"Slovenian journalists urged the government Friday to create an independent commission to investigate allegations of government censorship and political pressure on the media.
Journalists Blaz Zgaga and Matej Surc said international experts should be included in the commission 'that could evaluate the situation and contribute to improving media freedom in Slovenia.'
Zgaga, a journalist with the daily Vecer, and Surc, a state television reporter, last year initiated a petition signed by 570 journalists accusing the government of censorship. The petition was sent to all EU capitals.
But three months on and just days after Slovenia took over the six-month presidency of the EU, the paid [sic] said that no measures had been taken in response to their complaints.
'Since then, the only Slovenian official to have talked to us is the Human Rights Ombudsman Zdenka Cebasek Travnik,' Zgaga told AFP."
Source: EUbusiness.com
Monday, January 7, 2008
Croatia seizes Italian boat days after fishery zone comes into force
"The Croatian navy seized an Italian fishing vessel that was 'illegally present' on Thursday (January 3rd), two days after declaring a protected fishing zone in its territorial waters.
Police spokeswomen Zeljka Radosevic said the trawler crew was fishing near a remote island in Croatian waters and not inside the new Croatian Ecological and Fisheries Protected Zone (ZERP), which extends to the middle of the Adriatic.
Radosevic said the boat was escorted to a port on the island of Vis for investigation. She added that the three crew members would appear before a judge and would probably be fined. It was not immediately clear what impact this incident would have on Croatia's ongoing dispute with Italy and Slovenia over the fishing zone, which the EU has also warned against.
Croatia held general elections in late November. Because the new government has not been formed, the zone was enacted automatically based on laws previously passed.
Diplomats have been unable to make progress on the issue due to the slow pace of forming the new coalition cabinet."
Source: SETimes.com
Police spokeswomen Zeljka Radosevic said the trawler crew was fishing near a remote island in Croatian waters and not inside the new Croatian Ecological and Fisheries Protected Zone (ZERP), which extends to the middle of the Adriatic.
Radosevic said the boat was escorted to a port on the island of Vis for investigation. She added that the three crew members would appear before a judge and would probably be fined. It was not immediately clear what impact this incident would have on Croatia's ongoing dispute with Italy and Slovenia over the fishing zone, which the EU has also warned against.
Croatia held general elections in late November. Because the new government has not been formed, the zone was enacted automatically based on laws previously passed.
Diplomats have been unable to make progress on the issue due to the slow pace of forming the new coalition cabinet."
Source: SETimes.com
Friday, January 4, 2008
Many in Slovenia yearn for old Yugoslavia - Telegraph
"Marco Sporar, a 21-year-old business student who studies in the capital Ljubljana, said he understood why posters of Yugoslavia's founding leader and Second World War hero Marshal Josip Broz Tito are appearing again on the walls of many Slovene homes.
'I have a picture of Tito at home, my mother worships him,' he said. 'It was easier to get a job then, now everything is about money.'
Doubts remain about whether the EU will bring Balkans countries, such as Slovenia and Serbia, together or heal the wounds of past conflicts in the former Yugoslavia.
'The EU is not united like Yugoslavia. Then every country, under Tito, had a voice. In the EU the biggest countries have the biggest say,' said Mr Sporar."
Source: Telegraph
'I have a picture of Tito at home, my mother worships him,' he said. 'It was easier to get a job then, now everything is about money.'
Doubts remain about whether the EU will bring Balkans countries, such as Slovenia and Serbia, together or heal the wounds of past conflicts in the former Yugoslavia.
'The EU is not united like Yugoslavia. Then every country, under Tito, had a voice. In the EU the biggest countries have the biggest say,' said Mr Sporar."
Source: Telegraph
Monday, December 31, 2007
Former Tito residence to host EU meetings
"The castle, which often changed hands in the last five centuries, has a rich history.
It is believed to have been one of the favourite residences of Serbian, and later Yugoslav, Prince Paul Karadjordjevic, who bought it in 1935, and his descendents still lay claim to it.
After World War II, the communist regime nationalised the castle, which became one of the preferred residences of Josip Broz 'Tito', who ruled Yugoslavia from 1944 to his death in 1980.
When Slovenia declared independence from former Yugoslavia in 1991, the authorities chose Brdo castle as their main official residence and in June 2001, it staged the first official summit between US President George W. Bush and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
The Brdo estate is also part of a natural park, with a number of springs and streams, eleven ponds and a large variety of protected plant and animal life."
Source: AFP
It is believed to have been one of the favourite residences of Serbian, and later Yugoslav, Prince Paul Karadjordjevic, who bought it in 1935, and his descendents still lay claim to it.
