News roundup - Tuesday, 11 April, until 3pm

Defence Minister Šarec visiting Brazil and Argentina

BRASILIA, Brazil/BUENOS AIRES, Argentina - Defence Minister Marjan Šarec is paying an official visit to Brazil and Argentina until Saturday to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation. He will meet his Brazilian and Argentinean counterparts José Múcio Monteiro and Jorge Taiana, respectively, as well as representatives of other countries from Latin America as he seeks support for Slovenia's UN Security Council bid, the Defence Ministry said in a press release.

Roto Slovenija acquires Canadian kayak maker

PUCONCI - Plastic products maker Roto Slovenija has acquired the Canadian kayak maker Delsyk Kayak in a deal that includes the trademark and production, making Roto Slovenija the company with the biggest range of kayaks and canoes in the world, the company said. Roto Slovenija, based in the north-east of the country, will continue to uphold the 40-year tradition of Delsyk Kayak. This Canadian pioneer of polyethylene sea kayaks was founded by the late Mike Neckar, one of the most creative kayak designers in the world, according to Roto. His kayaks were used in some historic trips, like the only trip from California to Hawaii.

Battery maker Tab sets up subsidiary in Benelux

MEŽICA - Tab, the Mežica-based maker of starter batteries, has acquired a 51% stake in the Dutch battery wholesaler R&W Batterijen to establish its new subsidiary TAB Benelux. The move is aimed at consolidating Tab's position in the Benelux region and Europe as whole, the Slovenian company said. The acquisition, which was completed last Thursday, marks the beginning of a new era of fruitful cooperation between Tab and R&W Batterijen, which have been cooperating for nearly 20 years, said Tab chairman Bogomir Auprih.

Govt urged to back free access to procedures related to reproductive rights

LJUBLJANA - The 8 March Institute called on the government to help secure universal free access to procedures related to reproductive rights, including abortion, artificial insemination and sterilisation. Presently, those without top-up health insurance have to cover part of the costs themselves. The NGO addressed the press together with representatives of the public health insurer ZZZS, whose assembly has already backed the initiative almost unanimously, making health services securing basic reproductive rights part of basic compulsory health insurance, however pending a nod by the government.

Two men from Kosovo get six years in prison for rape

LJUBLJANA - The Ljubljana District Court has sentenced two citizens of Kosovo to six years in prison for raping a woman in a park in Ljubljana last March, the newspaper Večer reported. They will also be banished from the country for five years after serving their prison sentences. The ruling is not final yet. The crime was reported by security guards at a ministry and a bank near the park who in the early hours of that day detected suspicious behaviour on CCTV cameras as a woman was dragged into the bushes by three men. Evidence corroborates that two of them then proceeded to rape her.

Industrial output down in February

LJUBLJANA - Industrial output in Slovenia was down by 3.7% in February compared to January. The largest drop was recorded in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply, where output declined by 21.3%. Industrial output increased only in capital goods, where it grew by 3%, the Statistics Office reported. Industrial output dropped by 3.5% in mining and quarrying and by 2.3% in manufacturing. It decreased by 1.4% in intermediate goods and by 0.6% in consumer goods.