Czech News 15.05.2014 - 08.05.2014

CR:15.05.2014

Former prime minister’s advisor facing corruption charge over Austrian armoured car purchase: report

The Supreme State Attorney’s Office in Prague on Thursday said it had pressed charges in a corruption case involving the purchase of armoured transporters for the Czech army from the Austrian arms company Steyr. Public service broadcaster Czech Television reported that the man charged with corruption is former Czech prime minister Mirek Topolánek’s infamous right hand man, Marek Dalík. Dalík has been investigated by police on suspicion that he demanded a payment of 500 million crowns to make sure that the lucrative order for 107 vehicles was won by the Austrian firm. The deal was eventually signed in 2009. Dalík served as Topolánek’s advisor between 2006 and 2009. The maximum sentence for corruption in such a case would be 10 years.

Czech PM: Greater cooperation on defense needed among V4 countries

The Visegrad 4 (comprising the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia) should increase cooperation on defense, Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said on Thursday at a V4 meeting in Bratislava. Mr Sobotka stressed that NATO was the pillar of security in eastern and central Europe; the alliance has gained new urgency and purpose following Russia’s military intervention in Crimea and the amassment of Russian troops on Ukraine’s border. Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he was in favour of a larger NATO presence – some 3,000 to 4,000 troops – on the alliance’s eastern border by 2016. Earlier this week, the Czech defence minister, Martin Stropnický, fumbled an interview with Reuters when he suggested a majority of Czechs would be unhappy with foreign troops on the ground, as they still remembered Soviet troops in the country after 1968. He later shifted his position, putting forward a declaration reaffirming the Czech Republic’s commitment to NATO. The declaration passed in the lower house on Wednesday.

Prague looking for power generation cover in case of black out

Prague city council leaders say they are weighing up the possibility of installing fast start-up electricity generation capacity to cover the possibility of a power black out in the capital. Prague mayor Tomáš Hudeček said the possibility of capacity to cover around a third of Prague’s electricity needs was being looked into following the results of February exercises which showed serious shortcomings in the city’s readiness. The mayor said he hoped that state funding might be forthcoming to cover the costs of such emergency power which might total up to a billion crowns.

Andrej Babiš StB agent libel cases reopens in Bratislava

The court case pitting ANO party leader and current Czech minister of finance Andrej Babiš and the Slovak Nation’s Memory Institute, which keeps the archives of the former Communist era secret police, continued in Bratislava on Thursday. Babiš launched the court proceedings in an attempt to clear his name after the institute said he was identified as having been signed up as a police agent under the cover name Bureš. During the previous court session in mid-April a former top StB police officer said Babiš had not been recruited in the 1980’s and a reported meeting never took place. The director of the Slovak institute told Czech Television on Thursday that references to Bureš featured on 12 separate occasions in the archives and it was inconceivable that the case had been fabricated.

Czech pupils score worse in school leaving exams

Czech school leavers performed worse in their written tests this year than last, according to results announced by the education ministry. Around 24 percent of the around 87,500 pupils taking the end of high school exams in maths failed. Failure rates for other subjects were much lower with foreign languages at 3.6 percent and Czech language at 2.7 percent with the overall failure rate at 11 percent. Last year the failure rate for maths was just over 20 percent with lower figures also for foreign languages and Czech as well. Minister of Education Marcel Chládek has pledged to improve the teaching of maths in schools and the training of maths teachers. He also wants to find some way of making maths compulsory as ever greater number of pupils are giving priority to other subjects at its expense.

New book titles increase in 2013 but sector still struggling with higher VAT rate

Almost 17,900 new book titles were published in the Czech Republic in 2013, an increase of around 600 on the previous year, the Czech News Agency reported on Thursday. The figures coincide with the opening of the Czech Republic’s flagship annual book fair, Book World, in Prague on Thursday. New titles peaked in the Czech Republic in 2011 with almost 19,000 being published. Since then the sector has been hit by the imposition of a higher rate of Value Added Tax rate on books and increased costs. The current centre-left coalition government has promised to put books back into a lower VAT band.

Halík collects Templeton Prize at London ceremony

The Czech Roman Catholic cleric Tomáš Halík has received the Templeton Prize in London. The presentation ceremony took place at the Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields on the city’s Trafalgar Square on Wednesday evening. The Templeton Prize, which goes for “progress toward research or discoveries about spiritual realities”, comes with a monetary award of about USD 1.8 million; Monsignor Halík has said he will put the money into initiatives aimed at boosting dialogue between believers and atheists.

