Daily news summary

Suspended sentence for man who had child simulate race attack

A man who posted a video online of himself encouraging his young daughter to beat a pillow with a baseball bat as if it were a “gypsy” or a Muslim has received a suspended one-year sentence, Lidovky.cz reported. The man, who is 27, will also be monitored by probation and mediation services after being found guilty of promoting race hate and endangering the upbringing of a child, the news site said. The case was heard at a court in Benešov last month.

Numerous reports were made to social services after the video went viral on the Czech internet in the summer.

Pospíšil to focus local and Senate elections if he becomes TOP 09 leader

The MEP Jiří Pospíšil says he will focus on preparing TOP 09 for local and Senate elections, if he wins election as the party chairman in an election next weekend. The grouping’s long-term leader Miroslav Kalousek is stepping down after TOP 09 did poorly in elections last month.

Mr. Pospíšil is a former deputy chairman of another right-wing party, the Civic Democrats. He is as yet the only candidate for the top job in TOP 09.

Dozens of institutions opening their doors for Theatre Night

Dozens of Czech theatres will open their doors to the public on Saturday evening as part of a nationwide Theatre Night. Theatres are putting on performances and offering tours of their backstage areas in 30 cities and towns free of charge or a for a nominal admission fee. This year’s edition is entitled Forever Young and is especially targeted at youth and children.

The event is part of the European Theatre Night, which has been held on the third Saturday of November since 2008. Czech institutions are participating for the fifth time and local organisers say turnout usually exceeds 50,000.

Victims of Communist regime honoured in Prague

Several now elderly people who were persecuted by the Communist regime were honoured with the Memory of Nations award at Prague’s National Theatre on Friday night in one of a number of events marking Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day. The award went to former political prisoners František Suchý, Mária Matejčíková and priest František Lízna, as well as to Otto Šimko, a Holocaust survivor who was repeatedly persecuted because of his Jewish origins.

The Memory of Nations award has been presented annually since 2010 by the non-profit organisation Post Bellum, which records and makes accessible interviews with victims of the Nazi and Communist regimes.

Book exploring women in dissent launched

A book exploring the part played by women in the anti-Communist dissent has been launched in Prague. Entitled Bytová revolta: Jak ženy dělaly disent (Apartment Revolution: How Woman Made the Dissent), it features profiles of 21 women who were not afraid to stand up to the Communist authorities in the normalisation period of the 1970 and 1980s.

Among those who attended the launch were then dissidents Marta Kubišová, Dana Němcová and Kamila Bendová.

One of the organisers of the Women in Dissent project, Marcela Linková, said there was a perception that the women had supported male dissidents but in fact they had carried out the same activities as men.

Ski jumper turned MP to compete for last time

Ski jumper Jakub Janda, who was recently became an MP, is to take part in his final competitive event on Saturday. Mr. Janda, who is 39, will take part in a team event in a World Cup meeting at Wisle in Poland. He failed to make it into Sunday’s individual final.

Mr. Janda was elected to the Chamber of Deputies as a member of the Civic Democrats. He is one of 120 first-time MPs due to sit in the new lower house, which was elected in October and convenes on Monday.

Weather forecast

It should be overcast with the chance of snow in the Czech Republic on Sunday, with temperatures of up to 4 degrees Celsius expected. The weather should remain the same in the early part of next week.