News roundup - Tuesday, 21 March

Raids in Bosnia and Slovenia on suspicion of money laundering

LJUBLJANA/SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina - Law enforcement authorities in Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina conducted a series of house searches at several locations on suspicion of money laundering, abuse of office and organised crime. Media reported they were looking into money transfers between the two countries in bogus deals that are believed to have netted the suspects more than EUR 5 million in illegal gains. The news portal Necenzurirano named Serbian-American businessman Milan Mandarić, the former owner of the Olimpija Ljubljana football club, as one of the suspects, which he denied.

Church to host religious dignitaries from Balkans in June

LJUBLJANA - The Catholic Church in Slovenia will organise a meeting of religious dignitaries from 15 countries in the Balkans to foster dialogue and peace. The Forum for Dialogue and Peace in the Balkans will be held in the port city of Koper on 17 and 18 June in a bid to prevent the erosion of peace in the region through interreligious dialogue. The event enjoys the support of the Holy See and Pope Francis. Božo Rustja, the forum's PR officer, a visit by the pope "could not be ruled out".

Slovenia and US sign new nuclear safety accord

VIENNA, Austria - The Slovenian Nuclear Safety Administration and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission signed a new bilateral agreement to exchange technical information and cooperate in research and training of experts. The agreement, which follows the first such signed in 1993, reaffirms the countries' commitment to exchange technical information, to cooperate in nuclear safety research, to provide training and experience for experts and to cooperate in potential emergency events.

Slovenia remains at tail end in NATO in defence spending

BRUSSELS, Belgium - Slovenia allocated 1.26% of its gross domestic product (GDP) for defence last year, which places it among the NATO member states with the lowest relative expenditure in this respect, shows a NATO report. Slovenia allocated EUR 734 million for defence at current prices, or EUR 620 million at 2015 prices, which accounts for 1.26% of the country's GDP, a slight improvement from 1.24% of GDP in 2021. Like two years ago, only Belgium, Spain and Luxembourg allocated a smaller share of GDP to defence than Slovenia in 2022. Slovenia meanwhile exceeded the target of 20% of defence budget spent for investments in equipment.

Foreign Ministry calls for elimination of hate speech

LJUBLJANA - The Foreign Ministry called for tolerance, respect and for elimination of hate speech on International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, stating that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights, the ministry said.

Unofficial: Labour inspectors detect several infringements at public broadcaster

LJUBLJANA - Labour inspectors have detected several violations of labour legislation at the Slovenian public broadcaster, including excessive overtime, recruitment past a call for applications or requirements, and insecure job contracts where there should be permanent employment, the STA has learnt from unofficial sources. One of the infringements was workers being in precarious work forms where they should be on permanent contracts. RTV Slovenija management said the problem of contract workers had been persistent from many years and was being tackled as per procedures introduced by the previous management.

GZS against potential rise in pension contributions for employers

LJUBLJANA - The Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS) is absolutely against a potential rise in contributions employers pay for pensions, GZS executive director Mitja Gorenšček said as the government's plans for a pension reform were discussed at a conference. For employers, it is key that the planned reform results in a financially sustainable pension system and that its funding is not shifted onto businesses, Gorenšček said at the event organised by the GZS and the Slovenian Association of Investment Funds.

Slovenians say yes to pension reform, no to raising retirement age

LJUBLJANA - A survey conducted by Ninamedia for the newspaper Dnevnik suggests more than 70% of Slovenians believe that change is needed for a sustainable pension system. The pension reform is seen as necessary by 72.6% of respondents, while 20.6% do not think it is needed and 6.9% are undecided. Increased employment that would fill the pension fund is favoured by respondents, while higher retirement age or higher number of years of pensionable service is seen as unacceptable.

Status of state attorneys deemed inappropriate, debate hears

LJUBLJANA - The service of state attorneys should be set down in the constitution to enjoy the same status as other professions in the judiciary, and state attorneys should be given back the status of office holders after they were relegated to civil servants, heard an event hosted by the upper chamber of parliament and State Attorney's Office. President Nataša Pirc Musar said the State Attorney's Office is the guardian of public interest and that state attorneys should regain the status of office holders.

Over 80% of Slovenian mothers with three or more kids work

LJUBLJANA - There were around 700,000 mothers in Slovenia in 2021, when the majority of children were born to mothers aged 30-34, the Statistics Office said before the 25 March Mothers's Day. Total employment rate for mothers with three or more kids in Slovenia, which has had a negative birth rate since 2017, was the highest in the EU, at nearly 81%.

Author of giant hill in Planica dies aged 89

LJUBLJANA - Janez Gorišek, a ski jumper and civil engineer who designed the giant hill in Planica in the 1960s together with his older brother Vlado and is considered a pioneer of ski flying, died aged 89. The giant hill in Planica was built in 1969 as the largest such facility in the world at the time and paved the way for a new discipline, ski flying, that the International Ski Federation recognised as an official event in 1971.

Drive-in local food market coming to Izola

IZOLA - The coastal town of Izola will launch a drive-in food market with local products at the end of April. While re-sellers of imported fruit were taking up space in the past, it will now be dedicated exclusively to local farmers, the organisers said. The food market with six stalls will prioritise farmers closest to the market and may offer space to fishermen if there is demand, said Giugliano Ritoša, head of the Jagodje-Dobrava community. The market will operate until November three times a week.