Zeman: If Gross has found Jesus, he should give away wealth

President Miloš Zeman says that if former prime minister Stanislav Gross has found religion, he should give away his fortune. Mr. Gross recently said that he had accepted Christ and apologised to those he had disappointed. Speaking in a radio interview on Wednesday, Mr. Zeman said if he had genuinely become religious he should pay heed to Jesus’s instruction to a rich young man to sell his property, give to the poor and follow him. The president said this was unlikely to happen. Mr. Gross was once Europe’s youngest prime minister but quit politics after questions arose over how he had financed his flat. He later became extremely wealthy through the sale of shares.

Tennis: Berdych to return for Davis Cup semi-final

The Czech men’s tennis team has gotten a boost with new that the country’s top player, Tomáš Berdych, will join the team in its semi-final against France in September. The player changed course after withdrawing earlier this year to focus on his singles career. The semi-final is to be played over three days at Roland Garros stadium in Paris. Berdych was part of the Davis Cup winning team last year and in 2012. In 2011, the Czechs beat Spain and last year, Serbia. Italy faces Switzerland in the other semi-final.

High winds and heavy rainfall expected in east of country

High winds and heavy rain are expected to batter northeast Moravia and Moravia and Silesia from Thursday afternoon until midday Saturday. The Czech weather office warns that up to 120 millimetres of rain could fall over the 48 hour period. The height of major rivers in the region such as the Bečva, Odra, and Morava could rise to the lowest flood alert levels with smaller streams sparking much higher level three alerts, the office said.

14.05.2014

Lower house passes declaration reaffirming Czech commitment to NATO

The Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday passed a declaration stating the Czech Republic regards NATO membership as a basic pillar of its security policy and is prepared to fulfil all commitments arising from its membership. The declaration was proposed by the minister of defence, Martin Stropnický. Earlier this week he sparked opposition criticism by telling the Reuters news agency that the permanent presence of NATO units on Czech soil would be a problem for a significant part of the population in view of the occupation by Soviet troops in the past.

Court clears ex-defence minister accused of soliciting large bribe

Prague Municipal Court has cleared a former minister of defence, Martin Barták, of bribe-taking in connection with the purchase of Tatra all-terrain vehicles for the Czech army. A co-defendant, armaments manufacturer Michal Smrž, was cleared of attempted fraud. Mr. Barták had been accused of asking the chairman of Tatra’s supervisory board for a bribe of USD 5 million to smooth a deal to buy nearly 600 all-terrain vehicles in 2008 while he was deputy minister of defence. The supervisory board chairman was William Cabannis, a former US ambassador to Prague.

PM: Full accession to EU’s Fiscal Compact would be difficult for coalition

The government would have problems reducing the Czech Republic's structural deficit if it fully signed up to the European Union’s Fiscal Compact, the country’s prime minister, Bohuslav Sobotka, said on Wednesday. Mr. Sobotka said in order to meet its requirements the coalition would have to make cuts, which his Social Democrats would oppose, or raise taxes, which its partners ANO is against. The government approved accession to the stability treaty in March; however, it envisages taking on board the main planks of the compact only after the country adopts the euro.

Babiš says teachers’ salaries will rise slightly, denying plans for pay freeze

The Ministry of Finance is to recommend that teachers get a 1 percent pay rise as part of next year’s budget. Finance Minister Andrej Babiš told journalists that teachers’ unions’ assertions that the government planned to freeze teachers’ salaries were untrue. Mr. Babiš said that teachers deserved a pay rise, but that the Ministry of Education would need to reduce operating costs. He and the education minister, Marcel Chládek, are due to hold talks. Representatives of teachers’ unions said on Tuesday that their members’ pay would be frozen next year, while other public servants would see higher salaries.

Fresh group of Czech soldiers fly to Sinai Peninsula to take part in observer mission

The first unit of Czech soldiers taking part in an observer mission in the Sinai Peninsula is to be replaced by the end of the month, according to a spokesperson for the general staff of the Czech army. Eleven soldiers who left from Prague’s Kbely military airport on an army plane on Wednesday morning are to serve for six months with the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO), which oversees the terms of a peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. The troops will use the CASA plane they flew out to carry out their mission.

Eastern regions may see flooding from Thursday evening

Weather forecasters have warned that flooding may occur in the eastern Moravia-Silesia, Olomouc and Zlín regions from Thursday evening as heavy rainfall causes rivers to rise. Small streams in the regions in question could reach the highest level of flood alert, say meteorologists. Water management officials have begun monitoring the situation. Heavy rains are also expected in Bohemia, though flooding is unlikely to occur in the western half of the country.

Conversion of spa into gallery wins 2014 Architecture Grand Prix

The prestigious 2014 Architecture Grand Prix has gone to the SIAL studio for its conversion of an early 20th century municipal spa in Liberec into a gallery and depository. An international jury selected the project from 69 entries in the competition, which is run by the Society of Czech Architects and the Czech Chamber of Architects. The jury said the conversion had succeeded in maintaining the “relationship between the historic and the new at the desired equilibrium”. Architect Zdeněk Edel, who designed the Parkhotel in Prague, received a lifetime achievement award at Tuesday evening’s prize giving ceremony in the city.

