Overview of the week's top stories since 29 Dec. 2003

This week’s headlines…

• 2003 a diplomatic success; 2004 offers new challenges
• Court halts Izbrisani referendum
• Low rating for NGOs
• Orthodox Christmas celebrated
• Agreement signed on minority radio in Austria
  

• Law on the Prevention of Corruption adopted
• Z vzhoda premieres in Murska Sobota
• Siddharta poised to conquer Europe
• Alamut appears in Czech translation

2003 a diplomatic success; 2004 offers new challenges

In 2004, Slovenia will join both the EU and NATO, and will also preside over the Central European Initiative. The country has also set a goal of strengthening cooperation with countries in the region which will not join the EU, particularly the other former Yugoslav republics of Croatia, Bosnia, Macedonia and Serbia and Montenegro.

The new year promises changes in the country’s economy as well. Membership in the EU will bring new challenges to the economy, but also promises new advantages. Preparations for taking on the euro will intensify once the country joins the EU, and among the reforms still necessary, inflation must be cut in order to qualify for the common currency within two years.

The new year also promises two important elections: elections to the National Assembly, and elections to the European Parliament. Slovenia’s fourth post-independence parliamentary elections have yet to be scheduled, but will likely be held this fall. In the last election, held in October 2000, eight parties received mandates. Liberal Democracy of Slovenia led with 36.21 percent of the vote, followed by the Slovene Democratic Party, which won 15.8 percent. Fewer parties are expected to sit in parliament following the 2004 elections.

In June Slovene voters will participate in the elections to the European Parliament for the first time. The country has seven seats to fill. The first Slovene Commissar to the European Commission will also be named, prior to accession on 1 May. Just six months later, on 1 November, a new Commissar will be named to a full five-year mandate, simultaneously with the other 24 EU member states.

Court halts Izbrisani referendum

The Constitutional Court ruled on 9 January that preparations for the planned referendum on the draft law dealing with the so-called izbrisani ("erased") scheduled for 15 February be halted.

The izbrisani are citizens of other republics of the former Yugoslavia who were living in Slovenia at the time of independence but who did not have, or otherwise qualify for, citizenship in the newly independent country. The government revoked their permanent resident status and erased them wholesale from the registries. The act has been called a "soft genocide" by activists.

In April 2003, the Constitutional Court ruled that the Law on the Regulation of the Status of Citizens of Other Successor States to the Former Yugoslavia from 1992 is unconstitutional, and that all of the izbrisani must have their residency rights returned. The government was given six months in which to bring the law into alignment with the constitution, based on the Court’s decision.

The law was harmonized with the constitution late in 2003, but was met with harsh opposition. In order to secure passage of the amendments, a referendum was called by 33 members of parliament from opposition parties along with the conservative Slovene People’s Party, which is a member of the ruling coalition.

On 9 January, the Court ruled that preparations for the referendum must be halted until it can decide whether the referendum itself is unconstitutional. The ruling was made with a vote of five to one. The Court has 14 days to render a final decision on the referendum’s constitutionality.

Prime Minister Anton Rop told RTV Slovenija that the referendum is unnecessary and represents a great expense to taxpayers. He added that the government and his party, the LDS, believe it is necessary to maintain a suitable level of tolerance and protection of human rights. ZLSD leaders also oppose the referendum.

Opposition leader Janez Janša, however, told RTV Slovenija that the Court’s decision is the result of political pressure on the part of the government. This view was shared by other opposition leaders, including NSi head Andrej Bajuk.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, there were 18,305 citizens of other Yugoslav republics living in Slovenia in 1992 who had permanent resident status, though unofficial accounts put the figure as high as 30,000. Of the Ministry’s figure, 12,937 have applied for citizenship under procedures introduced later. Some 10,713 have since gotten citizenship. But according to unofficial estimates, 3000 to 4000 people are still without formal legal status in the country.

Low rating for NGOs

Early in January, US AID premiered its NGO Sustainability Index, which is to become an annual rating. On a scale of 1 to 7 where 1 is the highest rating, Slovenia ranked at 3.9. The ratings in the individual categories were as follows: legal environment, 3.8; organizational capacity, 3.9; financial viability, 4; advocacy, 3.9; service provision, 3.5; infrastructure, 4.3; public image, 4.2.

The country placed well below several other countries which will join the EU in May – the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia all scored 2.4 on the list.

The paper, however, did not disagree with the rating and suggested that it is time the government looks into some reforms. On the list should be reforms of tax legislation and NGO access to government policy making.

Orthodox Christmas celebrated

Though the majority of Slovenes celebrated Christmas on 25 December, members of the local Macedonian, Serbian and other minorities celebrated the holiday on 7 January. Nearly 46,000 inhabitants of Slovenia belong to the Orthodox Church, according to the last census.

The Macedonian community, led by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of St. Kliment of Ohrid and the Macedonian Cultural Society Biljana Maribor, observed the holiday at the Church of St. Mary the Mother in Maribor.

Agreement signed on minority radio in Austria

Just before the end of 2003, an agreement was signed which will bring Slovene-language radio back to the airwaves in Austria’s Carinthia (Koroška) province by March. State television and radio service ORF signed the agreement with two private Slovene stations, Radio Dva and Radio Agora, in Vienna.

Starting in March 2004, ORF will prepare eight hours of Slovene-language programming each day, which will air on the frequency shared by Radio Dva and Radio Agora. The two private stations will produce the remaining 16 hours daily. In this way, Slovene-language programming will be available 24 hours per day.

ORF will finance its eight-hour share from its own coffers and will contribute 264,000 euros annually to Radio Dva and Radio Agora to help cover the expenses of their share of the project.

Slovene-language radio in Austria ran into trouble last year, on 1 January 2003, when ORF withdrew its backing of Radio Dva, which together with Radio Agora had provided 24-hour Slovene-language programming. Radio Dva employees then worked for free for three months and staged hunger strikes to draw attention to the issue. The Slovene government financed the station for six more months as negotiations sought to reinstate the federal funding. Radio Dva was forced to close up shop on 11 July 2003. Extensive negotiations since have resulted in the current agreement, which is satisfactory to all involved.

And in other news…

• Late in December, the National Council passed a long-awaited Law on the Prevention of Corruption with a vote of 49:2. The law contains several provisions which are aimed at lessening the opportunities for corruption as well as at dealing with corruption already present. It provides for the founding of a Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, which is to be an independent state organ appointed by the National Council.

• On 18 December in Murska Sobota, the film Z vzhoda (From the East) premiered. The documentary film was shot around the city and tells the story of the first Slavs. Miha Knific directed and wrote the screenplay, and Luka Rus produced the film. Archaeologist Miha Guštin was also involved in the project.

• Vladimir Bartol’s Alamut appeared in Czech translation late in December. The book was published by Czech publisher Albatros and was translated by Aleš Kozar. Igor Grdina contributed an introduction. The book first appeared in 1938 and has since become one of the most widely-known Slovene novels ever, having been translated into numerous languages. Hungarian and Slovak versions are slated to be published in 2004.