• Rebel Greens expelled for setting up opposition fraction
    03/08/2009

    Four rebel members of the Greens were expelled at a meeting of the party’s national council on Sunday. MPs Olga Zubová and Věra Jakubová, former education minister Dana Kuchtová and Martin Čáslavka were thrown out of the smallest party in the governing coalition for setting up a fraction named Democratic Appeal in opposition to chairman Martin Bursík. Party officials said the rebels had overstepped the mark by appearing in public, using the party emblem and setting up their own website.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Minister: Czech Republic should buy fighter planes after lease expires
    03/08/2009

    The Czech Republic should buy Gripen fighter planes it is currently leasing after the lease contract expires in 2014, the Czech minister of defence, Vlasta Parkanová, said on a TV debate programme on Sunday. She said the matter ought to be resolved during the lifetime of the current government, but refused to speculate on a possible price for the aircraft. The Gripens, made by Saab and BAE, will be used in a foreign mission for the first time later this year when they guard airspace over the Baltic states. The Czech government had decided to buy 14 of the planes but later leased them due to a budget shortfall in the wake of flooding in 2002.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Czech Republic beat France in Davis Cup first round
    03/08/2009

    The Czech Republic’s men’s tennis team have beaten France to reach the second round of the Davis Cup World Group. Radek Štěpánek secured victory for the Czechs in Ostrava on Sunday, beating Gilles Simon 7-6 6-3 7-6 to make it three matches to one in the best-of-five tie. The home side had been level with the highly rated French after Friday’s singles, but pulled ahead when Štěpánek and Tomáš Berdych beat Michael Llodra and Richard Gasquet in Saturday’s doubles. The Czech Republic will now take on Argentina at home in June for a place in the semi-finals.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Šebrle takes bronze in heptathlon in Turin
    03/08/2009

    The Czech Republic’s Roman Šebrle has taken the bronze medal at the European Indoor Athletics Championships in Turin. Šebrle, who finished first at the last three championships, was 220 points behind the surprise winner Mikk Pahapill of Estonia. The decathlon points world record holder said he not previously noticed Pahapill much, adding that he would have a greater chance against the new European champion when they meet outdoors.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Karamazovs big winner at Czech film awards
    03/08/2009

    The Karamazovs was the big winner at the Czech Republic’s main film awards the Czech Lions on Saturday night. The movie, about the staging of an adaptation of Dostoevsky’s novel The Brothers Karamazov, took the prize for best picture, along with best director for Petr Zelenka. In other categories, Karel Roden was named best actor for his role in Guard No. 47, while Zuzana Bydžovská was named best actress for her part in The Country Teacher. Citizen Havel by Pavel Koutecký and Miroslav Janek received the best documentary award.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Jamaican music legends Toots and the Maytals set for Prague show
    03/08/2009

    One of the all-time great Jamaican music groups Toots and the Maytals are due to appear in Prague in May. The band, who began in the ska era of the 1960s and later developed a more reggae style, are best known for hits like 56-46 Was My Number and Funky Kingston and had two songs on the soundtrack of the film The Harder They Come. Toots and the Maytals will play at Lucerna Music Bar on May 13.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Klaus tells US conference government intervention cannot cure climate change
    03/07/2009

    The Czech president, Václav Klaus, has said government intervention cannot be a cure for climate change. Speaking at a conference entitled ECO:nomics in Santa Barbara, California, Mr Klaus said it was necessary strictly to separate legitimate care for the environment from climate alarmism, which he said could lead to the limitation of freedom and societal development. The Czech president reportedly accepted an invitation to speak at the conference as he expected to debate with former US vice-president Al Gore. However, Mr Gore spoke a day earlier and the two did not meet. Václav Klaus has repeatedly stated that it is a fallacy to believe the behaviour of mankind is responsible for global warming, and has compared environmentalism to communism.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Poll: one third of Czechs feeling effects of crisis
    03/07/2009

    One third of Czechs say they and their families are feeling the effects of the financial crisis, according to a new opinion poll by the Median agency quoted in the newspaper Mladá fronta Dnes. Respondents around the age of 50 with lower levels of education were more likely to say they were feeling the pinch. Three quarters of university graduates said the crisis had not affected them.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Highest level of flood alert no longer in place
    03/07/2009

    The highest level of flood alert is no longer in place on any of the Czech Republic’s rivers. There had been fears that rivers including the Sázava, Dyje, and Jihlava would burst their banks; however, thanks to a drop in both precipitation and temperature water levels have begun to fall. Heavy flooding in the Czech Republic in 1997 and 2002 led to deaths and significant material damage.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Czech official signs deal on pirates with Kenya on behalf of EU
    03/07/2009

    The Czech ambassador to Kenya, Margita Fuchsová, has signed on behalf of the European Union a deal with Kenya on the transfer to Kenya of suspected Somali pirates detained as part of an EU anti-piracy naval mission. AFP reported that Ms Fuchsová and Kenya’s foreign minister, Moses Wetangula, signed the agreement in Nairobi on Friday. The Czech Republic currently holds the rotation presidency of the EU.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

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