Cimrman comic theatre to get first English version of play

Prague’s Jára Cimrman comic theatre is to put on an English language version of one of its plays for the first time. Záskok by theatre stalwarts Ladislav Smoljak and Zdeněk Svěrák will be performed next year as The Stand-In in an English version sponsored by the British Council. A staged reading of the translation, which is by Brian Stewart and Emílie Machalová, will take place at the Žižkov theatre on June 20. Jára Cimrman is a hugely popular fictitious character credited with great inventions and achievements.

Czechs beat Italy 2:0 at ice hockey Worlds

The Czech Republic have beaten Italy 2:0 at the Ice Hockey World Championship in Belarus. The Czechs’ victory on Wednesday came thanks to goals from Jiří Sekáč and Jaromír Jágr, with one each in the second and third periods. The result leaves the Czech Republic on six points after four games in Group A. Their next match is against Denmark on Saturday.

13.05.2014

State prosecutor calls for life sentences in methanol poisoning trial

The state prosecutor in the trial of a gang accused of being behind the contamination of alcohol which resulted in the deaths of more than 50 people has called for life sentences for two of the main defendants. Prosecutor Roman Kafka said in his summing up before a court in the eastern city of Zlín that the crimes of Tomáš Krepela and Rudolf Fian were exceptional and they deserved exceptional punishments. He called for the man accused of being the main distributor of the methanol tainted spirits, Jiří Vacula, to be sentenced to 20 years. A final verdict for the six accused is expected on May 21 or 22. The methanol scandal exploded in September 2012 with the death toll rapidly mounting, especially in the Zlín region.

Czech president says Ukraine referenda illegitimate but could reflect views of part of population

Czech president Miloš Zeman has said that referenda in two areas of Eastern Ukraine on autonomy could be taken as the expression of the desire of a certain section of the population although there was no question of recognizing the legitimacy of the votes themselves. The head of state’s stance was communicated on Monday by his spokesman. The Czech government, like others in Western Europe, has refused to recognize the referenda held over the weekend by Russian separatists in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Zeman urged as many Ukrainians as possible to take part in presidential elections on May 25. Many Russian speakers in the east say they will boycott them. President Zeman has sought to position himself as a possible intermediary in the crisis between Ukraine and Russia.

Jobless total falls to 7.9 percent in April

Unemployment in the Czech Republic dropped by 0.4 percentage points to 7.9 percent in April, the biggest monthly drop this year according to the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The total number out of work stands at just under 575,000. The latest drop was partly due to the start of seasonal work as well as the continued upturn in the Czech economy and more people registering themselves as self employed. Unemployment has been on a downward slide since January.

Inflation falls to annual 0.1 percent in April

Inflation eased to an annual 0.1 percent in April from March’s 0.2 percent. Price rises were at zero over the month. Cheaper food and drink was partly responsible for the annual slowdown although the cost of meat, milk and milk products are continuing to rise steadily, the Czech Statistics Office announced. Lower gas and electricity prices this year are also having a lasting impact by keeping price rises restrained.

Government warehouse ban raised at site earmarked for possible Amazon investment

A decision was taken Monday by the Czech government which could pave the way for e-commerce giant Amazon to overturn its original decision and site a second distribution centre on the outskirts of Brno. The government removed a clause banning the use of land being offered to Amazon for warehouses. The clause was inserted more than 10 years ago when the land was transferred from the central to local government and the land use issues were one of the obstacles in the original talks with Amazon. The American company walked away from talks on the Brno site after the city council rejected planning changes needed for the distribution site to go ahead. Since then the council has said it is renewing efforts to win the investment and potential 1,500 jobs.

Threat of EU freeze on Czech funding lifted says Věra Jourová

The Czech Republic has lifted a threat from the European Commission to freeze funding worth tens of billions of crowns because of the country’s failure to put in place sufficiently strong laws for evaluating the environmental impact of major infrastructure projects, Minister for Regional Development Věra Jourová announced on Monday. Jourová said that she and Minister of the Environment Richard Brabec last week won more time to amend the so-called EIA rules. The Commission started proceedings against the Czech Republic for its flawed environmental legislation in April last year. Separately, Jourová said that the final proposal on a new law aimed at shaping a professional and non-politicized Czech civil service should be ready for consultation by the end of this month.