After World War II, the communist regime nationalised the castle, which became one of the preferred residences of Josip Broz 'Tito', who ruled Yugoslavia from 1944 to his death in 1980.
When Slovenia declared independence from former Yugoslavia in 1991, the authorities chose Brdo castle as their main official residence and in June 2001, it staged the first official summit between US President George W. Bush and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
The Brdo estate is also part of a natural park, with a number of springs and streams, eleven ponds and a large variety of protected plant and animal life."
Source: AFP
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Slovenia’s Ceplak faces two-year ban
"Olympic 800m bronze medallist Jolanda Ceplak faces a two-year ban after Slovenia’s athletics federation on Tuesday rejected any doubts about the validity of her positive test for EPO.
Ceplak, 31, who won European gold in 2002 and took Olympic bronze over the two laps in Athens two years later, tested positive for blood-booster EPO (erythropoietin) in an out-of-competition test on June 18. The B sample test confirmed the A sample finding.
Ceplak, the world indoor record holder in the 800m which she set in 2002, denies doping. In September, the Slovenian federation’s anti-doping commission were unable to reach a decision in the case, pending an additional investigation. "
Source: Reuters
Ceplak, 31, who won European gold in 2002 and took Olympic bronze over the two laps in Athens two years later, tested positive for blood-booster EPO (erythropoietin) in an out-of-competition test on June 18. The B sample test confirmed the A sample finding.
Ceplak, the world indoor record holder in the 800m which she set in 2002, denies doping. In September, the Slovenian federation’s anti-doping commission were unable to reach a decision in the case, pending an additional investigation. "
Source: Reuters
Friday, November 16, 2007
Slovenian PM will seek vote of confidence
"Slovenia's prime minister said he would seek a parliamentary vote of confidence in his government Thursday, after an opposition-backed candidate won an overwhelming victory in weekend presidential elections.
Prime Minister Janez Jansa had said earlier this week that his center-right Cabinet could step down, after Danilo Tuerk won 68 percent of votes in Sunday's ballot. He said late Thursday on state television that he would seek a vote of confidence in parliament, and that 'depending on the result, I will decide on my next steps.'
Tuerk's victory — and the crushing defeat of the government-backed Lojze Peterle — was seen as a reflection of eroding popularity for Jansa's governing coalition just one year before new parliamentary elections are due.
Jansa has accused the opposition of blackening his government during the campaign, saying such criticism has hampered his government's daily work as well as preparations for Slovenia's Jan. 1 takeover of the European Union presidency."
Source: International Herald Tribune
Prime Minister Janez Jansa had said earlier this week that his center-right Cabinet could step down, after Danilo Tuerk won 68 percent of votes in Sunday's ballot. He said late Thursday on state television that he would seek a vote of confidence in parliament, and that 'depending on the result, I will decide on my next steps.'
Tuerk's victory — and the crushing defeat of the government-backed Lojze Peterle — was seen as a reflection of eroding popularity for Jansa's governing coalition just one year before new parliamentary elections are due.
Jansa has accused the opposition of blackening his government during the campaign, saying such criticism has hampered his government's daily work as well as preparations for Slovenia's Jan. 1 takeover of the European Union presidency."
Source: International Herald Tribune
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Turk wins Slovenia presidential vote
"Centre-left opposition party candidate Danilo Turk decisively won Slovenia's presidential election Sunday, the electoral commission announced. His landslide victory dealt a blow to the ruling centre-right coalition of Prime Minister Janez Jansa ahead of general elections next year.
The 55-year-old Turk won 68.26 percent of the vote, while Lojze Peterle, backed by the PM's centre-right coalition, took just 31.74 percent, according to results with 99.9 percent of the votes counted, the commission said. Mail ballots have yet to be tallied and final full results are expected to be published in a week's time.
Turk's majority is the largest won in a presidential election in 15 years, beating even reformed communist Milan Kucan, who in 1992 won 64 percent of the vote in Slovenia's first democratic elections after independence. Peterle conceded defeat almost immediately after first exit polls indicated Turk's victory, admitting: 'I expected a better result.'"
Source: AFP
The 55-year-old Turk won 68.26 percent of the vote, while Lojze Peterle, backed by the PM's centre-right coalition, took just 31.74 percent, according to results with 99.9 percent of the votes counted, the commission said. Mail ballots have yet to be tallied and final full results are expected to be published in a week's time.
Turk's majority is the largest won in a presidential election in 15 years, beating even reformed communist Milan Kucan, who in 1992 won 64 percent of the vote in Slovenia's first democratic elections after independence. Peterle conceded defeat almost immediately after first exit polls indicated Turk's victory, admitting: 'I expected a better result.'"
Source: AFP
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