News roundup - Friday, 5 May

Slovenia condemns another mass shooting in Serbia

LJUBLJANA - Senior officials condemned yet another fatal shooting in Serbia as a 21-year-old man shot at least eight people dead in the Mladenovac area on Thursday night, 60km south of the capital of Belgrade, which saw a school shooting on Wednesday that left nine people dead. PM Robert Golob expressed his condolences to the families and friends of the victims and wished those wounded a speedy recovery, as did President Nataša Pirc Musar. She added that the "cruelty of the events that have affected all of us deeply must not become a competition in sensationalism". Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon added "it's impossible to comprehend the killing of innocent civilians", stressing that there is no excuse for "such brutal acts" nor for abusing the tragic events for inciting hatred and fear.

Many in Ljubljana mourn Serbian school shooting victims

LJUBLJANA - The Serbian Embassy in Ljubljana opened a book of condolence to commemorate the victims of Wednesday's deadly school shooting in Belgrade that killed nine people while leaving eight wounded. Serbian Ambassador Zorana Vlatković said that many Slovenian citizens, state officials and foreign diplomats signed the book of condolence, and thanked all Slovenian citizens "who mourned and expressed their heartfelt sympathies and support in these hard times for Serbia". State Secretary at the Foreign Ministry Marko Štucin was one of the officials singing it. At 4pm, around 50 people gathered in front of the embassy for a minute of silence, bringing flowers and lighting candles for the victims of the shooting. The book of condolence will also be open for signing on Saturday and Monday.

Exports growth outpaces imports growth in Q1

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia exported EUR 14.4 billion worth of goods in the first quarter of the year, up 27% over the same period a year ago, as imports rose at a slower pace, by 11.2% to EUR 14.5 billion, fresh Statistics Office figures show. The trade gap amounted to EUR 84.3 million with export-import ratio at 99.4%. Trade with non-EU countries increased much more substantially than trade with EU countries, although the bulk of trade was still done with EU markets. In March alone, exports rose by 21.7% year-on-year to EUR 5.2 billion with exports to markets outside the EU rising by 62.5%, or by 15.6% discounting operations involving processing.

Slovenia's jobless total lowest since 1990

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's registered jobless in April dropped by 3.4% at the monthly level to reach 48,598, the lowest figure since 1990. In yearly comparison, the figure is down by 16.3%, reads the report published by the Employment Service. There were 3,819 people newly-registered at the Employment Service in April, which is 11.6% down from March and 6.8% from April 2022. Employers posted 12,010 vacancies in April, which is down 27.2% from March and 8.6% year-on-year.

Ex-president calls for independence memorial in Ljubljana

VRHNIKA - Slovenia's former President Milan Kučan urged erecting a memorial to Slovenian independence in Republic Square in Ljubljana as he addressed a WWII commemoration in Vrhnika. Kučan, who served when independence was declared in 1991, believes such a memorial would unite the nation, encouraging it to successfully address challenges ahead and paying tribute to Slovenians as a nation that achieved independence. "Such a monument would rightly have its place in the central square of our capital, Republic Square, where many of the acts of independence took place." Republic Square is located opposite the parliament and was the venue for the ceremony at which independence was declared on 26 June 1991. There are already two memorials there, both related to WWII and the communist revolution.

Minister calls for EU solutions on medicines shortages

STOCKHOLM, Sweden - Health Minister Danijel Bešič Loredan said the issue of medicines shortages should be addressed at the EU level, as he attended an informal meeting of EU health ministers in Stockholm. He pointed to differences among EU countries in the availability of certain medicines, saying that for example a medicine for children had not been available on the Slovenian market while it could be obtained in neighbouring countries. On the sidelines of the meeting, he met EU Commissioner for Health Stela Kiriakides, who is to visit Slovenia in 1 and 2 June.

Human rights association turns to Constitutional Court over bear culling

LJUBLJANA - The Helsinki Monitor of Slovenia, a Ljubljana-based human rights NGO, has filed a complaint with the Constitutional Court against the April decision of the Ministry of Natural Resources to allow the culling of 230 brown bears to reduce their population in the country that is estimated at 1,100. The association also wants the court to suspend the culling. It meanwhiled urged PM Robert Golob to demand that Brežan's ministry immediately stop further bear culling and opens a public discussion on the issue. Brežan said on Wednesday that 158 bears have already been culled based on the 13 April decision.

Open letter finds energy and climate plan proposal harmful

LJUBLJANA - The Youth for Climate Justice group addressed an open letter dubbed Plan for Climate Breakdown to the Environment Ministry. The letter, signed by 48 organisations, warns that the proposal for the National Energy and Climate Plan update that was presented in April is not ambitious and will lead Slovenia to an environmental and climate breakdown and a worsening of social inequalities. The movement advocates for measures that will help Slovenia reach carbon neutrality by 2040 in a socially just and nature friendly way.

Police presence around Slovenian schools to be beefed up

TRBOVLJE/LJUBLJANA - The police secured two primary schools in Trbovlje in central Slovenia today as it received a threatening e-mail yesterday, which is believed to be motivated by Wednesday's school shooting in Serbia. Additional safety measures have been imposed, and classes and other activities were performed as usual, but some 10% of the students did not come to school. The Education Ministry meanwhile announced that in the face of the tragic incidents in Serbia, police presence around Slovenian schools will be temporarily beefed up. It said that police are ready to cooperate with schools in efforts for early discovery of potential violent incidents.

Weapon possession increasing in Slovenia

LJUBLJANA - The number of licensed gun owners and registered weapons in Slovenia has been increasing in recent years with Interior Ministry data showing that most weapons are licensed for hunting. Concrete estimates about the amount of illegal weapons are not available, but police do not believe the amounts are very large. Over the past six years, police have seized 3,641 weapons of various types, mostly cold weapons. To detect illegal weapons and their entry into Slovenia, the police conduct road, rail and air traffic checks and special security campaigns throughout, and they assess their work as successful in this respect. Denis Čaleta, a security expert, meanwhile said it is impossible to give an estimate of how many illegal weapons there are in Slovenia.

Dončić to cover costs of funerals of victims of Belgrade shooting

LJUBLJANA - Slovenian basketball superstar Luka Dončić announced on Thursday that he will cover the costs of the funerals of the nine victims of Wednesday's school shooting in Serbia, and will also pay for counselling for the victims' families and the affected students and staff. The 24-year-old member of the Dallas Mavericks of the NBA said on Twitter that he was "heartbroken by the tragic school shooting in Serbia and the loss of lives, including those of innocent children". He said that he supported and stood with the people of Belgrade during this difficult time.