• Lower house approves ban on sale of nicotine pouches to children
    01/13/2023

    The lower house of Parliament has approved a ban on the sale of nicotine pouches to minors. The amendment would introduce the same regulation that already applies to tobacco products or electronic cigarettes. Violations of the ban would be subject to financial penalties. Producers should also change the design of the packaging to make the product less appealing to children. The draft law was presented by the Ministry of Health in response to the growing popularity of nicotine pouches among teenagers, despite warnings of the risk of nicotine addiction. The bill will now go to the Senate for approval and is expected to come into force in mid-2023.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Health minister asks people not to hoard drugs
    01/13/2023

    Health Minister Vlastimil Válek has assured Czechs that the drug shortage problem is being addressed and urged the general public not to hoard drugs because they are only making the problem worse.  At a press briefing in Prague on Friday, the health minister said that special deliveries of antibiotics would arrive weekly, in the course of January and February, and the situation on the market should stabilize by March. The minister added that the shortage of flu medicine for children had already been resolved. He said negotiations were also underway on joint purchases of medicine in the EU.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Websites of two presidential candidates hacked
    01/13/2023

    The websites of two presidential candidates were hacked on Friday morning, according to the National Institute for Cyber Security. Hackers blocked the web pages of General Petr Pavel, a hot candidate in the presidential race and academic Tomáš Zima. According to the institute, the attacks came from IP addresses across Europe and traces lead to the Russian hackers group known as NoName057.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • MPs pass bill against circulation of terrorist content online
    01/13/2023

    The police look set to get the right to order Czech or European operators of websites to disable terrorist content such as images of terrorist attacks or executions. MPs passed a government bill to that effect on Friday. The Senate will now vote on the matter.

    The legislation is based on an EU directive against the circulation of online terrorist content.

    A report attached to the bill says such content is relatively rare in Czechia and is not a major security concern.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Czechs to begin voting in first round of presidential elections

    01/13/2023

    Czechs are due to begin voting for a successor to President Miloš Zeman at 2 pm on Friday. Polling stations around the country will remain open until 10 pm before again opening from 8 am to 2 pm on Saturday. The results should be known on Saturday afternoon.

    If, as expected, none of the eight candidates taking part receive more than 50 percent in the first round a second round run-off will be held in a fortnight’s time.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Fiala accuses ANO of spreading disinformation
    01/12/2023

    Prime Minister Petr Fiala has accused ANO of spreading disinformation. This follows a letter sent by the party’s leader Andrej Babiš to voters claiming that Mr. Fiala’s government will introduce restrictive measures after the presidential elections, as well as false information on social media that government figures support Mr. Babiš’s bid for president.

    The PM also said that Jaroslav Basta, the presidential candidate of the Freedom and Direct Democracy was using disinformation.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Worker killed by tremor at Karviná mine
    01/12/2023

    One worker was killed at a mine in the Moravian Silesian Region on Thursday following a tremor. The accident occurred at the mine ČSM-Jih operated by the company OKD at Stonava in the Karviná area.

    A number of other miners suffered light injuries during the tremor, a spokesperson for OKD told the Czech News Agency.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Bookies tipping Pavel to be next Czech president
    01/12/2023

    A day before elections for the next head of state begin, Czech bookmakers have made Petr Pavel favourite to succeed Miloš Zeman as president. After a TV debate on Wednesday evening the former head of the Czech Army’s odds have firmed to between 1.45:1 and 1.52:1, the Czech News Agency reported on Thursday.

    Ex-prime minister Andrej Babiš is the bookies’ second favourite, on 3.4:1.

    The odds on economist and academic Danuše Nerudová have fallen. She was 5:1 to win on Monday but is now up to 14:1.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Kvitová knocked out in quarter-finals in Adelaide
    01/12/2023

    Czech tennis player Petra Kvitová has been knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Adelaide Open in Australia. The 32-year-old was beaten 3-6 6-7 on Thursday by the Russian player Daria Kasatkina.

    Kvitová, a two-time winner of Wimbledon, is the top Czech women’s seed in next week’s Australian Open, at 15. Her first opponent in the Grand Slam competition will be Alison Van Uytvanck of the Netherlands.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • October 12 set to become Day of Samizdat in Czechia
    01/12/2023

    Czechia is set to mark the history of samizdat in the country with a special day. The government has approved an amendment tabled by a group of coalition MPs under which October 12 would become the Day of Samizdat, celebrating the production of illicit printed materials such as books and magazines under the pre-1989 Communist regime.

    On October 12, 1988 a group of 92 Czech and Slovak samizdat publishers wrote an open letter to the then Communist president Gustáv Husák condemning the jailing of one of them, Christian activist Ivan Polanský.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

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