LPP had bought 168 new buses since 2007, which cost it 42 million euro, but had not changed ticket prices for eight years.

A rise in parking fees for parking lots in the city centre (zone one and two) by 10 centres per hour and in car parks operated by Ljubljana is also planned.

The hourly parking fee for the car park below Congress Square and for the Kozolec car park is to rise to 1.50 euro.

According to David Polutnik from the city's economy and transport department, this is to reduce the number of commuters in the city centre.

Mateja Duhovnik, who heads the company running the city's parking spaces, said parking fees in others zones would not change nor would they change for Ljubljana residents in car parks.

Meanwhile, the fee for a grave at Ljubljana's main cemetery is to rise by 10%.

Žale director Robert Martinčič said the city had intensively invested into expanding its cemeteries over the past few years, "which means we'll have new grave areas which will need maintenance".

Below is a review of the headlines in Slovenian dailies for Tuesday, January 29, 2019, as summarised by the STA:

DELO

Real estate
"Breath-taking view on sale": The Municipality of Šarec, located above the coastal town of Izola, is forced to sell seven land plots to compensate for the alleged damage to the company R Mercuri. The land plots on sale offer a breath-taking view of the Gulf of Trieste. (front page, 4)

Dismissal of culture minister
"Replacement which is not a reason for champagne": Prime Minister Marjan Šarec expectedly accepted the resignation of Culture Minister Dejan Prešiček in the wake of bullying and abuse of office accusations. Education Minister Jernej Pikalo will stand in until the Social Democrats (SD) find a new minister candidate. (front page, 2)

Court of Audit
"Bank bailout under scrutiny": The Court of Audit will scrutinise the central bank, with unofficial information saying that it will look into the procedures related to the bank bailout in the late 2013 and the operations of Banka Slovenije in 2017 and 2018. (front page, 9)

Škocjan Caves
"Škocjan underground labyrinth gets bigger": Two large shafts have been discovered as three cavers found their way through the roof of the Martel's Chamber, the largest chamber in the Škocjan Caves system in south-western Slovenia. (front page)

DNEVNIK

European elections
"Cold shower for Lojze Peterle: party gives advantage to Ljudmila Novak": Ljudmila Novak, the former president of the opposition New Slovenia (NSi), is likely to head the party's list for the European Parliament election in May. The NSi executive committee has rejected the idea that the list be headed by the long-serving MEP Lozje Peterle. (front page, 3)

Secondary schools
"Some more spots than last year for a bigger generation": This year, almost 600 more students than last year will be enrolled in secondary schools in Slovenia, with the Ministry of Education assuring that there will be enough room for all of them. (front page, 3)

FINANCE

Loans
"Don't let a consumer loan turn into a nightmare": The volume of consumer loans in Slovenia is on the increase, as is the number of warnings to consumers to be extra careful when taking such loans. The paper gives seven pieces of advice so that a consumer loan does not turn into a nightmare. (front page, 2-3)

Ski resorts
"Why the last ski lift in Slovenia was built in 2011": Almost all large ski resorts in Slovenia got new owners in the recent years. The common thread is that they are not making much profit, while major investments in infrastructure are inevitable and already urgently needed. (front page, 4-5)

Online shopping
"How come Slovenian companies still cannot sell via Amazon?": Slovenia is among the rare countries whose companies are not able to do business through Amazon Europe. The official reason is that the on-line giant has not bring its operations in line with the Slovenian law on the prevention of money laundering and financing of terrorism. (front page, 7)

Brexit
"What the British parliament is pondering and how companies are preparing themselves?": The paper wonders whether the British MPs will send Prime Minister Theresa May for new talks on the Irish backstop or with a request for an extension of talks. (front page, 6)

VEČER

Sick leave
"When to stay at home with your child": Parents are facing the dilemma of when to keep their children at home and when to take them to kindergarten or school as, on average, children below the age of 5 may get viral infections up to ten times a year, which may or may not be so serious. (front page, 5)

Dismissal of culture minister
"Šarec accepts Prešiček's resignation": Prime Minister Marjan Šarec accepted the resignation of Culture Minister Dejan Prešiček in the wake of bullying and abuse of office accusations, and said that the entire leadership of the ministry must go. (front page, 2-3)

Alpine Ski World Cup
"Rain did not hurt the Fox": Yesterday's raining will not undermine the scheduled start on Friday of the Golden Fox event in Maribor as part of the Alpine Ski World Cup. (front page, 23)