The new Slovak government convened for the first time after President Rudolf Schuster appointed the cabinet ministers. Led by Prime Minister Mikulás Dzurinda, the 16-member cabinet includes four Hungarian Coalition Party (HCP) ministers: Pál Csáky, Deputy Prime Minister responsible for European Integration and Minority Rights; Zsolt Simon, Minister of Agriculture; László Miklós, Minister of Environmental Affairs; and László Gyurovszky, Minister for Regional Development. HCP also holds six state secretary positions: Vladimil Podstránsky Vladimil, Ministry of Finance, László Szigeti, Ministry of Education, László Pomóthy, Ministry of Economy, Zsolt Lukács, Ministry of Regional Development, József Berényi, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and József Kvarda, Ministry of Culture. [Új Szó (Bratislava/Pozsony), October 17, 2002 and HCP official website (www.mkp.sk)]

The new Slovak Parliament held its first session after outgoing Speaker Jozef Migas swore in the 150 new deputies. Christian Democratic Movement President Pavol Hrusovsky was elected the Parliament's new speaker with more than a two-third majority (116 votes). Parliament also elected its four deputy speakers, including Béla Bugár (Hungarian Coalition Party), Zuzana Martináková (Slovak Democratic and Christian Union), Pavol Rusko (Alliance of New Citizens) and Viliam Veteska (Movement for a Democratic Slovakia). A total of 17 committees will be formed, nine of which will be headed by government parties and eight by opposition parties. The Hungarian Coalition Party now holds 20 seats in the new Parliament, increasing the number of its deputies by five in comparison to the 1998-2002 period. [Új Szó (Bratislava/Pozsony), October 16, 2002]

Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda and Frantisek Alexander, President of the Alliance of Jewish Religious Communities in Slovakia (UZ ZNO) signed an agreement providing for partial compensation to Slovak victims of the Holocaust and their descendents. On September 18, the cabinet adopted a government decree creating a fund into which the state will contribute 850 million Slovak Crowns (nearly $20 million) to compensate Holocaust victims and their relatives. Deputy Prime Minister for Human Rights, Minority Affairs and Regional Development Pal Csáky, who leads the commission of experts created last year to resolve the issue, said that the accrued interest of the fund will be used to for direct compensation. All claims submitted will be assessed by a joint commission consisting of UZ ZNO and government representatives. The fund which will grow to some 1.5 billion crowns over 10 years with its accrued interest will be transferred to UZ ZNO. Between 1938 and 1945, under the President of the first Slovak State—Jozef Tiso—about 70,000 Jews were deported. The total value of Jewish properties confiscated from Holocaust victims amounted to 8.5-25 billion Crowns, said Frantisek, pointing out that given the economic state of the country, a compromise of providing 10 percent of the total confiscated value is acceptable. Revenues from the fund will be used, among other, for the reconstruction of synagogues and cemeteries as well as the establishment of institutions providing social and health care to elderly members of the Jewish community. [MTI—Hungarian Telegraph Agency (Budapest) October 9, 2002 and Radio Free Europe, October 9 and September 19, 2002)]

Leaders of the four center-right parties signed a coalition agreement in Bratislava/Pozsony. Winning a narrow majority (78 seats in the 150-member Parliament) in the September 20-21 parliamentary elections, Mikulás Dzurinda of the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKU), Béla Bugár of the Hungarian Coalition Party (HCP), Pavol Hrusovsky of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) and Pavol Rusko of the Alliance of New Citizens (ANO) vowed to launch much-needed social reforms in the first half of their four-year term. While the agreement gives each party a veto over government decisions, aligning with the opposition to defeat a government proposal would be cause for annulment of the pact. The coalition agreement sets out wide-ranging goals such as cutting state spending, and reforming local administration, education, health care, and the pension and the social benefits systems. Slovak President Rudolf Schuster will appoint Mikulás Dzurinda the new Slovak Prime Minister at the October 15, 2002 opening meeting of the new parliament. [MTI—Hungarian Telegraph Agency (Budapest) October 8, 2002 and Új Szó (Bratislava/Pozsony) October 9, 2002)]

In Bratislava/Pozsony, the National Council of the Hungarian Coalition Party (HCP) unanimously adopted the conditions negotiated by party leaders during the four-party deliberation on the coalition program, allowing the ethnic Hungarian party to participate in the next government led by Prime Minister-delegate Mikulás Dzurinda. HCP also disclosed the names of its four ministers and six state secretaries. The National Council welcomed inclusion of two provisions vital to Slovakia’s large ethnic Hungarian minority in the government program: (1) the establishment of an independent state-funded Hungarian-language university in Komárno/Révkomárom and (2) the long-awaited resolution of the issue of unclaimed lands [ see reports of March 1, 2000 and July 12, 2002] . Due to the staunch opposition of the Slovak coalition partners, HCP leaders were unsuccessful in addressing the issue of compensation for properties belonging to ethnic Hungarians illegally confiscated after 1945 under the Benes Decrees. Therefore, the National Council conceded that “during the coalition negotiation there was a failure to reverse discriminatory measures applied in 1945-1948 based on the principle of collective guilt,” however, this fact did not prevent the formulation of a coalition agreement, stated the Council’s resolution. Finally, the Council authorized HCP President Béla Bugár to sign the coalition agreement with the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union, the Christian Democratic Movement and the Alliance of New Citizens. Pál Csáky will be appointed the only Deputy Prime Minister in the cabinet in addition to three HCP cabinet ministers: Zsolt Simon for Agriculture, László Miklós for Environment and Construction, and László Gyurovszky for Regional Development. [ MTI—Hungarian Telegraph Agency (Budapest) October 5, 2002]

Four Slovak centrist and conservative parties will be forming a narrow majority in the 150-seat Parliament as a result of the September 20-21 national elections. The Slovak Democratic and Christian Union, the Hungarian Coalition Party (HCP), the Christian Democratic Movement and the Alliance of New Citizens have agreed on the structure of the future cabinet. HCP will appoint the only deputy prime-minister; three ministers for Agriculture, Environment and Construction, and Regional Development; as well as six state secretaries. Negotiations will now focus mainly on the government program. [Új Szó (Bratislava/Pozsony), Oct 1, 2002]