Latest News from Slovenia
Lotrič Metrology seizes opportunities brought by pandemic
Železniki – Lotrič Meroslovje, a family business which is a Slovenian market leader in metrology testing, finished 2020 with 13% growth from 2019, as it acted on new opportunities brought about by the pandemic. The growing trend continues, so the 2021 plan is an 11% growth, director general Marko Lotrič told the press in Železniki on Wednesday.
Survey: Slovenia’s youth less worried about climate change than European peers
Ljubljana – Slovenia’s youth aged between 15 and 35 see climate change as the third worst global problem after environmental pollution and poverty. The European survey Climate of Change also shows that 36% of them are very or extremely worried about climate change, which is 10 percentage points below the average of 23 European countries.
Disputed Non-Paper is Stirring Dangerous Dreams in the Balkans
The latest discussions about territorial reorganization in the Balkans have shaken the region, once again underlining its deep ethnic and political divisions and unresolved tensions.
Another proposal to include unaffiliated MPs in parliament’s bodies defeated
Ljubljana – A proposal to reshuffle parliamentary working bodies to include four unaffiliated MPs who have recently defected was rejected on Tuesday after the first was voted down last week. Nevertheless, the centre-left opposition parties and the unaffiliated MPs intend to keep trying so that, they say, democracy is not undermined.
Curve of infections continues on downward trajectory
Ljubljana – Slovenia’s curve of coronavirus infections keeps on its downward trajectory; 718 people tested positive on Monday to push the rolling 7-day average down further by 48 to 737, data released by the government show. Five patients with Covid-19 died.
Slovenia loses four spots in World Press Freedom Index
Paris – Slovenia has lost four spots to rank 36th among 180 countries in the 2021 World Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), with the report warning of the “dangerous path for press freedom” in Slovenia.
Supercomputer Vega launched in Slovenia
Maribor – Supercomputer Vega was formally launched in Maribor on Tuesday, putting Slovenia on the global map of computer super powers. It is the first in a series of eight planned high-performance computing (HPC) centres in the EU.
Vega is a 6.9 petaflops supercomputer, which means it can do 6.9 million billion computing operations per second, and it cost EUR 17.2 million.
Collection of signatures for water referendum starts
Ljubljana – The collection of signatures for a referendum on the water act started on Tuesday amidst appeals by environmentalists that water sources should be protected and warnings by the government that the referendum would actually be damaging for water sources and for people living along bodies of water.
Epidemic deepening negative consequence of internet overuse
Ljubljana – Internet use and screen time among children and youth have been increasing in recent years, which can have negative consequences on their development and cause addictions, heard an online conference hosted by the Logout centre on Tuesday. The epidemic has made the situation even worse, experts agree.
Bosnian Serbs Urge Talks on Country’s Potential ‘Disintegration’
Taking advantage of the tensions caused by a controversial document predicting the dissolution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian Serb political leaders said on Tuesday that they want to formally discuss the future of the country with Croat and Bosniak politicians.
Media Freedom Deteriorated in Europe Amid Pandemic, Report Warns
Photo Illustration: Pixabay / AndyLeungHK
Reporters Without Borders, RSF, released its annual Press Freedom Index report on Tuesday with a warning that media freedom has deteriorated across the world during the coronavirus pandemic, with governments using the crisis to assert more control over the press.
India locks capital to battle COVID as all US adults eligible for vaccine
India locked down its capital New Delhi for a week beginning on April 19 night seeking to control a raging coronavirus outbreak, as the hard-hit United States made all adults eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
EU presidency more demanding due to pandemic
Ljubljana – The EU presidency, which Slovenia will hold in the second half of the year, will be even more demanding than usually owing to the coronavirus pandemic, Gregor Štajer, the head of the government secretariat in charge of presidency organisation, has told the STA. Slovenia plans to host nearly 190 events, many of which may have to take place online.
Pahor talks media freedom, hate speech with CoE commissioner
Ljubljana – President Borut Pahor talked on Monday with Council of Europe (CoE) Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatović about freedom of the press and hate speech in Slovenia. Pahor stressed the importance of supervisory mechanisms of international institutions, including the CoE, and the need of regular and open dialogue with them.
Janša condemns extremism after protest in front of Slovenian embassy
Ljubljana – Prime Minister Janez Janša has condemned extremism after members of a radical Islamist group in Bosnia and Herzegovina protested in front of the Slovenian embassy in Sarajevo Sunday over an alleged non-paper linked to Slovenia that speaks about the breakup of Bosnia-Herzegovina along ethnic lines.