Slovakia, landlocked republic in central Europe, bounded
on the northwest by the Czech Republic, on the north by Poland, on the east by
Ukraine, on the south by Hungary, and on the southwest by Austria. Bratislava
is its capital and largest city.
Slovakia existed as part of Hungary from the
beginning of the 10th century until 1918, when it united with the Czech lands
of Bohemia and Moravia, in addition to a small part of Silesia, to form
Czechoslovakia. In 1939, shortly before the start of World War II, Slovakia
declared its independence under pressure from German dictator Adolf Hitler, but
in 1945 it was reunited with the rest of Czechoslovakia. From 1948 until 1989
Czechoslovakia was ruled by a Soviet-style Communist regime. In 1993 the
country broke apart, and Slovakia and the Czech Republic became independent.
II
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LAND AND RESOURCES
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Slovakia’s total area is 49,035 sq km (18,933 sq mi).
The country’s maximum length from east to west is about 416 km (about 258 mi),
and its maximum width from north to south is about 208 km (about 129 mi). The
Danube River, located in the southwest, forms part of Slovakia’s border with
Hungary.
A
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Natural Regions
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Slovakia is known for its numerous and impressive
mountain ranges. Many of the country’s mountains give way to rolling hills and
river valleys, where agriculture, winemaking, and livestock raising are
practiced. Slovakia’s mountainous terrain has also influenced settlement
patterns within the country.
The Carpathian Mountains, a major mountain system of
central Europe, extend across much of northern and northwestern Slovakia and
encompass the Little Carpathians, the White Carpathians, and the Tatry, which
is the highest Carpathian range. The High Tatry mountains contain the country’s
highest peak, Gerlachovský Štít, which rises to an elevation of 2,655 m (8,711
ft). The High Tatry also contain one of Slovakia’s largest national parks and
are a popular place for skiing and hiking. Other important mountains include
the Low Tatry, in central Slovakia, and the Lesser and Greater Fatra ranges, in
central and western Slovakia. The Slovak Ore Mountains, in eastern Slovakia,
are named for their mineral deposits.
Southwestern Slovakia is dominated by the Danubian Lowlands,
a fertile region that extends to the Danube River on the Hungarian border. Much
of the country’s agriculture is produced in this area; Bratislava is its main
industrial center.
Slovakia also contains a number of interesting and
unusual caves. Among them are the Demänovská caves, a series of caves linked by
underground lakes and waterfalls, located in central Slovakia; and the Domica
cave, known for its vaulted roof and colored stalactites, located near the
Hungarian border in eastern Slovakia.
B
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Rivers and Lakes
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The Danube is Slovakia’s main navigable river.
Other important rivers include the Váh, Hron, Ipel’ (Eipel), Nitra, Ondava,
Laborec, and Hornád. Many small glacial lakes are located in the High Tatry
Mountains.
C
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Plants and Animal Life
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Some 39 percent of Slovakia is forested.
Species of fir and spruce are common in most mountain areas. At lower elevations,
oaks, birches, and lindens predominate. Slovakia’s forests are home to foxes,
rabbits, squirrels, weasels, and muskrats; wild boar and wolves are
occasionally seen in remote mountain areas. Wildlife stocks have been
diminishing in Slovakia, due to pollution, urbanization, and deforestation.
D
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Natural Resources
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Slovakia contains significant forest resources. The
country’s main mineral resources are copper, lead, zinc, manganese, and iron.
Lignite, a type of coal, is found near the cities of Modrý Kameň and Handlová.
E
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Climate
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Slovakia has a continental climate, with four
distinct seasons. Winters are typically cold and dry, while summers tend to be
hot and humid. The average daily temperature range in Bratislava is -3° to 2°C
(27° to 36°F) in January and 16° to 26°C (61° to 79°F) in July; temperatures
tend to be cooler in the mountains. Bratislava receives an average of about 650
mm (about 26 in) of precipitation annually. In areas of high altitude, snow is
often present for as many as 130 days each year.
F
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Environmental Issues
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Citizen concern about the environment—particularly air
and water pollution—increased in the 1990s. However, efforts to shut down
pollution-producing industrial plants have been hampered by economic
considerations, including concern about the high rate of unemployment.
Slovakia suffers from some of the worst air pollution in
Europe. Coal-burning factories and power plants spew forth huge amounts of
pollutants. High levels of nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and soot and dust
in the atmosphere present human health risks and contribute to the dangerous
levels of acid rain that fall on central Europe. Air pollution and acid rain
have caused defoliation in 16 percent of Slovakia’s forests. Water pollution is
also severe in many communities. Experts believe that half of Slovakia’s rivers
are polluted to such an extent that they can no longer support aquatic life.
III
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THE PEOPLE OF SLOVAKIA
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A
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Population and Settlement
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The Slovaks are descendants of a Slavic people who
settled near the Danube between 400 and 500 ad.
