• 8,000 Czechs registered to vote abroad
    10/10/2013

    Close to 8,000 Czechs living abroad have registered to vote in the upcoming general elections, the Czech New Agency reports. They will be able to cast their ballot at 104 polling stations set up at Czech embassies, and some of them will have to travel hundreds of miles to do so. Czechs in Kenya, the Congo, Columbia and Costa Rica will have to travel to another country to cast their vote since the Czech Republic recently closed down its embassies in those states due to austerity measures. Voters abroad will make their choice from the Central Bohemian election ballot.
    Author: Masha Volynsky

  • NWR to sell OKK coking plant by January
    10/10/2013

    The coal and coke producer New World Resources (NWR) is planning to sell off the OKK coking plant in the Ostrava region by the end of the year. Although the final decision on the sale is yet to be approved by its shareholders, the company says it believes the move will be met with approval since it will help NWR consolidate its operation and focus more on mining. NWR recently came under a lot of criticism after its subsidiary company OKD announced the decision to shut down the Paskov coal mine by the end of next year.
    Author: Masha Volynsky

  • Intelligence officer testifies in Nagyová spying case
    10/10/2013

    Intelligence officer Jan Pohůnek gave testimony to the police on Thursday in connection to the case of unsanctioned spying involving former chief of staff of the former prime minister Petr Nečas, Jana (Nagyová) Nečasová. The police suspect the now wife of Mr. Nečas of ordering the military intelligence service to spy on the former premier’s ex-wife Radka. Mr. Pohůnek’s lawyer Michal Hráský told reporters before his client’s deposition that Radka Nečasová was not being spied on, but that the intelligence service was actually protecting her from possible spying by other parties, which could be a breach of national security.
    Author: Masha Volynsky

  • Public dept decreases first time since the ’90’s
    10/10/2013

    The Czech Republic’s state dept has decreased by more than 14 billion crowns in September since the beginning of the year, according to information released by the Finance Ministry on Thursday. This is the first decrease in state dept since the 1990’s. Currently, the debt is 1.654 trillion, which amounts to more than 157,000 crowns per person in the Czech Republic.
    Author: Masha Volynsky

  • Moody’s says Czech Republic will not to be badly hit by changes in Fed policy
    10/10/2013

    Moody’s bond credit rating agency has announced that of all the Central European countries, the Czech Republic and Slovakia are the least vulnerable to the adverse effects of the change in monetary policy of the American Federal Reserve. The agency expects that after the Fed limits its monetary stimulus policy, financial liquidity problems will arise in other countries, forcing interest rates to rise. The most vulnerable Central European country in this situation would be Hungary.
    Author: Masha Volynsky

  • Unidentified body parts found in the Vltava
    10/10/2013

    A human torso was found in the Vltava river on Thursday near the Barrandov bridge in Prague. A leg was found the day before near the river close by. Whether the two parts belonged to the same body has not been confirmed. The police are investigating the case, but have not released any further information.
    Author: Masha Volynsky

  • Various orders want religious art pieces returned
    10/10/2013

    The National Gallery in Prague has received five requests from religious institutions to return a total of 29 works of art, under the church property restitution law. The requests came, for example, from the Cistercian Order, the order of the Knights of the Cross with the Red Star, the Augustinians and others. The National Gallery is hoping to agree with the orders to keep the pieces in their permanent collection as long-term loans. Under the church restitution law adopted last year, religious institutions are allowed to request the return of items which were functionally linked to the properties owned or restituted by the institutions.
    Author: Masha Volynsky

  • Berdych loses in the 3rd round of Shanghai Masters
    10/10/2013

    Top Czech tennis star Tomáš Berdych was defeated in the third round of the Shanghai Rolex Masters championship on Thursday. Berdych lost 7:6, 3:6, 6:7 to the Spaniard Nicolás Almagro. Last year, the Czech number one got to the semi-finals in Shanghai, but lost to Novak Djokovic.
    Author: Masha Volynsky

  • Senators debating government bills for first time due to dissolution of lower house
    10/09/2013

    Prime Minister Jiří Rusnok on Wednesday attended a session of the Senate to try and ensure safe passage for a number of government-proposed bills to which senators have tabled amendments. They include bills aimed at increasing contributions to the health system from state insurers and measures linked to public tenders. Following the dissolution of the chamber of deputies the fate of these bills is now in the hands of the Senate. Should the upper chamber reject them it could seriously complicate the running of the country. The debate is expected to continue on Thursday.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Senate approves extended Czech participation in UN mission in Sinai
    10/09/2013

    The Senate has approved a government proposal for the Czech Republic to send another 13 soldiers and a CASA plane to the U.N. mission in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula where they should serve from November until the end of 2014. The proposal comes in response to a request from the mission’s command which asked Prague for a CASA plane as well as technical personnel. The extension of Czech participation, which now comprises three military officers, requires the consent of the Senate, the upper house of parliament, in view of the fact that the lower house is dissolved.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

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