News From The Czech Republic
The long shadow of Dr Beneš
23.04.2014 14:50
CR: The first ever direct presidential election brought renewed focus on a trauma that continues to haunt Czech society even sixty years after it occurred. The forced deportations of some three million Germans from Czechoslovakia after the end of WWII still divide Czech society, as does the...
Nymburk pair to pedal 850km down Elbe to North Sea in plastic bottle boat
23.04.2014 14:45
CR: Two local boys from Nymburk – about 50km east of Prague – will set out on an unusual journey at the end of June; peddling almost a thousand kilometres down the River Elbe to Hamburg in a boat made out of plastic water bottles. Honza Kára, a 22-year-old student, and his friend Jakub Bureš,...
Billionaire Business Empire Aids Czech Bonds: East Europe Credit
23.04.2014 14:43
Bloomberg: Czech Finance Minister Andrej Babis says he wants to manage public finances in the same way he ran his $12 billion business. Bondholders approve, awarding the three-month-old government with the lowest yields since May.
The country’s second-richest person, owner of Agrofert AS...
Czech people's party lands in hot water over anti-immigration line
22.04.2014 13:39
EUObserver: PRAGUE - The Czech Christian Democrats’ campaign for the EU elections got off to a rocky start earlier this month after it included a controversial line about immigration in its party programme.
The centre-right party (KDU-CSL), pro-Europeans and part of the governing...
TOP 09 seeks Czech backing for Europe-wide media ownership rules
22.04.2014 08:56
CR: The Czech media sector has often won international praise in the past for its freedom and independence. But some in the country are questioning whether that is still the case following the acquisitions by billionaire businessman, ANO leader, and current minister of finance, Andrej Babiš....
I am full of steam and going strong
22.04.2014 08:55
CR: Hello and welcome to SoundCzech, Radio Prague’s Czech language course in which you can learn new phrases with the help of song lyrics. Today’s song by Michal Tučný and is called Mam Páru – and that is the phrase to listen out for.
Photo: archive of Radio PragueMam páru literally...
Prague Zoo taking responsibility for the survival of endangered breeds
22.04.2014 08:54
CR: Three years ago Prague Zoo launched its biggest conservation project to date – helping to save the Przewalski horse from extinction. The zoo successfully breeds these Mongolian wild horses here in the Czech Republic and then transports them to the Mongolian steppes to enrich the gene pool...
Pull troops back, NATO chief tells Russians on Prague visit
22.04.2014 08:53
CR: NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen has been in Prague on Thursday for talks with the Czech prime minister and other senior officials. Naturally Russian aggression towards Ukraine has been on the agenda, but the alliance’s secretary general has also been trying to persuade Prague to boost its...
ČEZ cancels Temelín tender after government says no to guarantees
22.04.2014 08:52
CR: The Czech energy giant ČEZ announced on Thursday it was cancelling a tender on two new nuclear reactors at the Temelín nuclear power plant. The deal - estimated as worth hundreds of billions of crowns - was shelved a day after the government stated it would not offer any state guarantees...
Political and economic factors bury Temelín tender for now
22.04.2014 08:51
CR: Czech state owned power giant ČEZ’s move to scrap its tender for expanding the Temelín nuclear power plant has been in the rear view mirror for some time. The company is saying it’s an economic decision not a political one, but in fact it is a bit of both.
Temelín nuclear power plant,...