Slovaks comprise about 86 percent of the country’s inhabitants; Hungarians, who
constitute the largest minority group, comprise close to 11 percent; and Roma
(Gypsies) represent less than 2 percent. Small numbers of Czechs, Moravians,
Silesians, Ruthenians, Ukrainians, Poles, and Germans also live in Slovakia.
The country is divided informally into the three
regions of Western Slovakia, Central Slovakia, and Eastern Slovakia,
corresponding to administrative divisions that were abolished in 1989. Most of
Slovakia’s 600,000 Hungarians live in the southern parts of Western and Central
Slovakia, which served as the cultural center of Hungary for several centuries
after Hungary proper was invaded by the Ottomans in the 16th century. The
Ruthenian and Ukrainian minorities are concentrated in the northern regions of
Eastern Slovakia. At the time of the 1991 census, Slovakia’s total population
was 5,274,335; the 2008 estimated population was 5,455,407. The population
density in 2008 was 112 persons per sq km (290 per sq mi). Some 58 percent of
the population lived in urban areas.
B
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Principal Cities
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Bratislava, Slovakia’s capital and largest city, had an
estimated population of 425,000 in 2003. Other important cities include Košice
(235,509), an industrial city; Nitra (86,958), a food-processing center; Prešov
(92,488), known for electrical-engineering; Banská Bystrica (82,493), in a
mining and manufacturing area; and Žilina (85,347), a business center.
C
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Language
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Slovak, a language of the West Slavic subgroup of
Slavic languages, is the official language of Slovakia; Slovak is closely
related to the Czech language (see Slovak Language). Hungarian is also
widely spoken. In July 1994 a law was passed allowing the use of Hungarian as
the official language in areas of Slovakia where at least 20 percent of
residents speak Hungarian. However, this was retracted by a subsequent law,
passed in November 1995, which makes Slovak the only language that can be used
in the civil service, on road signs, and in advertisements. A coalition
including ethnic Hungarians and members of opposition parties planned to
challenge the new law. Other languages spoken in Slovakia include Ukrainian,
Romani, and Czech. Most members of minority ethnic groups speak Slovak in
addition to their own native languages.
D
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Religion
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About 68 percent of Slovaks are Roman
Catholics. Protestant churches, including the Slovak Evangelical Church, and
the Reformed Christian Church, are also widely supported, claiming about 11
percent of the population as members. The Orthodox and Uniate churches maintain
active followings among the Ruthenians and Ukrainians of Eastern Slovakia. Most
of Slovakia’s Jewish community died during World War II in the Holocaust.
Religion plays a major role in everyday life in Slovakia, with 85 percent of
Slovaks claiming a religious affiliation. Even under the Communist system,
which explicitly opposed religious practice, the majority of Slovaks baptized
their children and were married and buried in religious ceremonies.
E
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Education
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Nearly all of Slovak adults are able to read
and write. Compulsory education begins at age six, when children enter primary
school; primary education takes nine years to complete. After completing primary
school, students may choose among three types of secondary education:
vocational or technical schools, schools of general education (gymnasia),
or teacher-training institutes. Slovakia has 14 institutions of higher
education. Comenius University of Bratislava was founded in 1467 and is the
country’s oldest university. Technical universities are located in Bratislava,
Košice, Žilina, and Nitra.
F
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Way of Life
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The reintroduction of a market economy in the early
1990s produced a sharp increase in unemployment, a high rate of inflation, and
therefore a decline in living standards for many Slovak families. However, most
households are relatively well-equipped with consumer goods, such as
refrigerators, washing machines, televisions, and automobiles. Most urban
residents live in high-rise buildings; many also own small cottages in the
countryside. In rural areas, single-family homes predominate.
The Slovak diet relies heavily on pork. Bryndzové
halušky (noodles with goat cheese) and Hungarian dishes including
goulash are also widely enjoyed. Wine, beer, slivovitz (plum brandy),
and borovička (an herb-flavored drink), are popular beverages.
Attending soccer games and other sporting events is a
popular pastime in Slovakia. Many Slovaks ski and hike in the mountains; and
urban dwellers attend the opera, the ballet, concerts, and plays. Socializing
with friends in wine cellars and taverns is also common.
G
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Social Problems
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Slovak society suffers from many of the problems found
commonly in developed Western societies. Crime, prostitution, and drug abuse
increased after 1989, when the Communist government collapsed, political
controls were lifted, and borders were reopened. Poverty has also increased,
particularly among single mothers and the elderly.
In recent years, tensions have mounted between the
Slovak government and Hungarians residing in Slovakia. Many Hungarians have
complained of discrimination and have pressed for educational and cultural
autonomy in addition to the right to use Hungarian as their official language.
Tensions have also increased at the local level in areas populated by both
Slovaks and ethnic Hungarians.
