News roundup - Monday, 12 August

Youth reps say govt not really addressing their struggles

LJUBLJANA - The Youth Council of Slovenia (MSS), an umbrella association of youth organisations, voiced discontent over what it says is the government's failure to honour commitments and really lend an ear to youth representatives. On International Youth Day, MSS president Eva Kotnik said that youth participation is the cornerstone of any modern and inclusive society, but that despite the council's efforts, Slovenia is still lagging far behind international standards and modern approaches in this area. The youth trade union Mladi Plus meanwhile urged measures for more job and housing security and mental health support.

President calls Slovenian Olympic team an inspiration

LJUBLJANA - President Nataša Pirc Musar hosted a high-profile reception for Team Slovenia that returned from the Olympics. Congratulating the athletes, she said they were an inspiration that drams may come true. She also touched on cheering and social media, saying that criticising top athletes when things do not go according to plan while hiding behind nicknames on social media was cowardly.

RTV council accepts Trček's resignation

LJUBLJANA - The council of the public broadcaster RTV Slovenija accepted management board member Andrej Trček's resignation after he handed it in in mid-June. He initially stayed on for a while longer at the request of the board's acting chair Natalija Gorščak, but his term has now ended. Trček resigned for personal reasons after Simon Kardum stepped down in December, criticising significant programming cuts at the time, and chairman Zvezdan Martić resigned in late May, citing loss of trust of the majority of council members.

Delo poll suggests nearly half unhappy with govt

LJUBLJANA - The latest ratings poll published by the newspaper Delo shows that the largest opposition party, the Democrats (SDS), remains the highest-rated party. Some 49% of respondents are unsatisfied or very unsatisfied with the government's work, an increase of roughly four percentage points on the previous month. Some 24% assess the government's work as "negative" and 25% as "very negative". Delo says the poor ratings are partly a result of the slow pace of the post-flood reconstruction and the criticism this has elicited.

BSH Hišni Aparati's results drop in wake of 2023 floods

NAZARJE - The Nazarje-based home appliance maker BSH Hišni Aparati, one of the companies worst hit in the August 2023 floods, posted EUR 364 million in net revenue in 2023, 25% less than the previous year. The worst natural disaster in Slovenia's history also affected the company's net profit, which dropped by 19% to EUR 9.6 million. The company, which employs some 1,400 workers, estimates the damage, which includes both damage to property as well as loss of turnover, at more than EUR 100 million.

Delays on railway network to not get better in coming weeks

LJUBLJANA - Delays and replacement transportation for rail passengers, which have become endemic in Slovenia due to extensive renovation and maintenance work, are likely to get worse in August as an effort will be made to get key work done before the end of the summer holidays, representatives of the Slovenian Railways indicated. Work is to be stepped up on practically all segments of the railway network.

Austria unveils first bilingual train station sign

BLEIBURG, Austria - Nearly a month after several bilingual place name signs were vandalised in the Austrian province of Carinthia, the first bilingual train station name sign was unveiled in the province that is home to majority of Slovenian minority in Austria today. The sign in Bleiburg/Pliberk was inaugurated by the Austrian Minister for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology Leonore Gewessler. The event was also attended by Slovenian Justice Ministry State Secretary Milan Brglez, who underlined that this was a necessary step for the preservation of the Slovenian language in Carinthia.

Regulated fuel prices remain unchanged

LJUBLJANA - The prices of regular petrol and diesel sold outside the Slovenian motorway network and of heating oil will remain unchanged, the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Energy said. Until 26 August a litre of regular petrol will still cost EUR 1.514, a litre of diesel EUR 1.528 and heating oil will continue to be sold at EUR 1.146 per litre, the ministry said.

Rescue team members injured while recovering a hiker's body

KAMNIK - Two members of a rescue team were injured in the Kamnik-Savinja Alps while transferring the body of a hiker who had been missing since Thursday into the valley. One of them sustained serious injuries. A police officer had sustained light injuries during the search for the missing hiker. According to the Ljubljana Police Department, the hiker who was found dead had slipped on the way to Mt Skuta and sustained fatal injuries.

Police injured as locals resist juvenile driver's detention

KOČEVJE - Two police officers sustained minor injuries on Sunday evening in Kočevje as a group of locals assisted a minor resisting arrest after he refused to pull over his vehicle during a traffic stop. The group approached the officers, attempting to prevent the detention of the minor by punching, pushing off and threatening the officers, with one of the suspects also throwing a stone at the police vehicle. The event occurred as police presence was reinforced in the town following a shooting incident on 8 August, as a 25-year-old shooter fired several shots at two cars during the night, but nobody was injured.

Kanal bridge diving once more draw adrenaline junkies

KANAL - Like nearly every year since the late 1980s, the small town of Kanal in western Slovenia on Sunday attracted several dozen diving enthusiasts to test their skills in diving off the town's landmark 17-metre bridge into the emerald depths of the Soča River. Competitors from Denmark, Serbia, Slovenia and the US, including two women, faced off in the swallow, feet-first, figure diving and free-style categories. Vincent Aleithe won the feet-first competition, while Fabian Wurzinger won in figure diving and free-style.

Laibach exhibiting in Zagreb

TRBOVLJE - The iconic Slovenian arts collective Laibach is exhibiting in Zagreb this summer, with the focal point of the exhibition being the Assimilator, a cube-shaped speaker, developed by the software company Dewesoft, that produces sound based on thermal imaging of visitors moving in the gallery. Running until 20 August, the exhibition titled Ausstellung! Laibach Kunst: Unternehmen Barbarossa + Assimilator focuses on political and slippery themes.

Roglič will compete at La Vuelta

MADRID, Spain - Cycling star Primož Roglič, who was injured in a crash at the Tour de France and has not competed since, will take part in La Vuelta, his team Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe announced. Roglič has recovered and is ready for Spain, the team of the three-time Vuelta winner said.