• Greenpeace launches campaign against whaling
    04/19/2004

    The environmental organisation Greenpeace has launched an information campaign in the Czech Republic in hope of gaining support for a petition calling onto the Czech Republic to join the International Whaling Commission (IWC), which governs the conduct of whaling throughout the world. Greenpeace organisers have inflated a large rubber whale in front of Prague's Municipal House, where passers-by can sign the petition and see an exhibition on the life of whales and dolphins. The two-week information campaign will be held in Prague, Pilsen, Ceske Budejovice, Pardubice, Brno, Ostrava, and finally in Olomouc.
    Author: Dita Asiedu

  • Czech politicians consider election of Gasparovic as Slovak President as a better option
    04/18/2004

    Czech politicians have congratulated Ivan Gasparovic on his election to the post of Slovak president. Mr. Gasparovic beat controversial former Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar. Gasparovic, who once was one of Meciar's closest allies, received 60 percent of the vote. The Czech Lower House speaker Lubomir Zaoralek said Slovaks decided for a better political image of their country while Czech opposition leader Mirek Topolanek sees the Slovak election result as a choice of a lesser evil. Gasparovic, 63, a lawyer by profession, will become the third Slovak president when he replaces Rudolf Schuster in about two months' time.
    Author: Vladimír Tax

  • Three Czech hostages return from Iraq
    04/18/2004

    Three Czech journalists who were kidnapped and held hostage in Iraq last week have returned to Prague early on Sunday. Czech Television reporter Michal Kubal, cameraman Petr Klima and Czech Radio reporter Vit Pohanka flew home on board a special Defence Ministry aircraft that had been sent to retrieve them from Iraq. The journalists had been held hostage since last Sunday at an unknown location in Iraq after being captured on their way from Baghdad to Jordan, and were released on Friday.
    Author: Vladimír Tax

  • Vote on property declarations bill may be linked with confidence vote
    04/18/2004

    Labour and Social Affair Minister Zdenek Skromach suggested that a government-sponsored bill on property declarations is so important that the government may link it with a confidence vote in Parliament. The bill, aimed at fighting tax evasions and money laundering, has caused controversy within the ruling coalition. Some ministers for the senior government Social Democrats have been trying to make the law retroactive, which is unacceptable for the other two parties. The opposition Communist Party had previously indicated it was willing to support a stricter version of the law. However, the Freedom Union said that if the legislation were pushed through with the help of the Communists, it would mean an end of the ruling coalition.
    Author: Vladimír Tax

  • Government seeks support from Communists for crucial VAT bill
    04/17/2004

    The ruling Social Democrats have been seeking support from the opposition Communist Party for its bill on VAT that President Vaclav Klaus vetoed recently. The government needs 101 votes in the lower house to override the presidential veto but lacks two MPs because of their health condition. The junior opposition Communist Party reiterated on Saturday that none of the party's deputies will vote for the bill in question. Finance Minister Bohumil Sobotka hopes to persuade the Communists to change their minds and invited party leaders for talks next week.

    The VAT bill would lower the basic VAT level from 22 to 19 percent and move a number of items from the preferential five-percent rate to the upper bracket. Failure to pass the bill would seriously complicate Czech trade with fellow EU countries after May 1.
    Author: Vladimír Tax

  • Foreign Minister Svoboda operated on in Brno after accident
    04/17/2004

    Czech Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda underwent a neck operation on Saturday at the Brno Hospital after two days of monitoring and treatment. Mr. Svoboda sustained injuries in a car accident on Thursday. Doctors said Mr. Svoboda was recovering well from the injuries and will most likely stay in the hospital for one or two weeks. That means that Svoboda will probably not be able to participate in a key vote on a VAT bill in the Lower House.

    Meanwhile, police have ruled out alcohol as a factor in the accident, which took place when the driver lost control of the minister's vehicle in a difficult turn. All three in the car were injured, but none of the injuries - including the foreign minister's - were life-threatening.
    Author: Vladimír Tax

  • Tennis - Czech Benesova reaches finals at Estoril Open
    04/17/2004

    The Czech Republic's Iveta Benesova enjoyed a comfortable win over unseeded opposition to reach the final of the Estoril Open on Saturday. Benesova, seeded sixth, overcame Stephanie Cohen-Aloro 6-3 7-5 in 99 minutes. She is to encounter Emilie Loit of France in the finals.
    Author: Vladimír Tax

  • Three Czech journalists kidnapped in Iraq have been released
    04/16/2004

    Three Czech journalists kidnapped in Iraq last Sunday have been released and are now safe at the Czech embassy in Baghdad. Czech TV's Michal Kubal, cameraman Petr Klima, and Czech Radio correspondent Vit Pohanka, were kidnapped by insurgents while en route to Amman, Jordan last Sunday, suffering an intense six days captive at the hands of unknown assailants. Before this Friday's breakthrough release Czech diplomatic authorities had tried in vain to establish contact with the insurgents. Correspondent Vit Pohanka spoke with Czech Radio Friday afternoon saying he and his colleagues were in good condition and were ready to return to the Czech Republic.

    "All of us are alright we are in good psychological shape, although as you can imagine there were moments when we didn't feel so great. The main thing was that we were all together. Now we're okay and look forward to everything being sorted out."

    Vit Pohanka was also asked by Czech Radio if he and his colleagues had had any contact at all with any of the other foreigners being held in captivity in Iraq:

    "No. we were completely isolated. It wasn't even clear who our abductors were. At first we just thought we were being stopped by some locals. No one told us a thing and we had no idea what was going on."
    Author: Jan Velinger

  • Kubal discusses abduction
    04/16/2004

    In an interview for Czech TV also on Friday afternoon Michal Kubal also spoke about the events leading up to his and his colleagues' abduction, speculating that their hired Iraqi driver had either made a mistake or had purposely driven the journalists into assailant hands - Mr Kubal said the driver chose a known and dangerous route the journalists had asked him to avoid. At a rebel check-point several dozen kilometres out of Baghdad the vehicle was stopped by rebels, and the journalists were taken out of the car, their hands bound and eyes blind-folded. Mr Kubal then said it was difficult to determine exactly which group had conducted the abduction. Friday afternoon, after several days of promises by their abductors, the three Czech journalists were driven to a Baghdad suburb and released. They then took a taxi to the Czech embassy.
    Author: Jan Velinger

  • Czech Muslim representatives praised for appeal
    04/16/2004

    Deputy foreign minister Petr Kolar has meanwhile revealed that one of the factors instrumental to the Czech journalists' release was a diplomatic meeting by the Czech ambassador to Iraq Martin Klepteko with Muslim spiritual leaders. Mr Kolar also praised Czech Muslim representatives for a letter of appeal they sent showing solidarity with the abducted men, asking for the journalists' release. On Friday Mr Kolar spoke with Radio Prague about how and when the journalists would return home.

    "The problem is that our jet is not allowed to land in Baghdad because of the security reasons and technical reasons. So, we are probably going to focus on Basra now - to take them to Basra and then have our jet fly there to take them home. So, I hope it is a question of one or two days."
    Author: Jan Velinger

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