IV
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CULTURE
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The development of Slovak culture reflects the
country’s rich folk tradition, in addition to the influence of broader European
trends. The impact of centuries of cultural repression and control by foreign
governments is also evident in much of Slovakia’s art, literature, and music.
A
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Literature
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In the late 18th century, a national movement
began in Slovakia, with the aim of fostering Slovak culture and identity. One
of its leaders was Anton Bernolák, a Jesuit priest who codified a Slovak
literary language based on dialects used in western Slovakia. In the 19th
century, Protestant leaders Ján Kollár and Pavol Šafárik developed a form of
written Slovak that combined the dialects used in central Slovakia and the
Czech lands. The linguist and Slovak nationalist L’udovít Štúr, a contemporary
of Kollár and Šafárik’s, rejected the Czech influence and set out to develop a
more authentic literary Slovak; his language was adopted by a group of Slovak
poets, whose work dealt largely with national Slovak themes. Poetry remained an
important literary form into the 20th century, and was used by some Slovak
writers to address the experience of World War II and the rise of Communism.
During the Communist period, Slovak literary culture suffered from heavy
governmental control. The works of Dominik Tatarka, Luboš Jurik, Martin Butora,
Milan Šimečka, and Hana Ponicka were exceptions to the pattern of politically
influenced works.
B
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Art and Architecture
|
A Slovak school of painting emerged in the mid-19th
century. Sculpture and architecture also developed in the 19th and 20th
centuries, much of it heavily influenced by western European styles. Peter
Michal Bohún and J.B. Klemens were among the best-known artists of this period.
The work of landscape and figure painters Ladislav Medňanský and Dominik
Skutecký received widespread attention in the late 19th century. The cubist
artist Ester Simerová-Martinčeková and surrealist Imrich Weiner-Kráĺ were
influential in the early 20th century. Other important 20th-century artists
include L’udovít Fulla, Mikuláš Galanda, Martin Benka, and Mikuláš Bazorský.
Dušan Jurkovič was an important architect of the early 20th century.
Folk arts and crafts, which include wood carving,
fabric weaving, and glass painting, have a long and popular tradition in
Slovakia, especially in rural areas. Examples of folk architecture, such as
wooden churches and brightly painted houses, are found throughout the country,
particularly in the Ukrainian communities of Eastern Slovakia.
C
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Music
|
Music has long occupied an important and
distinguished place in Slovak cultural life. In the first half of the 19th
century, a national musical tradition began to develop around Slovakia’s
impressive folk heritage. Modern Slovak music has drawn from both classical and
folk styles. Well-known works from the 20th century include the compositions of
Alexander Moyzes and the operas of Jan Cikker.
D
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Libraries and Museums
|
There are 12 state scientific libraries in
Slovakia, 473 libraries affiliated with universities and institutions of higher
learning, and 2,600 public libraries. The University Library in Bratislava,
founded in 1919, contains more than 2 million volumes and is the country’s most
important library. The Slovak National Library (1863), located in Martin,
includes a collection of materials relating to Slovak culture.
Slovakia is also home to more than 50 museums. The
Slovak National Museum (founded in 1893), located in Bratislava, contains
exhibits on Slovak history, archaeology, and musicology, and is probably the
country’s best-known museum. Other museums include the Slovak National Gallery
(1948), also in Bratislava; the Slovak National Uprising Museum (1955), located
in Banská Bystrica; and the Museum of Eastern Slovakia (1872), in Košice.
E
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Motion Pictures
|
During the Communist period, when art was to be
directed to political ends, filmmakers in Slovakia suffered from the same restrictions
that affected their counterparts in the Czech lands. Nonetheless, certain
individuals, including Ján Kadár, Dušan Hanák, Štefan Uher, and Juraj
Jakubisko, gained international recognition for their work. As in many of the
other post-Communist countries of Eastern Europe, the Slovak motion-picture
industry has been affected by the reduction in state subsidies and increased
competition from international filmmakers. Although the main film studio has
been closed, filmmakers Jakubisko and Uher, as well as Martin Sulík and Štefan
Semjan, continue to make important and innovative films.
V
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ECONOMY
|
The reintroduction of an economy based on free
enterprise has been a difficult process in Slovakia. Because much of the country’s
industrialization took place during the Communist era, many Slovakian
industries were inefficient and produced goods that were not competitive in the
world market. To modernize these industries and retrain workers has required
foreign investment, but this has been slow in coming, due in part to perceived
political instability in the country. Compounding the problem of outmoded
industry was the Czechoslovak government’s decision in the early 1990s to
drastically reduce the country’s defense industry. The production of weapons
and other military equipment had been based largely in Slovakia and had
employed as much as 10 percent of the Slovak workforce in the 1980s. The
reduction led to a decline in overall industrial production and a significant
rise in unemployment.
