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02/18/2010
Dagmar Tauchenová, who helped her husband to escape from prison last year by opening fire on his police escort, could receive a lighter sentence or even probation under the new criminal code. Ms. Tauchenová was charged last year with extortion, assault on a public servant and obstruction of justice, which at the time carried a sentence of up to eight years in prison. However, under the new criminal code, which took effect at the beginning of this year, her offences have been reclassified as ‘freeing a prisoner’, which entails a maximum five years imprisonment or suspended prosecution. The latter sentence would have to be proposed by the state prosecutor and approved by the court.
Ms Tauchenová’s husband had been sentenced to five years for safe-cracking and was being transferred to a hospital when she shot at on his police escort and both escaped. Police caught up with the couple shortly afterwards and Ms Tauchenová was shot and her husband committed suicide.
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02/18/2010
The Ministry of Health reports that two people have died in the last week of swine flu-related illnesses, bringing the total number of deaths in the Czech Republic to 100. Meanwhile, only roughly one fourth of the available vaccine dosages have been utilised in the country. The state originally ordered one million dosages at a cost of 220 million crowns; a quarter of that was delivered by the end of 2009 and the remainder has been manufactured but is being stored by the producer GSK. The Health Ministry is currently involved in negotiations with the drug manufacturer on reimbursement for the unused dosages. The application of the vaccine has met with reluctance among Czechs; last week 500 people had themselves vaccinated, more than a thousand less than the week before.
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02/18/2010
The STEM polling agency has published its latest survey of voting preferences showing a stronger position for the centre-right Civic Democratic Party but a lasting and solid lead for their rivals, the Social Democrats. The results show the latter party having lost less than 1% of their standing in the company’s January poll, while the Civic Democrats have gained an additional nine hypothetical seats in parliament. TOP 09 and the Communist Party kept the same results, with 19 and 31 seats, respectively. Meanwhile the new Věci veřejné, (Public Affairs), party stayed just below the five percent threshold needed to win a place in parliament. The survey also suggest voter turnout of 54%, which is the highest since spring of 2009. Parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic are scheduled for May.
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02/18/2010
A paratrooper from the 43rd Airborne Mechanised Battalion in Chrudim was fatally injured during a training session on Wednesday night after his parachute failed to open. He died in hospital a few hours later. The military has refused to comment on the incident pending the outcome of an investigation by the military police. A similar accident happened at Chrudim airport last year when paratroopers were testing a new type of parachute acquired by the army. A Defence Ministry spokesperson said the soldier’s family had been informed of the tragedy.
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02/18/2010
A fire broke out at the Dukovany nuclear power plant on Wednesday in one of the station’s technical facilities. Operations at the plant were not jeopardised and no one was injured. Dukovany spokesman Petr Spilka said that the fire had been caused by a technical malfunction and estimated damages at 50,000 crowns. Fires in recent years have been the most common cause of accidents in the Dukovany power plant. A similar fire in 2007 was caused by negligence on the part of a contractor firm. The most serious accident occurred in 1996, when four people were injured in an explosion of acetone gas.
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02/18/2010
The Czech energy giant ČEZ stopped on Wednesday disconnecting users suspected of stealing electricity. The company’s head, Martin Roman said such interventions in the past were in line with Czech law but admitted they did not always follow the firm’s code of ethics. ČEZ will now file lawsuits against customers suspected of stealing electricity, instead of immediately disconnecting them from the grid.
ČEZ has recently been criticized over harsh treatment of its customers who the company suspected of stealing electricity. Several media outlets also published video footage earlier this month depicting the paramilitary-style training of the firm’s anti-theft unit.
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02/18/2010
Historian Jiří Pernes is set to become the new director of the Czech Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes, the institute’s spokesman said on Wednesday. The institute’s council chose Mr Pernes over four other candidates who applied for the post, including the institute’s current director, Pavel Žáček. Mr Žáček faced criticism over the publication of an article by one of the institute’s researchers which accused the writer Milan Kundera of collaborating with Czechoslovakia’s communist secret police, allegations rejected by Mr Kundera and questioned by other experts.
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02/18/2010
The Czech Republic’s ice hockey players have gotten off to a winning start at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, with a 3:1 victory over their old federal partners Slovakia. The Czechs went ahead through captain Patrik Eliáš after 10 minutes, before the Slovaks drew level at the start of the second period. However, they could find no reply to two more Czech goals in two minutes at the end of the second period from Jaromír Jágr and Tomáš Plekanec. Jágr is the only player in the Czech team who was part of the squad that won the gold in the Olympics in Japan’s Nagano in 1998.
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02/17/2010
In a breakthrough ruling on Wednesday, the Czech Supreme Administrative Court banned the far-right Workers Party. The court ruled that the Workers’ Party spreads xenophobic and chauvinist views and had racist undertones in its materials. The party’s programme also exploited homophobia and fears of foreigners and immigrants, the court said. While Czech politicians have welcomed Wednesday’s ruling, Worker’s Party head Tomáš Vandas said the group would appeal the ruling and run in May’s general elections.
Wednesday’s ruling is the result of a second attempt by the government to ban the party, which it maintains is a dangerous offshoot of the neo-Nazi movement. An initial attempt at the start of 2009 was dismissed by the court for lack of evidence.
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02/17/2010
Some 60 percent of small and mid-sized Czech companies believe it is necessary to pay some form of bribe in order to win public contracts, according to a survey of 550 Czech firms. The study, conducted by the Czech Association of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, also suggests that more than 25 percent of the companies would be ready to pay bribes to get such contracts. Meanwhile, 44 percent of the firms surveyed said they would be willing to blow the whistle should they learn about corrupt practices. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the numbers were very high, while the head of the association said many companies were angry about the situation.
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