BRATISLAVA (SITA) - An International Center for Family Research (MSVR) poll shows that 33.9 percent of Slovak families are facing permanent financial problems. The second largest problem vexing Slovak families are health problems, say 18.6 percent of the respondents. Moreover, housing is a problem for 13.5 percent of the inhabitants of Slovakia. Peter Guran from the MSVR revealed the results of the poll at an international seminar „Men‘s and Women‘s Equality-Democracy in Society and Family,“ in Bratislava. Of the women polled, 72.7 percent are sure their position in society is worse than men‘s, and 60 percent of women say their current position is worse than before 1990 while only 16 percent think it is better and 20 percent say their position has not changed. Women in Slovakia have to cope with two main problems: (1) domestic violence and (2) a tense financial situation in the family, Dagmar Ondrejková, a representative of the Coordination Committee for Women‘s Issues (KVPZ), presented this information. The seminar‘s main topic is the harmonization of the working and family role of a woman and the acceptance of her identity in the family and in society. The event hosts almost 40 experts in human rights and representatives of women‘s organizations. The Council of Europe‘s Caroline Mechin is taking part. The organizer is the MSVR, the KVPZ, and the Information and Documentation Center of the Council of Europe.

Greenpeace Protest over German N-waste Scandal

BONN (Reuters) - Environment group Greenpeace staged a protest on Wednesday against the transportation of nuclear waste ahead of an emergency debate in the German parliament after revelations of contamination. Five activists scaled a building in Bonn‘s government quarter with climbing ropes to hang up a banner that read: „We‘ve had enough! Abolish nuclear energy now!“. Police detained the five briefly. The controversy involves rail and road shipments of spent fuel rods from nuclear power stations in southern Germany to reprocessing plants at La Hague in France and Sellafield in Britain and back to Germany for storage. French authorities informed Bonn last month shipments had shown spots of radiation over 3,000 times the tolerance level. Subsequent queries by a regional German government to British authorities turned up similar, though less serious reports. Environment Minister Angela Merkel suspended all shipments pending an investigation. Merkel, under pressure from opposition parties to resign, was due to give a full account before the Bundestag (lower house) at 1300 GMT. The environmental Greens party plans to submit a petition calling for Merkel‘s resignation. The opposition Social Democrats say Merkel must declare how long her ministry had known about contamination before it suspended shipments last week. Merkel has roundly blamed the nuclear energy industry for failing to inform the authorities of leaks they had been aware of since the 1980s and launched a 10-point plan to improve security and transparency on Monday. Merkel was speaking a day after the nuclear industry apologised to her for the political scandal over its failure to report contaminated shipments that could damage Chancellor Helmut Kohl‘s re-election chances in September. Greenpeace rejected the industry‘s explanation and has said it is pressing charges against several nuclear power stations for endangering public health by sending contaminated cargoes to France and Britain.