The Slovak economy has improved somewhat in recent
years. Between 1993 and 1994, gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 4.3 percent,
inflation fell from more than 20 percent to about 12 percent, and the budget
deficit was brought under control. The pace of change remains slow, however. A
fundamental part of the conversion to a market economy is the return of
state-controlled enterprises to private ownership. Although many new private
firms have been established in Slovakia’s service sector, most of the
industrial sector remains in state hands, and privatization has been virtually
halted in recent years by the parties controlling Slovakia’s government. In
2006 the GDP was $55 billion.
Slovakia is a member of the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and
Development (World Bank), as well as of the European Bank for Reconstruction
and Development (EBRD). In October 1993 Slovakia became an associate member of
the European Union (EU). In December 2002 the EU invited Slovakia to become a
full member. Slovakia and nine other countries formally joined the EU in May
2004, during the organization’s second round of expansion.
A
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Labor
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The unemployment rate in Slovakia has been 10 percent or
higher since the end of Communist rule; in 2004 unemployment averaged 18.1
percent. The service sector, which has developed very quickly since 1989,
employs 56 percent of the labor force. Some 39 percent works in industry, and 5
percent is employed in agriculture. Labor unions are not as important as they
were during the Communist period. However, sizable numbers of workers and
employees continue to belong to unions because of the benefits they provide.
The largest union in Slovakia is the Engineering and Metal Union, which was
founded in April 1993 to replace the Czechoslovak Trade Union of Metal Workers.
B
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Agriculture
|
Although subsistence agriculture traditionally dominated
the Slovak economy, this sector declined during the Communist period, when
industry was promoted as Slovakia’s principal economic activity.
Cultivated fields occupy 29 percent of land in Slovakia.
Wheat, barley, maize, sugar beets, and potatoes are the country’s principal
crops. Viticulture (the cultivation of grapes for wine production) is practiced
on mountain slopes, and some tobacco is grown in the Váh River valley. The
breeding of livestock, including pigs, cattle, sheep, and poultry, is also
important.
C
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Mining and Manufacturing
|
Copper, lead, zinc, manganese, iron, and lignite
are Slovakia’s chief mineral products. However, the country’s mining industry
has decreased in importance since the end of Communism, as many mines were
found to be inefficient and unable to compete in the market economy.
Slovakia became industrialized in the latter half of the
20th century, under the Communist government. The Communists emphasized heavy
industry, including the production of machinery and steel. Much of this was
produced for military purposes, and Slovakia became the center of
Czechoslovakia’s weapons industry.
Manufacturing is still one of the most important sectors
of the Slovak economy. Ceramics, chemical products, machinery, petroleum
products, steel, and textiles are among the chief manufactures; the production
of processed food, such as beer and sheep’s cheese, is also important. Although
the weapons industry declined with the collapse of Communism, it has been
revived somewhat since Slovakia gained independence in 1993; military equipment
produced in Slovakia is now primarily exported.
D
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Energy
|
Much of Slovakia’s energy supply is imported,
particularly oil and gas. Hydroelectric power from plants located on the Váh,
Orava, Slaná, and Hornád rivers provides an important domestic source of
energy. There is a nuclear-power station at Jaslovské Bohunice and another one
under construction at Mochovce. In 2003, Slovakia produced 29.7 billion
kilowatt-hours of electricity.
In 1977 the Gabčíkovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric
project began as a joint effort between Czechoslovakia and Hungary, with
Austria providing technical and financial assistance for the Hungarian part of
the project. The plan called for the diversion of the Danube and the
construction of two dams on the section of the river that formed the
Czechoslovak-Hungarian border. One dam was to be built by Hungary at Nagymaros,
and the other was to be constructed at Gabčíkovo in eastern Czechoslovakia (now
Slovakia). In 1989 environmental concerns led Hungary to abandon the project;
the Czechoslovak government proceeded unilaterally on construction of the
Gabčíkovo dam, producing a major dispute between the two governments. The
dispute, inherited by the Slovak government with independence in 1993, was
referred to the International Court of Justice at The Hague, Netherlands. A
1997 ruling that both countries had violated the project agreement did not
resolve the dispute.
E
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Tourism and Foreign Trade
|
Slovakia’s tourism industry has grown since the end of
Communist rule. In 2006 the country received 1,612,000 visitors. Slovakia’s
historic cities and numerous mountain ski resorts are popular tourist
destinations.
Foreign trade is important to Slovakia’s economy.
In 2004 exports were worth $27.6 billion and imports cost the country $29
billion. Crude oil, natural gas, machinery, and transportation equipment are
Slovakia’s main imports. Exports include machinery, chemicals, fuels, steel,
and weapons. In the mid-1990s the Czech Republic was Slovakia’s main trading
partner, supplying about 30 percent of Slovakia’s imports and purchases
approximately 40 percent of its exports. Other leading purchasers of exports
are Germany, Austria, Hungary, Italy, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, and the United
States.