Anti-corruption police investigate Prague City Council accounting contract

Police are investigating a 540 million crown contract for accounting services sealed by leaders of Prague city council shortly before local elections in 2010, the Czech News Agency reported on Monday. The 20 year contract covering accounting for the city, Prague districts, police, and funded organisations was signed with the Gordic company. Anti-corruption police are now investigating the details on suspicion that competitive tender rules were broken and public officials abused their powers. The deal was finalized in the final weeks of Pavel Bém’s term as mayor before he became a member of parliament for the Civic Democrat (ODS) party.

Prague’s St Vitus cathedral to celebrate 85th anniversary of completion

Prague’s dominant St. Vitus’ cathedral celebrated the 85th anniversary of its final completion and consecration on Monday with a celebratory mass. Although the cathedral was started in 1344 under the reign of Jan of Luxembourg, it was only completed at a very slow pace with funds frequently running out. A final push to complete the cathedral was made to mark the thousandth anniversary of the death of Saint Wenceslas in 1929. In spite of the slow completion, the cathedral is praised for its consistent gothic style.

Prague Spring music festival gets underway in Czech capital

The 69th Prague Spring international music festival starts in the Czech capital on Monday with a performance of Bedřich Smetana’s My Country by the Czech Philharmonic. The festival offers over 50 concerts by symphony orchestras and other ensembles including the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. The Prague Spring festival this year focuses on Czech music, and commemorates the 100th anniversary of birth of conductor Rafael Kubelík, one of the festival’s co-founders. The even runs until June 3.

Czechs lose to Sweden at world hockey championships

The Czech national hockey team lost to defending champions Sweden 3-2 in the second game at the hockey world championships in Minsk, Belarus, on Sunday evening. The Czechs were 3-1 ahead but Sweden equalized and took two points for a win in a penalty shootout. With three points after two games, the Czechs are ranked fourth in Group A of the championships; on Monday, the Czech team face Canada.

12.05.2014

State prosecutor calls for life sentences in methanol poisoning trial

The state prosecutor in the trial of a gang accused of being behind the contamination of alcohol which resulted in the deaths of more than 50 people has called for life sentences for two of the main defendants. Prosecutor Roman Kafka said in his summing up before a court in the eastern city of Zlín that the crimes of Tomáš Krepela and Rudolf Fian were exceptional and they deserved exceptional punishments. He called for the man accused of being the main distributor of the methanol tainted spirits, Jiří Vacula, to be sentenced to 20 years. A final verdict for the six accused is expected on May 21 or 22. The methanol scandal exploded in September 2012 with the death toll rapidly mounting, especially in the Zlín region.

Czech president says Ukraine referenda illegitimate but could reflect views of part of population

Czech president Miloš Zeman has said that referenda in two areas of Eastern Ukraine on autonomy could be taken as the expression of the desire of a certain section of the population although there was no question of recognizing the legitimacy of the votes themselves. The head of state’s stance was communicated on Monday by his spokesman. The Czech government, like others in Western Europe, has refused to recognize the referenda held over the weekend by Russian separatists in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Zeman urged as many Ukrainians as possible to take part in presidential elections on May 25. Many Russian speakers in the east say they will boycott them. President Zeman has sought to position himself as a possible intermediary in the crisis between Ukraine and Russia.

Jobless total falls to 7.9 percent in April

Unemployment in the Czech Republic dropped by 0.4 percentage points to 7.9 percent in April, the biggest monthly drop this year according to the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The total number out of work stands at just under 575,000. The latest drop was partly due to the start of seasonal work as well as the continued upturn in the Czech economy and more people registering themselves as self employed. Unemployment has been on a downward slide since January.

Inflation falls to annual 0.1 percent in April

Inflation eased to an annual 0.1 percent in April from March’s 0.2 percent. Price rises were at zero over the month. Cheaper food and drink was partly responsible for the annual slowdown although the cost of meat, milk and milk products are continuing to rise steadily, the Czech Statistics Office announced. Lower gas and electricity prices this year are also having a lasting impact by keeping price rises restrained.

Government warehouse ban raised at site earmarked for possible Amazon investment

A decision was taken Monday by the Czech government which could pave the way for e-commerce giant Amazon to overturn its original decision and site a second distribution centre on the outskirts of Brno. The government removed a clause banning the use of land being offered to Amazon for warehouses. The clause was inserted more than 10 years ago when the land was transferred from the central to local government and the land use issues were one of the obstacles in the original talks with Amazon. The American company walked away from talks on the Brno site after the city council rejected planning changes needed for the distribution site to go ahead. Since then the council has said it is renewing efforts to win the investment and potential 1,500 jobs.

