"The system is set up well." How the newsrooms write about Gelnica
According to the indictment, forty-seven-year-old math teacher Zuzana from Gelnica was murdered by her husband just 11 days after he was released from custody. Back in February, he allegedly attacked her while under the influence of alcohol and threatened to kill her. When she asked the court for a restraining order and for him to be evicted from their shared apartment, the court rejected her request on the grounds that the man was in custody at the time. He was sentenced to eight months for dangerous threats, but was released again after about four months. Pravda ↗The special committee of the National Council for human rights, convened for Monday by its chairwoman Lucia Plaváková of Progressive Slovakia, could not even be opened — all coalition members sent their apologies and the committee lacked a quorum. Justice Minister Boris Susko of Smer eventually appeared before journalists: "In my opinion, the system is set up well," he declared, insisting that it was "an individual's failure." He explained his coalition colleagues' absence by saying that, in his view, they "don't want to turn the case into a political affair." Denník N ↗ SME ↗
It was precisely the tone where newsrooms diverged. Nový Čas summed it up matter-of-factly — the minister sees no flaw in the system. Nový Čas ↗ Pravda built its headline around the question of whether a victim of domestic violence has to be a lawyer to navigate the system, and writes about the opposition's outrage. Pravda ↗ SME's commentators were the harshest: one piece is headlined "Cynical Monster: Smer and the Murders of Women" SME komentár ↗, and according to another, penned by Samo Marec, for part of the political establishment women are "just trophies or victims." SME komentár ↗ Meanwhile, the opposition has announced concrete steps: Freedom and Solidarity, led by Branislav Gröhling, along with MPs from Progressive Slovakia, want to bring laws to protect victims to the September session — ranging from strengthening probation, through stricter monitoring of aggressors, to faster restraining orders. SME ↗
Celebrations at Devín this year without the public
On Sunday, July 5, the traditional state celebrations of the feast of Saints Cyril and Methodius will take place at Devín Castle — but for the first time as a closed event only for constitutional officials and invited guests, without an accompanying program for the public. Those interested will only be able to watch it via live broadcast on STVR. SME ↗SME calculated the known bill so far at over 320,000 euros. According to a contract published in the central register, the Government Office ordered production services for almost 241,000 euros including VAT from a company that has previously organized events for the defense ministry. SME ↗ The opposition criticizes that nearly a quarter of a million euros is going toward a closed event. The Government Office counters that it publishes all costs in line with legislation and that, compared to last year's 750,000 euros, this represents a saving — though that saving does not apply to the public, for whom the celebrations are not intended this time. SITA ↗
Also read: What Slovakia is writing about: the referendum on Fico's pension that the prime minister rejects
Record heat: the prime minister praises the rules, unions want more
On Monday, Slovakia rewrote its temperature records — according to SITA and meteorologists, 41 degrees Celsius was measured in Turňa nad Bodvou, breaking the absolute record from 2007, when 40.3 degrees was recorded in Hurbanovo. SITA ↗ The newspaper Pravda has recorded 15 victims so far in connection with the heat, including drownings. Pravda ↗Over the weekend, Prime Minister Robert Fico visited Doprastav workers on the D2 highway in Bratislava and praised the current regulation, under which employers must implement special measures once temperatures reach 30 degrees in the shade: "Working in such heat is sometimes on the verge of heroism." Unions, however, have long been demanding that a maximum workplace temperature be set or that mandatory, enforceable breaks be introduced — in their view, current legislation does not adequately address this. Denník N ↗
State finances: at the tail end of prosperity and a dispute over the budget
The new Prosperity Index ranked Slovakia 23rd among European Union countries — only Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and Greece finished behind us, with our biggest lag being in investment and attracting foreign capital. SME ↗Added to this is the dispute over next year's budget. The former chairman of the Constitutional Court noted in a commentary for Denník N that Agriculture Minister Richard Takáč indicated in a Sunday debate that the government would not submit a balanced budget, and in response to a remark about the Constitutional Court's role, he asked "what do we have parliamentary elections for?" The author reads this as a dangerous shift from the motto "win the election and you can do anything" to the notion that there is no longer anyone to keep the government in check. Denník N ↗
Under the radar
While murders and heat waves draw attention, a dispute over public-service media is intensifying in the background. The scientific platform Žijem vedu criticizes the return of nutrition advisor Igor Bukovský to Rádio Slovensko's broadcasting from July 6 and warns that popularity must not take precedence over medical ethics. Aktuality.sk ↗ A group of public figures is also signing a petition stating that by subordinating STVR, the government has broken its independence Aktuality.sk ↗, and the same outlet points out that tens of thousands of euros are now flowing, via the agriculture ministry, to websites the state used to block. Aktuality.sk ↗The pre-election season ahead of the autumn regional and municipal elections is also picking up. The current chair of the Žilina region, Erika Jurinová, has announced her third candidacy TERAZ ↗, Bratislava mayoral candidate Martin Winkler has called for forming a bloc against the current mayor Matúš Vallo TERAZ ↗, and the Košice regional council has so far failed to agree even on electoral districts. TERAZ ↗
What hotinfo is watching
The referendum on lifetime pension for Robert Fico — results will come on Sunday, July 5; we are watching turnout above all (polls suggested roughly a quarter of eligible voters would participate).The September session of the National Council — whether the coalition allows the Freedom and Solidarity and Progressive Slovakia bills on protecting domestic violence victims onto the agenda, or sweeps them off the table.
The 2027 budget — whether the government submits a balanced budget and how the Constitutional Court responds.
The Cyril and Methodius celebrations at Devín on July 5 — the final bill and public reaction to the closed event.
STVR — the launch of Bukovský's segment on July 6 and the fate of the public figures' petition for the independence of public-service media.