F
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Currency and Banking
|
The monetary unit of Slovakia is the Slovak
koruna; it was introduced in February 1993, when Slovakia and the Czech
Republic began using separate currencies. In 2006 an average of 29.70 koruny
were equal to U.S.$1. Slovakia’s central bank is the National Bank of Slovakia,
founded in 1993 with headquarters in Bratislava. The central bank is
responsible for setting monetary policy, issuing currency, and supervising the
activities of other banks. More than ten new commercial banks also have been
established since 1990. A stock exchange is located in Bratislava.
G
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Transportation
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Slovakia currently has 43,000 km (26,719 mi) of roads.
Railroad track extends for 3,659 km (2,274 mi), linking all of the country’s
major cities and many smaller towns as well. Tram and light rail networks have
been developed in Bratislava and Košice, where Slovakia’s main airports are
also located.
H
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Communications
|
The constitution adopted in 1992 prohibits censorship
and provides for freedom of expression and the right to information. There are
currently 13 daily newspapers published in Slovakia. Those with the largest
circulations are Nový cas (New Time) and Pravda (Truth), both
published in Bratislava. More than 500 magazines and journals are also
published in the country. Slovakia has two national television stations, both owned
by the state; several independent local stations also exist. Although private
radio stations were permitted after 1990, these stations have had difficulty
competing with state radio channels.
VI
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GOVERNMENT
|
In November 1989 massive demonstrations by citizens
in cities throughout Czechoslovakia brought about the end of Communist rule. A
non-Communist government took office, and the country’s new leaders began the
difficult process of transforming Czechoslovakia’s political system, recreating
a market economy, and reorienting foreign policy. The country’s first
multiparty elections were held in June 1990.
During the early 1990s, Czech and Slovak leaders
within the government began to disagree on economic and political issues.
Parliamentary elections held in June 1992 brought a leftist government to power
in Slovakia, while a center-right group won control of the Czech Republic.
Later that year, the leaders of the two republics decided to split the
federation into two independent nations. A new constitution of Slovakia,
adopted on September 1, 1992, went into effect with independence in January
1993. The constitution declares Slovakia to be a parliamentary democracy. The
first parliamentary elections of independent Slovakia were held in 1994.
A
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Executive
|
The president of Slovakia is popularly elected to a
five-year term. The presidency is a largely ceremonial position. The president
is responsible for naming the prime minister to head the government; the prime
minister is typically the leader of the party with the majority of seats in
parliament. Under the advice of the prime minister, the president also appoints
a cabinet.
B
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Legislature
|
Slovakia has a single-chamber parliament called the
Slovak National Council. The parliament’s 150 members are elected to four-year
terms by popular vote. All citizens over the age of 18 are eligible to vote in
Slovakia.
C
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Judiciary
|
Slovakia has a constitutional court composed of ten
judges. These judges are appointed to seven-year terms by the president, from a
list of names proposed by the parliament. The country’s judicial system also
includes the Supreme Court, regional courts, district courts, and a military
court. Most judges for these courts are elected by parliament or appointed by
the minister of justice.
D
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Political Parties
|
Many political parties are active in Slovakia. They
include the liberal Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (known by its Slovak
acronym, HZDS); the center-right Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKU);
the Direction-Third Way (Smer), a coalition of centrist parties; the Party of
the Hungarian Coalition, representing ethnic Hungarians; the center-right
Christian Democratic Movement (KDH); the centrist New Civic Alliance (ANO); and
the Slovak Communist Party (KSS).
E
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Local Government
|
Slovakia is divided for administrative purposes
into 8 regions and 79 districts. The regions are directly subordinate to the
federal government, and regional officials are nominated by the federal
parliament. Administrative districts are directly subordinate to the regions,
and their officials are elected by the people.
F
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Health and Welfare
|
Slovakia’s social welfare system remains largely as it
was during the Communist period. The health care system is still run largely by
the state, and citizens continue to receive low-cost health care. A national
insurance company opened in January 1993; payments into the company’s funds are
made by employers, employees, the self-employed, and the state. Many of
Slovakia’s childcare centers have closed in recent years, due to lack of funds.
G
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Defense
|
After the breakup of Czechoslovakia, Slovakia
gained control over those units of the armed forces that were based on Slovak
territory. All males age 18 and older are required to serve 9 months in the
military. In 2004 the total strength of the Slovak armed forces was 20,195
soldiers; 12,860 were in the army, 5,160 in the air force, and the remainder in
border guard and civil defense units.
H
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International Organizations
|
Slovakia is a member of the United Nations (UN),
the Council of Europe (CE), and the Central European Initiative (CEI), a group
promoting regional political and economic cooperation. In February 1994 the
Slovak government signed the Partnership for Peace accord with Western nations,
and in 2002 the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) offered membership to
Slovakia. Slovakia formally entered NATO in 2004.