Threat of EU freeze on Czech funding lifted says Věra Jourová

The Czech Republic has lifted a threat from the European Commission to freeze funding worth tens of billions of crowns because of the country’s failure to put in place sufficiently strong laws for evaluating the environmental impact of major infrastructure projects, Minister for Regional Development Věra Jourová announced on Monday. Jourová said that she and Minister of the Environment Richard Brabec last week won more time to amend the so-called EIA rules. The Commission started proceedings against the Czech Republic for its flawed environmental legislation in April last year. Separately, Jourová said that the final proposal on a new law aimed at shaping a professional and non-politicized Czech civil service should be ready for consultation by the end of this month.

Anti-corruption police investigate Prague City Council accounting contract

Police are investigating a 540 million crown contract for accounting services sealed by leaders of Prague city council shortly before local elections in 2010, the Czech News Agency reported on Monday. The 20 year contract covering accounting for the city, Prague districts, police, and funded organisations was signed with the Gordic company. Anti-corruption police are now investigating the details on suspicion that competitive tender rules were broken and public officials abused their powers. The deal was finalized in the final weeks of Pavel Bém’s term as mayor before he became a member of parliament for the Civic Democrat (ODS) party.

Prague’s St Vitus cathedral to celebrate 85th anniversary of completion

Prague’s dominant St. Vitus’ cathedral celebrated the 85th anniversary of its final completion and consecration on Monday with a celebratory mass. Although the cathedral was started in 1344 under the reign of Jan of Luxembourg, it was only completed at a very slow pace with funds frequently running out. A final push to complete the cathedral was made to mark the thousandth anniversary of the death of Saint Wenceslas in 1929. In spite of the slow completion, the cathedral is praised for its consistent gothic style.

Prague Spring music festival gets underway in Czech capital

The 69th Prague Spring international music festival starts in the Czech capital on Monday with a performance of Bedřich Smetana’s My Country by the Czech Philharmonic. The festival offers over 50 concerts by symphony orchestras and other ensembles including the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. The Prague Spring festival this year focuses on Czech music, and commemorates the 100th anniversary of birth of conductor Rafael Kubelík, one of the festival’s co-founders. The even runs until June 3.

Czechs lose to Sweden at world hockey championships

The Czech national hockey team lost to defending champions Sweden 3-2 in the second game at the hockey world championships in Minsk, Belarus, on Sunday evening. The Czechs were 3-1 ahead but Sweden equalized and took two points for a win in a penalty shootout. With three points after two games, the Czechs are ranked fourth in Group A of the championships; on Monday, the Czech team face Canada.

11.05.2014

Czech Republic for tougher sanctions against Russia

The Czech Republic would like to see tougher sanctions imposed on Russia over the country’s involvement in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek said. Speaking on Czech TV on Sunday, Mr Zaorálek also criticized independence referenda staged by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. The voting will not solve Ukraine’s problems, according to the Czech foreign minister who instead called for diplomatic negotiations with the participation of representatives of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions where the referenda are taking place.

Vietnamese in Prague protest against China’s policy in South China Sea

Hundreds of Vietnamese people from across the Czech Republic staged a protest on Sunday in front of China’s embassy in Prague. With banners that read “Stop China”, “Get Out of Vietnam”, and others, they protested against what they see as China’s intrusion into allegedly Vietnamese territorial waters in the South China Sea. In recent weeks, Vietnam’s government has complained of incidents in which Chinese vessels deliberately rammed Vietnamese ships in an attempt to gain control of parts of the area. The organizers of Prague’s protest told the news agency ČTK that despite living far from Vietnam, they had a duty to defend their home country. There are an estimated 60,000 to 100,000 Vietnamese people living in the Czech Republic, many of them Czech citizens.

Survey: Czechs save most on food, clothes

Some 27 percent of Czech save on food, according to a survey by a Czech discount retail website, skrz.cz. Another 19 percent of those polled said they saved on their free-time activities. They poll also found that ways people try to save money in cities differ from those living in the county; while 38 percent of the former said they saved most on food, 28 percent of the later said they instead saved on their free time. Some 20 percent of the people who took part in the survey said they did not save on anything.

US film Cheatin’ wins main prize at Třeboň animated films festival

The film Cheatin’ by US director Bill Plympton has won the main award at the Anifilm international festival of animated films in Třeboň. The Brazilian movie entitled The Boy and the World by Ale Abreu received the prize for best animated children film. The award for best short film went to Worst-Case Scenario by Kristjan Holm of Estonia. Some 23,000 people attended screenings at the festival which presented 73 films, organizers said.

Monument to writer Škvorecký unveiled in Náchod

A monument to the late Czech writer Josef Škvorecký was unveiled in his native town of Náchod, eastern Bohemia, on Sunday. The monument is in the form of a bench with a realistic statue of the writer. Josef Škoverecký, who was born in Náchod in 1924, came to prominence in the 1950s with the novel Cowards which depicted the end of WWII in his town through the eyes of a teenager. He left Czechoslovakia after the Soviet invasion of 1968 and settled in Canada where he and his wife launched Sixty-Eight Publishers which published books by authors banned in Czechoslovakia. Josef Škvorecký died in 2012.

