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06/24/2006
Meanwhile, the emerging three-party coalition came close to a crisis after one of its MPs - Civic Democrat Milos Patera, suffered a stroke and had to be rushed to hospital on Friday. The coalition is already one vote short of a majority in parliament. Without Mr Patera it would only have 99 deputies in the 200-seat lower house during the crucial voting for the new speaker of parliament.
No official details on Milos Patera's state of health have been revealed but according to Civic Democrat Vlastimil Tlusty, his party colleague is well enough to take part in next week's vote.
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06/24/2006
Two people were injured and some 15 cars demolished when three floors of scaffolding collapsed at a building site in the Moravian city of Brno. The accident happened during restoration work at a building next to the luxurious hotel Grand in the city centre. A 50-year old man and a 21-year old woman, who were caught under the rubble, were recovered from the scene and taken to hospital. Doctors say they have miraculously got away with light injuries. An investigation into the accident has been launched.
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06/24/2006
The number of new ordained Catholic priests in the Czech Republic is failing to make up for the number of priests passing away, Czech Cardinal Miloslav Vlk said on Saturday. There are currently 1,800 priests in the Czech Republic but some ten percent are from Poland. Many priests are responsible for more than one parish. In the Prague and Central Bohemia regions, for example, priests reside in only 140 of the 250 vicarages. At a ceremony on Saturday, Cardinal Vlk ordained three new men at Prague's St. Vitus' Cathedral.
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06/24/2006
The Czech Army celebrated a Day of the Ground Forces on Saturday. Dozens of thousands of spectators flock to west Bohemia's Strasice near Rokycany every year to watch presentations of military technology and various operations of Czech and also foreign forces. One of the main highlights this year is the presentation of the new Pandur II, which the Czech Army will be adding to its fleet of light armoured vehicles in 2007. The annual "Bahna 2006" event is held for the seventeenth time.
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06/23/2006
Viktor Kozeny, the Czech-born financier wanted for financial impropriety in both the Czech Republic and the US, may be extradited to the United States. A Bahamian judge made the ruling in final court proceedings on Friday, following a four month trial. Mr Kozeny, who holds Irish citizenship but has long lived in the Bahamas, has been in custody there since last year. The United States want to put him on trial for alleged money laundering in oil privatisation deals in Azerbaijan. But, it is not the money laundering charge but charges of corruption that were recognised by the judge to rule in favour of Mr Kozeny's extradition.
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06/23/2006
The leaders of a proposed centre-right government including the Civic Democrats, the Christian Democrats, and the Greens have agreed on a coalition programme and the distribution of ministerial posts. According to information released on Friday, the right-of-centre Civic Democrats will hold ten seats in the cabinet while the two other parties will hold three each. The coalition agreement is to be signed on Monday. Mirek Topolanek - the head of the Civic Democrats, the party that won the general election earlier this month - is slated to be the next prime minister, but individual names have not yet been disclosed. Some changes proposed by the coalition include the abolishment of two ministries: the Ministry for Information Technology and the Ministry for Regional Development. The coalition is also proposing a new post: Minister without portfolio for European Affairs.
Mr Topolanek said that a confidence vote on the new government - which lacks a majority in the 200-member lower house - could take place in about four weeks' time.
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06/23/2006
In related news, Mirek Topolanek met officially with the head of the Social Democratic Party, Jiri Paroubek, on Friday to discuss possible support for the new government - which otherwise lacks the majority needed to pass a confidence vote. While the two men reportedly failed to clinch a deal so far, they have not closed the door on further talks. Earlier Mr Paroubek said the planned centre-right cabinet could win his backing but listed tough programme conditions that Mr Topolanek has refused to accept. According to some analysts, the Social Democrats may prefer to let the government fall in a confidence vote, but later agree to tolerate a Civic Democrat-only minority cabinet. That would theoretically allow the left-of-centre party greater influence on policy.
Parliament is to begin meeting on June 27th. But, talks between all five parties in the lower house on how to divide up committees and key positions, such as speaker of the lower house, are continuing. Election of the speaker is a precondition for the old government to step aside to make way for the new.
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06/23/2006
A new survey conducted by the Factum Invenio agency has suggested that a majority of voters who went to the polls in June's general election, did so for "positive reasons": either to express their opinion or to serve their sense of duty, a result higher than in previous elections in 1998 and 2002. By contrast, the poll says, the majority of those who declined to vote cited a general disinterest in politics or dissatisfaction with politicians' behaviour.
The general election which took place at the first weekend in June saw a 65.4 percent turnout, up from 58 percent four years ago.
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06/23/2006
The continuing heat wave in the Czech Republic is causing an increase in the need for emergency medical services. In Prague there were over 100 emergency cases attended to on Wednesday alone, including incidents of heart failure and epileptic seizures. High blood pressure and sun burns have also been threats. Doctors are warning that the elderly and those with respiratory problems should avoid the outdoors, while all should stay properly hydrated, drinking at a minimum of 2.5 litres of water per day.
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06/23/2006
A day after the Czech national squad was eliminated from the football World Cup in Germany, the international press has largely praised one of the team's key players, star midfielder Pavel Nedved. In the view of a number of German as well as Italian dailies the talented midfielder was one of few in a decimated Czech side, who left everything on the pitch. In Thursday's match, the Czechs were beaten by Italy. 2:0 was the final score. The 33-year-old Nedved - who plays for Juventus and was 2003's European Footballer of the Year - had hinted earlier that he might retire from the national squad, but says he has not taken a final decision yet.
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