VII
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HISTORY
|
Slavic tribes settled near the Danube in the area that
is now Slovakia during the 5th and 6th centuries AD. In about 623, a Frankish
merchant named Samo organized these tribes into a kingdom that also included
tribes from other parts of central Europe. Samo ruled over this Slavic kingdom
until his death in 658. Beginning in the early 9th century, Slavic tribes of
two different principalities, Morava and Nitra, were united by a Slavic chief
known as Mojmír I and ruled as a new state, the Empire of Great Moravia. In the
beginning of the 10th century, Magyar tribes from Hungary invaded the region
and conquered the empire. Slovakia remained under Hungarian rule, in different
forms, for nearly 1,000 years.
In the 1400s a period of religious wars began
in the Czech regions of Bohemia and Moravia; many Czech nobles fled the fighting
and settled in the territory of Slovakia. Between 1438 and 1453 a Czech noble
controlled much of southern Slovakia. In 1526 the Ottomans defeated Hungary at
the Battle of Mohács (see Ottoman Empire). While much of Hungary fell
under Ottoman domination, Slovakia and the remaining parts of Hungary came
under the control of the Habsburg dynasty. Slovakia became the center of
Hungarian culture and politics, with Bratislava (then called Pozsony) serving
as the Habsburg capital. Under Hungarian rule, Slovaks were pressured to give
up their language and cultural identity and become Hungarian. Mainly rural,
landless peasants, the Slovaks had little economic status and virtually no role
in the political life of Hungary.
During the 18th century, a Slovak national movement
was founded with the aim of fostering a sense of national identity among the
Slovak people. Advanced mainly by Slovak religious leaders, the movement grew
during the 19th century. A key component was the codification of a Slovak
literary language by Anton Bernolák in the 1700s, and the reform of this
language by L’udovít Štúr the following century. Hungarian control remained
strict, however, and a large Slovak movement did not emerge until the 20th
century.
A
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The Federation of Czechoslovakia
|
In 1867 the Habsburg domains in central Europe
were reconstituted as the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary. During World War I
(1914-1918) Czechs, Slovaks, and other national groups of Austria-Hungary were
joined by Czechs and Slovaks living abroad in campaigning for an independent
state. In October 1918, at the end of the war, Slovakia announced its
independence from the empire and incorporation into the new republic of
Czechoslovakia. The new republic included the Czech lands of Bohemia and
Moravia, a small part of Silesia, and Slovakia; within these boundaries were
areas inhabited by hundreds of thousands of Hungarians. A parliamentary
democratic government was formed, and a capital was established in the Czech
city of Prague.
Slovaks, who were greatly outnumbered by the
Czechs, differed in many important ways from their Czech neighbors. The Slovak
economy was more agrarian and less developed than its Czech counterpart; the
majority of Slovaks were practicing Catholics while the Czech leadership
believed in limiting the power of the church, and the Slovak people had
generally less education and experience with self-government than the Czechs.
These disparities, compounded by centralized governmental control from Prague,
produced discontent among Slovaks with the structure of the new state.
In the period between the two world wars, the
Czechoslovak government attempted to industrialize Slovakia. These efforts were
not successful, however, due in part to the Great Depression, the worldwide
economic slump of the 1930s. Slovak resentment over what was perceived to be
economic and political domination by the Czechs led to increasing
dissatisfaction with the federation and growing support for extreme nationalist
movements. Father Andrej Hlinka, leader of the Slovak People’s Party, and his
successor, Father Jozef Tiso, were joined by many Slovaks in calls for equality
between Czechs and Slovaks and greater autonomy for Slovakia.
B
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World War II
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In addition to Czechoslovakia’s internal conflicts,
the rise of Nazi Germany in the 1930s and the aggressive policies of German
dictator Adolf Hitler led to the demise of the Czechoslovak federation. In 1938
the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, and Italy were trying to avoid
another war with Germany and were willing to negotiate with Hitler. The result
of their negotiations, the Munich Pact, forced the government of Czechoslovakia
to cede the Sudetenland, an area inhabited largely by Germans, to Germany.
Fearing that the federal government would not be able to protect Slovak
interests, the Slovak leadership nominated an autonomous provincial government
and approved a new constitution, creating the short-lived Second Republic of
Czechoslovakia. Faced with the threat of being divided between Germany, Poland,
and Hungary, the Slovak government decided to withdraw from the federation and
declare its independence. On March 14, 1939, the first independent Slovak
Republic was established, and Father Tiso was chosen as head of government.
With independence, Slovakia came under heavy German
influence and protection. Tiso allowed German troops to occupy Slovakia in
August 1939, and the country entered World War II as Germany’s ally. Government
policies were closely aligned with those of Germany’s ruling Nazi Party, and
between 1942 and 1944 approximately 70,000 Slovak Jews were sent to
concentration camps. Although many Slovaks supported the state, an underground
resistance movement also gained strength. In 1944 this movement organized the
Slovak National Uprising against German control.
