Paint thrown at World Bank head
Brisbane Courier Mail, Australia
From correspondents in Ljubljana, Slovenia
18mar04


ANTI-GLOBALISATION activists pelted the World Bank chief and Slovenia's finance minister with green paint today.

Police later arrested two protesters and were searching for the paint bombers.


Finance Minister Dusan Mramor and World Bank head James Wolfensohn were strolling from the government building to a nearby congress centre to attend a book presentation when they were splattered in paint by a small group of protesters.


The presentation had to be delayed until Mramor changed his suit and Wolfensohn rinsed the paint out of his hair.


Wolfensohn, who went on with his schedule despite visible traces of paint on his clothes, was on a two-day visit to the capital, Ljubljana, to mark Slovenia's upgrade in status within the World Bank from a borrower to a donor country.














The book being presented today, Slovenia: From Yugoslavia to the European Union, was a tribute to the country's successful political and economic transition. It was written and published by the World Bank.



Acknowledging that "anti-globalism is part of our world and a reality in Slovenia", Finance Ministry spokeswoman Damjana Kruselj condemned the protest.



"We regret this unfortunate incident and find this form of public expression absolutely unacceptable," she said.



Police arrested two protesters who tried to disrupt the book presentation by unfurling a giant banner inside the hall during the event. The culprits of the paint throwing were also being sought.


Officials were said to be reconsidering security measures, which are ordinarily very light in Slovenia. Slovenia seceded from the crumbling Yugoslav federation in 1991. The Alpine nation of 2 million joins the European Union on May 1 along with nine other newcomer nations.


Slovenia's economy will be the strongest among the new EU countries.