Drunk driver kills paraplegic in hit-and-run incident

A 21-year-old drunk driver killed a 45-year-old wheelchair-bound in a hit-and-run incident in České Budějovice on Saturday night, a police spokeswoman said. The driver was apparently going too fast and hit the man in the wheelchair who was riding on the side of the road, instantly killing him. He then drove off but had another accident later when he drove into parked cars. The 21-year-old driver has been arrested, and faces up to six years in prison.

Czechs face Sweden at world hockey championships in Belarus

The Czech national hockey team faces Sweden in the second game at the hockey world championships in Minsk, Belarus, on Sunday evening. The Czechs, who defeated Slovakia 3:2 in overtime in the first game on Friday, will modify their line-up; the first line will feature Hertl and Rolinek alongside the start veteran Jaromír Jágr. Coach Vladimír Růžička also had to replace defenceman Polák who got injured in Friday’s game, and has left for Prague. Instead, Michal Jordán from the Charlotte Checkers in the AHL has been added to the Czech team’s roster.

10.05.2014 

PM Sobotka commemorates Romany victims of Holocaust

Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka on Saturday commemorated Romany victims of the Holocaust at the site of the former concentration camp in Lety, in southern Bohemia. Mr Sobotka said his government would not release funds necessary to remove a pig farm, established at the site in the 1970s, and suggested the money be instead used for the education of Romany children. Some 1,300 Czech Romanies passed through the camp between 1940 and 1943; round 330 of them died there, while another 500 were deported to the Auschwitz extermination camp in Nazi-occupied Poland.

Thousands march through Prague in support of marihuana legalization

Some 8,000 people marched through the centre of the Czech capital on Saturday in support of marihuana legalization, part of the international Million Marihuana March event. Organizers said the number of participants was higher than last year; two people were arrested over for possesing small amounts of dry cannabis, a police spokesman said. Under Czech law, possession or growing of marihuana for personal use is a minor offence; earlier this year, however, the anti-drug unit of the Czech police raided a number of shops offering marihuana seeds and equipment for growing the illicit drug, raising concerns of a more stricter approach towards recreational marihuana growers and users.

Dawn party’s ballot leader for European elections told to quit over fraud allegations

The leader of the Dawn party’s ballot for the European elections, Klára Samková, has been given until Monday to step down over allegations of fraud. Ms Samková, who is an attorney, faces accusations that last year, she acted as a front for a company that wanted to buy its own debt from a bank, an illegal transaction under Czech law. Dawn party leader Tomio Okamura told reporters on Saturday that if Ms Samková does not quit by Monday, she would be removed from the ballot. Klára Samková, meanwhile, has denied any wrongdoing. In a statement, she said the accusations were deliberately meant to hurt her chances in the elections.

Victims of Communism honoured in Prague

Prague Mayor Tomáš Hudeček, several local mayors and members of the public honoured Czech victims of Communism in Prague on Saturday, the news agency ČTK reported. Mr Hudeček warned against questioning the crimes of Communism, and said the motivation of those who sided with the regime needed to be studied. Some 250 people were executed by the Communist authorities and another 8,000 died in jail. An estimated 250,000 people left the country during the four decades of Communist rule. The gathering took place at a cemetery in Prague’s Motol district where the ashes of dozens of anti-Communist activists were secretly buried in the 1950s and 60s.

Interior Ministry finds police breached no law when raiding Islamic centres

The Czech Interior Ministry has found that the police broke no laws when they raided two Islamic centres in Prague two weeks ago, Interior Minister Milan Chovanec said after a meeting the police president. The organized crime unit of the Czech police raided a mosque and an Islamic community centre in the capital, quoting the distribution of a racist book as the reason. The operation came under criticism by Muslim community leaders as well as some foreign diplomats and public figures. On Friday, Minister Chovanec said he had asked police bosses to consider all possible aspects and risks of any such operation in the future.

Czechs beat Slovakia 3:2 at hockey world championship

The Czech national hockey team defeated Slovakia 3:2 in their opening game at the world championships in Minsk, Belarus, on Friday night. The Czechs went ahead early but the in the second period saw the Slovaks dominate the game, scoring two goals. However, Jaromír Jágr equalized late in the third period, forcing an overtime. Some two minutes into overtime, Jakub Klepiš found the net, securing the Czech team’s win. The Czechs are next playing Sweden on Sunday at the world championships in Minsk.