When the war ended in 1945, the republic of
Czechoslovakia was resurrected, with the exception of Ruthenia, a small area in
the east that was taken over the by Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
Prime Minister Tiso was hanged for treason and collaboration with the Nazis,
and other high party officials were also punished. Between 1945 and 1948,
Communists and representatives of other political parties ruled the country in
a coalition government, and a free press existed. Although the Communist Party
controlled many important positions, it had less support in Slovakia than in
the Czech lands.
C
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The Communist Regime
|
In February 1948 the Communists provoked a
political crisis and took over the government in Prague. Under the leadership
of Slovak Klement Gottwald, the Communists patterned Czechoslovakia’s economy
and government on those of the Soviet Union. The state took control of the
country’s factories and many businesses; private property was nationalized; and
farmers were forced to join collective farms in which all land and equipment
were jointly owned. The government prohibited opposition to the Communist Party
and made efforts to decrease the influence of churches. The Communist Party
became the only effective party in Czechoslovakia.
In the 1960s party leaders and intellectuals
in Slovakia and the Czech lands created a movement to reform the Communist
system. The movement, which came to be known as “socialism with a human face,”
was led by Alexander Dubček, a Communist from Slovakia who became the head of
Czechoslovakia’s Communist Party in January 1968. The USSR feared that the
reforms would threaten its influence in Czechoslovakia, and on August 20 of
that year, the Soviet military, assisted by other Communist countries of
Eastern Europe, invaded Czechoslovakia. As a result, nearly all the reforms
that had been introduced were eliminated. Dubček was replaced by Gustav Husák
in April 1969, and ultimately was expelled from the party. Many other leaders
and intellectuals who supported liberalization also lost their positions. The
Husák government reestablished tight party control and censorship of the press.
However, in January 1969 a new socialist federal republic was established,
granting the Czech and Slovak republics autonomy over local affairs.
During the 1970s and 1980s, dissent took
different forms in the two republics. In the Czech lands, political organizing
brought forth a powerful dissident movement called Charter 77. In Slovakia,
subversive activity was confined largely to the private sphere. Historically a
religious people, Slovaks turned to the practice of Catholicism to express
their opposition to the Communist regime. During this period a number of mass
pilgrimages and religious celebrations took place in Slovakia; because these
events brought large numbers of people together, they effectively became
nationalist demonstrations.
D
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Slovakia after Communism
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In 1989 revolts against the Communist governments
swept through many eastern European countries, including East Germany, Poland,
Romania, and Czechoslovakia. In November Slovaks joined with Czechs in mass
protests against the Communist government. Less than one month later, the
government resigned and non-Communists took control of the country. A new
movement called Public Against Violence (PAV) was formed in Slovakia, bringing
together political dissidents, intellectuals, and Catholics to lead the transition
to an open democratic society. The federation’s first free elections since 1946
were held in June 1990, and were won by PAV in Slovakia and Václav Havel’s
Civic Forum in the Czech lands. Havel was chosen as president of
Czechoslovakia, and Marian Čalfa, a Slovak, became vice president. Within
Slovakia, the new non-Communist government was led first by Vladimír Mečiar,
then a member of PAV, and then in 1991 by Ján Čarnogurský, leader of the
Christian Democratic Movement.
One of the major tasks facing the new
government of Czechoslovakia was the reestablishment of an economy based on
free enterprise. The country began a mass privatization program with the goal
of shifting hundreds of state-owned companies into private hands, and took
steps to encourage foreign investment. However, as these and other reforms got
underway, tensions developed between the two republics. Because Slovakia had
industrialized during the Communist period, it inherited an inefficient,
defense-oriented industrial base; the transition to a market economy thus
resulted in greater unemployment and economic hardship in Slovakia than it did
in the more economically advantaged Czech lands. Because of their economic
differences, Czechs and Slovaks held opposing views about the appropriate pace
and nature of economic reform; they also disagreed about how power should be
divided between the federal and republic-level governments. These differences
complicated the reform process and prevented the adoption of a new federal
constitution.
E
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The Breakup of Czechoslovakia
|
The results of the elections of June 1992
reflected the growing split between the two lands. The liberal Movement for a
Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), led by the Slovak Mečiar, and the conservative
Civic Democratic Party, led by Czech Václav Klaus won the two largest
representations in parliament; each leader became the prime minister of his own
republic. Disagreements between the republics intensified, and it became clear
that no form of federal government could satisfy both. In July 1992 Slovakia
declared itself a sovereign state, meaning that its laws took precedence over
those of the federal government.
Throughout the fall of that year, Mečiar and Klaus
negotiated the details for disbanding the federation. In November the federal
parliament voted to dissolve the country officially on December 31, despite
polls indicating that the majority of citizens opposed the split. In January
1993 Czechoslovakia was replaced by two independent states: Slovakia and the
Czech Republic. Slovaks gathered for celebrations in their new nation’s capital
at Bratislava.
