News
Czech EU diplomat suspected of collaboration with communist secret police
Czech Radio has reported that one of the diplomats to represent the Czech Republic in EU bodies collaborated with the Communist-era StB secret police. According to Czech Radio, Petr Mooz was listed as an agent in StB files. Mr Mooz was screened under the so-called "lustration" process and received a "clean" certificate from the Interior Ministry in 1992 - he maintains that he never collaborated with the communist political police.
Kubinyi appoints deputy ministers, plans to put forward reform by end September
The new Health Minister, Jozef Kubinyi, has criticised the method through which state-run hospitals were transferred under the administration of individual regions last year. Regional governors have repeatedly criticised the government of Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla for handing over to them hospitals burdened by billions of crowns worth of debts. Minister Kubinyi has also appointed his new deputies, raising their number from four to six. He plans to put forward a reform of the health-care sector by the end of September. Mr Kubinyi's predecessor, Marie Souckova, was recalled last week for failing to produce a sound reform plan for the ailing health sector.
Doctors: rabies eradicated in Czech Republic
The National Referential Laboratory for Rabies has said the disease has been eradicated in the Czech Republic. No case of rabies in animals has been reported in two years. According to the head of the National Referential Laboratory, the last infected animal, a fox, was killed in April 2002 in East Bohemia. The eradication of rabies is seen as an important achievement by health experts because, for example, this implies that people bitten by stray dogs will not have to report to hospital immediately.
Milos Forman awarded at San Francisco International Film Festival
The Czech-born American film director Milos Forman has received the 2004 Film Society Award for Lifetime Achievement in Directing at the International Film Festival in San Francisco. A leading representative of the 1960s' "New Wave" of Czech film, Milos Forman moved to the United States after the Soviet-led occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1968. He continued his filmmaking career in the U.S. and directed many films, including Oscar-winners "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "Amadeus".
Czechs beat Canada in World Championships warm-up, Lener names squad
The Czech Republic has beaten Canada 8:5 in their last warm-up game before the ice hockey World Championships. After the match, Czech coach Slavomir Lener announced his 25-man squad for the competition, which begins on Saturday and takes place in Prague and Ostrava.
Weather
And now the weather forecast for the weekend. Saturday and Sunday should be cloudy to overcast with daytime temperatures ranging from 9 to 12 degrees Celsius.
