• 05/21/2005

    The Czech prime minister, Jiri Paroubek, is due to meet his British counterpart Tony Blair in London on Monday, as part of a two-day visit to the United Kingdom. The two leaders are expected to discuss the European Union constitution, further expansion of the EU and the Czech military presence in Iraq. Mr Paroubek will also decorate Czech war veterans at the country's embassy in London.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 05/21/2005

    After 44 years the Czech Army has stopped using Russian made MiG 21 fighter planes, with the "last farewell" at a ceremony at Caslav airbase in central Bohemia on Saturday. In recent years most of the Army's MiGs were not functional; they have been replaced by Swedish made Gripen jets.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 05/21/2005

    The Foreigners Police in Prague are to extend their opening hours from the beginning of next week, in order to deal with extremely long queues of foreigners applying for residence in the Czech Republic. The Interior Ministry said on Friday that the chaotic situation at the police's office on Prague's Olsanska Street had been due to both a rise in the number of applicants and new regulations which accompanied accession to the European Union.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 05/21/2005

    The Czech Film Centre has presented a project to film Bohumil Hrabal's novel I Served the King of England at its stand at the Cannes Film Festival in France. The film is being made by director Jiri Menzel, best known for the Oscar-winning Closely Observed Trains, which is also based on a Hrabal novel.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 05/21/2005

    One of the highlights of this year's Prague Spring classical music festival is taking place on Saturday night, when the legendary jazz pianist Herbie Hancock appears at the Rudolfinum with the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra. Hancock was a child prodigy who later played with Miles Davis for several years before releasing Headhunters, one of the biggest selling jazz albums of all time.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 05/21/2005

    Rising Czech tennis star Nicole Vaidisova has been beaten in the final of the Istanbul Cup by America's Venus Williams. Vaidisova only turned 16 a month ago but is already Czech women's number one. She was beaten 6-3 6-2 by Williams on Saturday, in a competition regarded as a warm-up for the French Open.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 05/20/2005

    Czech officials and politicians have reacted heatedly to Cuba's expulsion of a Czech senator, demanding an explanation. Senator Karel Schwarzenberg was thrown out of the country late Thursday, soon after arriving to meet with Cuban dissidents. So far, Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda has reacted by saying the expulsion was proof the Czech Republic's tough stance on Cuba was justified. Senate chairman Premysl Sobotka, meanwhile, has described the expulsion as "a blatant violation of international rights".

    Karel Schwarzenberg is the former head of the presidential office under former Czech president Vaclav Havel, himself a strong critic of Fidel Castro's regime. The European Union is to decide soon whether to reinstate diplomatic sanctions against Cuba on the basis of human rights violations. The Czech Republic has been pushing the EU not to soften its stance.

    Author: Jan Velinger
  • 05/20/2005

    The prime minister, the health minister Milada Emmerova, and the heads of Czech health insurance companies failed to reach an agreement over doctors' pay on Friday, although a decision may come as early as one week's time. Doctors would like to see higher remuneration for their work, something which insurance companies are warning could raise health insurance debt from 10 to 34 billion crowns, approximately 1.5 billion US. Without a raise the head of the Czech Doctors' Association David Rath has suggested doctors could curb the number of patient - doctor meetings without having a negative effect on the quality of individual treatment, lessening the work load. The prime minister, however, has already said he was not interested in the idea of patients receiving less care. All the parties involved are expected to meet again next week to decide the issue.

    Author: Jan Velinger
  • 05/20/2005

    Both Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek and the chairman of the Social Democratic Party, Stanislav Gross, have denied they might face each other in an eventual showdown for their party's post of electoral leader. Speaking together with Mr Gross on Friday the prime minister said no conflict existed between himself and Mr Gross, who he considers a personal friend. While he did express an interest in being named his party's election leader, Mr Paroubek stressed the post could fall to a number of highly placed Social Democrats, including Culture Minister Pavel Dostal or Education Minister Petra Buzkova. Both he and Mr Gross said their party would conduct extensive research & analysis to decide on the best person for the job.

    The Social Democrats, along with the Czech Republic's other political parties, have roughly twelve months in which to prepare for national elections next year.

    Author: Jan Velinger
  • 05/20/2005

    A Prague court has ordered four men found guilty of a racially-motivated attack against a Roma student in 2002, to pay the victim compensation of 25, 000 crowns each - the equivalent of around four thousand dollars US. All four have also been ordered to provide written letters of apology. In October 2002 the four youths, the oldest of whom was 19 years of age, attacked the Roma student near a Prague metro station. The student, Marek Polak, suffered cuts, bruises, and a concussion. His attackers all received suspended sentences, the longest: three years in prison.

    Author: Jan Velinger

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