News

An incident at the weekend in which Miroslav Macek - a long-term advisor to the Czech president - assaulted the country's health minister has been qualified as a misdemeanour by a state attorney. The statement was made after the state attorney reviewed video of the incident from the weekend. On Saturday at a doctors' conference Mr Macek surprised Health Minister David Rath when he walked over and - without warning - slapped him on the back of the head. The attack was subsequently condemned by Czech politicians, including the prime minister.

Mr Macek defended the action by saying that he had been settling a personal score.

But, with elections a fortnight away, some political commentators are speculating over Mr Macek's intentions: he is a former deputy chairman of the right-of-centre Civic Democrats, the party currently leading in pre-election opinion polls. Mr Rath, meanwhile, is a representative of the Social Democrats, 4 points behind the leaders in a recent survey.

Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek has filed a lawsuit for slander against the leader of right-of-centre Civic Democrats Mirek Topolanek. During a heated TV debate on Sunday Mr Topolanek suggested that Mr Paroubek had connections to the underworld, statements the prime minister has said are not based on truth. The debate on Sunday was the first of four planned debates between the two men before the upcoming general election.

General Frantisek Perina - a Czech pilot in the Second World War who died two weeks ago at the age of 95 - was given a military funeral on Monday - his remains will be laid to rest alongside his wife in his home town of Mokruvky in the Breclav region. Mr Perina's wife died just weeks before the general himself. Frantisek Perina was one of the last remaining Czech war heroes, who earned the title of "ace" in just two days over France in 1940. He shot down at least 12 enemy planes during the war. On Monday Czech President Vaclav Klaus commented Mr Perina's enormous contribution by saying that it was with amazement that he considered how much Mr Perina had achieved in a "single" life. Following his escape from Communist Czechoslovakia after the war, Mr Perina lived for many years in the US. He returned to his homeland in the 1990s.

Miroslav Macek, who physically attacked Health Minister David Rath at a meeting of Czech dentists on Saturday has been asked to leave the Civic Democratic Party. Mr. Macek, a former deputy prime minister in the 1990s and long-time adviser to President Vaclav Klaus, was chairing the meeting of dentists when he walked over to the minister and without warning hit him on the back of the head. He said later he had been settling "a personal account".

The attack was severely condemned by Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek who said at an impromptu press conference that he viewed the attack as a political affair and called on President Klaus to reprimand his advisor. Mr. Paroubek said the Civic Democrats were creating an atmosphere conductive to violence against left wing parties. The President's Office has not commented on the incident. The Civic Democratic Party has distanced itself from Macek's action and asked him to leave party ranks. Mr. Macek told the CTK news agency he had no intention of doing so.