American ambassador speaks out against corruption in Czech Republic

The American ambassador to the Czech Republic, Richard Graber, spoke out against corruption and lack of transparency within the Czech political system at a conference held at the Czech Senate on Wednesday. According to Mr. Graber, reports from Transparency International and other such organizations indicated that corruption was still present in both Czech business and political spheres. The ambassador put this down to the fact that democracy in the Czech Republic was, he said, still very young. And he did see the situation as improving. Among other measures being taken, Mr. Graber commended the Czech government's new anti-corruption telephone line, which Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek launched on Tuesday.