09.05.2014 

No members of the government attend banquet at Russian embassy

No members of the centre-left government led by Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka have attended a banquet at the Russian embassy in Prague marking Victory Day (69 years this Friday since Nazi Germany capitulated to the Soviet Union). Czechs mark the end of WW II a day earlier, on May 8. The Czech news daily Právo writes that although government representatives did not take part, other politicians, such as the leader of the Communist Party Vojtěch Filip, were expected. Former president Václav Klaus also attended.

Earlier, the chairman of the lower house, Jan Hamáček, attended a ceremony at Prague’s Olšany cemetery, laying a wreath in the memory of 140,000 Soviet soldiers who died on Czechoslovak soil fighting against Nazi Germany.

Former president Klaus defends decision to attend

Former president Václav Klaus has defended his decision to attend an event at the Russian embassy in Prague marking Victory Day (May 9) the end of the Second World War for the former Soviet Union. Mr Klaus attended the banquet even though members of the current government chose not to, and his successor, Miloš Zeman, sent his head of international affairs at the Office of the President in his stead. Russia has come under increased criticism from the EU and the United States in recent days and weeks for intervention in Ukraine, including the annexation of Crimea. Mr Klaus told the news website iDnes he remembered the end of the war well even though he was only a little boy at the time. He made clear the anniversary needed to be met with respect.

Sacked Russian historian speaks at Masaryk University

A Russian historian sacked from his post following criticism of the occupation by Russia of Crimea spoke on Friday at Brno’s Masaryk University. Andrej Zubov accepted the opportunity after turning down an offer to teach at Brno, one of several offers from foreign universities after he was dismissed from Moscow’s State Institute for International Relations. He angered authorities by comparing Russia’s actions over Crimea to Nazi Germany’s policies ahead of WWII, including the takeover of Austria and seizure of the Sudetenland. In Brno on Friday, Mr Zubov stressed that the Putin regime was "not Russia", saying there were Russians at home who opposed steps taken by the regime in neighbouring Ukraine.

Masaryk University reaches agreement with Zubov

Masaryk University in Brno has reached an agreement with Russian historian Andrej Zubov on occasional cooperation in the form of seminars and lectures, according to the Czech News Agency. Mr Zubov, a critic of the Putin regime, was originally offered a regular post but declined, preferring to remain in Moscow. On Friday, he gave a lecture on the situation in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as Czechoslovakia’s first president, T.G. Masaryk, who he referred to as a statesman of international stature. Regarding Ukraine, the historian maintained he was optimistic that violence there would not extend further, stressing it was impossible to guess what would happen if a NATO country was attacked by Russia. Professor Zubov said a good president would be helping to liberalize Russia, not making it withdraw from the rest of the world. The historian could return to lecture in Brno as early as the next academic season.

Clean-up operation at former chemical plant could be complete by 2018

The cleaning up of sludge at oil lagoons left by former chemical plant Ostramo in Ostrava – a major ecological burden for the Czech Republic – could be complete by 2018, the head of state enterprise Diamo, Josef Havelka has said. Some 200,000 tonnes of waste was removed in the past but thousands more were unexpectedly uncovered. Five firms will be chosen to take part in a tender to remove an additional 90,000 tonnes of the chemical dredge. The site of the lagoons was visited on Friday by Trade & Industry Minister Jan Mládek; he expressed the hope the tender on who would complete the clean-up operation would go through quickly.

Interior ministry seeks to get to grips with foreign intelligence spending

Minister of Interior Milan Chovanec has confirmed that officials are investigating suspect transactions carried out by the foreign intelligence service. Reporting on the probe Friday, the daily newspaper Dnes said that transactions included the purchase of property to serve for secret meetings and accommodation for agents. One piece of property was bought near an interior ministry site and turned out to be useless and another was purchased and renovated at considerable cost and then sold after also being found surplus to requirements. The paper pointed out that checks on spending by the foreign intelligence service, the Office for Foreign Relations and Information, is effectively carried out by the office itself.

Police search for jewellery thief

The Czech police are searching for a suspect wanted for theft at a jeweller’s in Prague in March. In the incident, the perpetrator made off with items worth 80 thousand crowns after posing as a customer interested in purchasing a gold item. Instead, he grabbed a display platter full of gold chains and headed for the door, pushing the female seller into a glass case (which shattered) as she tried to stop his escape. Officials have released a still from footage taken by a security camera and asked the public for help.

Cropduster crashes in Náchod area

A pilot had to be airlifted to hospital on Friday after crashing a cropduster in a field in the Náchod area. Emergency crews arriving at the scene found the agricultural aircraft shattered and on its roof, some 50 metres from the nearest road.

Two weeks ago, an ultralight crashed in the area with two people on board. They suffered only minor injuries and were treated on the spot.