F
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Independence and Instability
|
Under Mečiar’s leadership, the process of privatization
slowed in Slovakia. In February 1993 Michal Kováč was elected president of the
country. Although a fellow member of the HZDS party, Kováč was not a Mečiar
ally, and conflicts soon developed within the government. Mečiar’s position was
further undermined by the resignation and defection of a number of party
deputies in early 1994. In March of that year, Mečiar resigned from office
after receiving a vote of no confidence from the Slovak parliament. An interim
coalition government comprising representatives from a broad range of parties
was sworn in, with Jozef Moravčik of the Democratic Union of Slovakia Party as
prime minister. Moravčik’s government revived the privatization process and
took steps to attract more foreign investment to Slovakia. It also helped to
calm the increasingly strained relations between Slovaks and resident
Hungarians, who had begun campaigning for educational and cultural autonomy. In
May a law was passed by parliament allowing ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia to
register their names in their original form; this replaced previous legislation
requiring Hungarians to convert their names to the Slavic form.
In elections held in the fall of 1994, the
HZDS Party, led once again by Mečiar, received 35 percent of the popular vote
and announced its plans to form a government with the support of the ultranationalist
Slovak National Party. Although the two parties did not control enough
parliamentary seats to command a majority, this situation was resolved in
November when the left-wing Association of Slovak Workers joined Mečiar’s
coalition. The new government took office in December, and Mečiar became prime
minister for a third time. In an effort to reverse Moravčik’s liberalization
policies, the Mečiar government returned radio and television communications to
state control and blocked the privatization of state-owned companies. These and
other measures aimed at centralizing power in Mečiar’s hands were met with
concern by a number of Western governments.
In the months that followed, tensions mounted
between Mečiar’s government and President Kováč. In May 1995 the Slovak
National Council passed a vote of no confidence in Kováč over his alleged
failure to control the activities of the Slovak Information Service, the
intelligence agency that had been transferred from Kováč’s authority to that of
the government the previous month. The vote, which had no legal consequence,
was declared unconstitutional by Kováč. Prime Minister Mečiar backed the
resignation demand. In June Kováč was stripped of his role as head of the armed
forces.
Since becoming independent, one of the priorities of
Slovak foreign policy has been to maintain good relations with the Czech
Republic and other central European nations. However, Slovakia’s relations with
Hungary have been strained by the status of Slovakia’s large Hungarian
population, and by fear among Slovaks of Hungarian expansionism. In March 1995
the two governments took an important step toward peaceful relations when the
prime ministers of both countries signed an historic Treaty of Friendship and
Cooperation; the treaty reaffirmed the Slovak-Hungarian border, and contained
pledges on the part of both governments to protect and foster the rights of
ethnic minorities residing in their countries.
Slovakia and Hungary have also been involved in a
dispute over the Gabčíkovo dam, located on the Danube on the Slovak-Hungarian
border. The dam was initially part of a joint hydroelectric project between
Hungary and Czechoslovakia. The project called for the diversion of the Danube
and the construction of two major dams, one in each country. However, in 1989
Hungary withdrew from the project, citing environmental concerns.
Czechoslovakia proceeded with the construction of the Gabčíkovo dam and
completed it in 1992. Hungary continued to object to the project, claiming that
by diverting the flow of the river, the Czechoslovak government had
unilaterally altered the border between the two countries. Slovakia inherited
the dispute when it became an independent country in 1993. That year, the
European Union demanded that the two governments forward the issue to the
International Court of Justice at The Hague, Netherlands, for arbitration. In
September 1997 the court ruled that both Hungary and Slovakia had violated the
hydroelectric project agreement. Hungary had breached the international
contract by withdrawing from the project, while Czechoslovakia had not been
entitled to alter the course of the Danube for the Gabčíkovo dam without
Hungary’s consent. The countries were ordered to compensate one another and
negotiate the future of the dam project. A resolution has yet to be reached.
In March 1998 President Kováč’s term ended and none
of the candidates to succeed him were able to gain the necessary majority in
parliament. With the president’s office vacant, many presidential powers
reverted to Mečiar. In parliamentary elections held in September, Mečiar’s HZDS
party won the most votes with 27 percent. However, opposition parties formed a
coalition that took 93 of the 150 seats in parliament. Mečiar resigned as head
of HZDS and gave up his parliamentary seat. Mikuláš Dzurinda, the leader of the
coalition, replaced Mečiar as prime minister. In 2000 Dzurinda announced the
formation of a new party, the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKU),
which unified liberal and conservative groups in a single party in order to
challenge the HZDS in parliamentary elections. The SDKU emerged victorious from
the September 2002 elections and formed a new government with the help of three
other center-right allies; Dzurinda returned as prime minister.
In May 1999 Slovakia held its first direct
presidential elections. Rudolf Schuster, a candidate backed by the government
coalition, defeated Mečiar in a runoff election, taking 57 percent of the vote.
Mečiar ran again in the 2004 presidential election, this time losing to his
former ally, Ivan Gasparovic.