News roundup - Sunday, 8 September

Shooting in Roma settlement in Novo Mesto leaves child injured

NOVO MESTO - A child was injured in today's shooting in the Roma settlement of Šmihel in Novo Mesto, SE, but their injures are said not to be life-threatening. The police suspect the child was a random victim not a target. The suspected shooter, aged 51, is in detention. His house was on fire, and the police suspect a retaliation of other residents for his shooting. The investigating is ongoing, including into attempted manslaughter and arson. Police presence was significantly beefed up in the area of Novo Mesto after today's incident as Roma-related issues, chiefly violent incidents, have been making headlines in recent months.

Slovenia's Primož Roglič wins his fourth Vuelta a Espana

MADRID - Slovenian rider Primož Roglič (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) won La Vuelta a Espana for the fourth time after 2021, 2020 and 2019 as he placed second in today's last stage, a 24.6 km time trail. This puts him on a par with Spaniard Roberto Heras, who won the Spanish race four times in the early 2000s. Roglič's victory at La Vuelta is the cherry on the cake of an outstanding year for Slovenian riders in grand tours, as Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) won both the Giro'd Italia and the Tour de France earlier this year.

Antifascists commemorated in Basovizza

BASOVIZZA, Italy - The annual commemoration of four Slovenian victims of fascism who fought against aggressive Italianisation was held at the memorial site in Basovizza, where they were killed in 1930. Tatjana Rojc, a senator of Slovenian descent, said peace, democracy and tolerance are the basis of co-existence which fascism wanted to destroy by trying to divide people who have always lived there. Slovenian Culture Minister Asta Vrečko invited in her address "all Italian politicians to join us here next year and send together a message that they were not terrorists, but fighters for antifascism, freedom, their language and co-existence".

Consequences of wars, role of peace stressed at former fascist camp

RAB, Croatia - National Assembly Speaker Urška Klakočar Zupančič stressed the need for peaceful politics as she addressed on Saturday a commemoration marking the 81st anniversary of the liberation of the Italian concentration camp Kampor on the Croatian island of Rab, where at least 1,490 Slovenians died. She also laid a wreath at the memorial site. The annual event on Rab is organised by the city of Rab and the Slovenian WWII Veteran's Association. It was attended by some 200 people, including the association's president Marijan Križman.

Vilenica wraps up as awards are given out

LIPICA/ŠTANJEL - Bosnian-Croatian writer Miljenko Jergović was given the Vilenica Prize for outstanding Central European writers as the 39th Vilenica International Literary Festival closed at Vilenica Cave near Lipica, SW, on Saturday evening. In his acceptance speech, Jergović highlighted caves as places hiding thousands of stories which are yet to be told, including about atrocities from time immemorial. Poet Dominik Srienc, a member of the Slovenian community in Austria, who writes in Slovenian and German, received the Vilenica Crystal, which the festival gives to one of the authors presented in its annual collections of poems or texts.

Roma official visits Roma settlements in Ribnica to encourage cooperation

RIBNICA - Fatmir Bečiri, a vice-president of the Council of the Roma Community, a body set up in 2007 under the Roma Community Act, visited three Roma villages in the municipality of Ribnica in the south on Saturday after a recent series of violent incidents in a bid to encourage them to engage in dialogue with local authorities. The council has recently got more actively engaged in efforts to address challenges involving the Roma in Ribnica. To facilitate dialogue, a Roma organisation is being established in Ribnica, and will join the Roma community umbrella, the Roma Association of Slovenia.

One in four employees worked for a foreign-controlled company in 2022

LJUBLJANA - In 2022, foreign-controlled enterprises accounted for 3.9% of all companies in Slovenia, generating 28.2% of the added value and employing 26.8% of the workforce. Economically, the most significant were those controlled by Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Sales revenues from foreign-controlled companies represented 31% of the total in Slovenia. A foreign-controlled enterprise is a company headquartered in Slovenia but controlled by an institutional unit based in another country. The Statistics Office tracks control based on the country of the ultimate owner, which can be either a legal entity or an individual.

Port of Koper welcomes its 1,000th cruise ship

KOPER - The Norwegian Pearl anchored in Koper as the 1000th cruise ship to sail into the port since it embraced cruise tourism in 2005. More than a million tourists arrived on board cruise ships since the first big cruise ship, the Minerva II, sailed into Koper with 600 tourists onboard 19 years ago. Nevenka Kržan, CEO of port operator Luka Koper, said that construction of a new passenger terminal will start in November and should be completed next spring to be ready for next season.

Garnbret ends her climbing season with win in Koper

KOPER - Slovenia's sport climber Janja Garnbret won a World Cup lead event in the Slovenian town of Koper on Saturday evening after winning all events she competed in this season, including defending her Tokyo Olympic gold at the Paris Olympic Games last month. She was the only Slovenian in the final. Although she only managed to get to boulder 46+, this was enough for victory, ahead of Austria's Jessica Pilz (40+) and American Annie Sanders (39+). There are another two World Cup events before the end of the season, but she decided to end it in Koper.

Bust of Slovenian aviation pioneer unveiled in Nova Gorica

NOVA GORICA - A bust of Edvard Rusjan (1886-1911) was unveiled in Nova Gorica on Saturday to honour the Slovenian aviation pioneer. Rusjan made the first powered flight in a plane he made together with his brother in 1909 in the area around present-day Nova Gorica, a city built after WWII. The bust was made by Nova Gorica sculptor Bojan Štokelj (1959-2001) and was originally erected at Brnik, the country's main international airport. Four years ago, the municipality of Nova Gorica bought it from the bankruptcy estate of airline Adria Airways.