Hockey: Czechs face Slovakia in first match at Worlds

The Czech national hockey team takes on former compatriots Slovakia on Friday in their opening match at the Ice Hockey World Championships in Minsk, Belarus. The Czechs, in Group A, then face Sweden on Sunday and Canada the beginning of the week. The team’s coach, Vladimír Růžička, stressed it was important the team got off to a good start since it would only be facing theoretically ‘weaker’ teams later in the tournament. Legendary forward Jaromír Jágr said he expected Friday’s match against Slovakia to be a tough one.

Tennis: Kvitová in semifinals at Madrid, Berdych out

Top Czech women’s tennis player Petra Kvitová has reached the semifinals in Madrid after American Serena Williams withdrew from the competition due to injury. Fellow Czech Tomáš Berdych, however, failed to advance in the men’s field, losing to World No. 1 Rafael Nadal 6:4, 6:2. Berdych, ranked sixth in the world, has now lost to Nadal in their last 17 match-ups.

08.05.2014 

President Miloš Zeman leads commemoration of end of WWII

Czech president Miloš Zeman led a commemoration by war veterans, army staff, politicians, and citizens of the 69th anniversary of the end of WWII in Europe at Prague’s Vítkov memorial on Thursday. Similar events were held around the country. The traditional Vítkov commemoration included a minute’s silence for all those who were killed as a result of the conflict. Defense minister Martin Stropnický told journalists that commemorations of such a kind were necessary, especially given the context of the current unrest in Ukraine. Thursday is a national holiday in the Czech Republic.

Zeman includes Petr Pavel in traditional round of army promotions

Earlier, in a series of the traditional appointments made on May 8, president Zeman promoted Chief of General Staff, Lieutenant-General Petr Pavel to the top ranking position of Army General. The head of state also recommended that Minister of Defense Martin Stropnický to do his utmost to place Pavel in a top position in the NATO hierarchy. Fifth-two year old Pavel has been Chief of General Staff since 2012. In another move, the son of former general Heliodor Píka, who was executed following a show trial on the orders of Czechoslovak Communist authorities in 1949, Milan Píka, was made a Brigadier General. Zeman said the honour for the 91-year-old was in recognition of his own merits.

Battle brews over Czech European Commission nomination

A clear battle over the Czech nomination for the next European commissioner is taking shape with ANO leader Andrej Babiš rejecting prime minister Bohuslav Sobotka’s suggestion that former finance minister Pavel Mertlík should get the job. Babiš said that his party wanted the leader of its European Parliament election list Pavel Telička to get the job, adding that he had superior qualifications after already serving for a short period as a commissioner. Sobotka said that Telička’s candidacy was sullied by his past work as a lobbyist in Brussels. Telička referred obliquely to his possible candidacy on Wednesday saying that in the final analysis the European Parliament would decide who is confirmed in the post. The mandate of the current Euroepan Commission runs out at the end of October.

Czech have last chance to register for ‘voter’s passport’ for Euro elections

Thursday was the last day for Czechs to submit applications to vote in the European Parliament elections at other locations other than where they are registered as having permanent residence. In spite of the state holiday, offices at local councils were open to take applications which could also be submitted in electronic form by the end of the day. Offices said interest was less than in the parliamentary elections last October but higher than for the European elections four years ago. Voting to the European Parliament takes place on May 23 and 24 with Czechs returning 21 representatives this time round to the parliament in Brussels.

Amsterdam IPO dropped for company owning thousands of Czech flats

A Dutch based real estate group whose man assets are tens of thousands of flats in the eastern city of Ostrava and surroundings has cancelled its plans to launch on the Amsterdam stock exchange. Domus NV announced that its plans for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the exchange have been dropped due to market conditions but that they could be resurrected in the future. The company is partly owned by the BXR group, one of whose main shareholders is Czech billionaire Zdeněk Bakala.

Jaromír Jagr and Roman Červenka train ahead of world championship opener

In ice hockey, both Jaromír Jagr and Roman Červenka took part in training after the Czech national squad arrived in Belarus ahead of the start of the world championships on Friday. Both players had been nursing injuries suffered in the championship warm-up tournament in Sweden. The first Czech match is against Slovakia on Friday night. The Czechs are in the same opening group as Sweden, Canada, Italy, Denmark, Norway, and France.

Petr Čech undergoes surgery on injured shoulder

In football, Czech and Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Čech has successfully underwent surgery for his dislocated shoulder on Wednesday according to the London club’s website. He will be out of action for eight to 10 weeks, it added. That means he should be ready for the start of the new Premier League season in August. Čech dislocated his shoulder in the first leg of the Champions League semi- final against Atletico Madrid on April 22 and was stretchered off the pitch.