News roundup - Monday, 17 June, until 3pm

Angels in America declared best production at theatre festival

MARIBOR - The Ljubljana SMG theatre's production Angels in America won the Borštnik award for best play at the Maribor Theatre Festival on Sunday. It was directed by Nina Rajić Kranjac, who was also the director of last year's winner in this category. Two Slovenian productions based on the famous play by Tony Kushner were in the running for the main award. Actor Branko Šturbej accepted the Borštnik Ring for lifetime achievement.

BirdLife Slovenia first winner of nature conservation prize

ŠKOCJAN - DOPPS-BirdLife Slovenia was awarded on Friday the Rado Smerdu Prize, an award the Ministry of Natural Resources and Spatial Planning introduced this year to honour and promote nature conservation efforts, for its contribution to protect bird species and improve their habitats. The NGO was praised as a hub for nature conservation development in this field, which has had a major impact on the development of the nature conservation profession in Slovenia.

Crime data shows decline in number of offenders in 2023

LJUBLJANA - The number of convicted offenders in Slovenia declined last year - among adults the figure dropped by nearly 6%, while the number of juvenile offenders decreased by 3%, the Statistics Office said. Offences against property were the most common recorded crime committed by adult offenders, primarily theft and fraud. Offences against property accounted for 35% of the convictions at criminal courts in 2023, or 1,788 convictions, of which 45% were thefts and 18% frauds.

Disgruntled culture NGOs want right to appeal funding decisions reinstated

LJUBLJANA - In an initiative coming after repeated disgruntlement and accusations following changes regarding the awarding of funds to NGOs active in arts and culture, several culture organisers have issued a demand for a reintroduction of applicants' right to appeal decisions by expert commissions in charge of funds distribution. They say that the Culture Ministry unilaterally abolished what they call the right to a defence in 2016 without any public debate. The petitioners are also requesting a review of all applications from 2016 to date that have been rejected without this right in place.

National free-of-charge e-book lending platform launched

LJUBLJANA - All members of Slovenian public libraries are able to access what are presently 2,000 digital book titles from various Slovenian publishers as of today. Slovenia's first public e-book lending platform, known as Cobiss Ela, recorded 500 e-book rentals within just a few minutes of its launch. The platform presently features 18 libraries and five publishing houses and is expected to also be joined by school and other libraries and be expanded with additional titles. It makes E-books accessible through the Cobiss+ web application.

Lake Blaguš camp with new beginning under Falkensteiner chain

SVETI JURIJ OB ŠČAVNICI - The camp by Lake Blaguš in northeastern Slovenia, which has been renovated under the ownership of the Austrian hotel chain Falkensteiner, will be reopened this weekend. Named Falkensteiner Premium Camping Lake Blaguš, the camp includes 47 plots in two size categories, and 20 mobile units, which are also divided into two types. Representatives of the camp see the investment as part of the efforts to attract tourists to the lesser known parts of the country.

Laško beer comes out on top in skit on best beers from Euro 2024 participants

MANCHESTER, UK/LAŠKO - In a Friday video that spread on social media, two content creators on the British news and entertainment portal LADbible declared the Slovenian Laško Zlatorog beer the best among selected brands from the 24 participating countries of Euro 2024 in Germany. The two Britons taste all the 24 selected beers via an elimination system mimicking the one used at the football tournament. In the "final", Laško defeated the Ukrainian beer Lvivske.