• Interior Ministry drafts amendment to penal code
    12/19/2009

    The Czech Interior Ministry is preparing an amendment to the penal code which should help the authorities crack-down on corruption. The bill proposes introducing the institute of agent provocateur and that of crown witness. The proposal will now be debated in cabinet. Widespread corruption has presented a serious problem for many years and all previous attempts to root it out have failed. Caretaker Prime Minister Jan Fisher said shortly after taking office in May that his cabinet would take radical measures against the problem.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Three people die in fire
    12/19/2009

    Three people, including an 18-month-old baby girl, have died in a fire in their home in Brno. The fourth member of the family, a seven-year-old boy, was rushed to hospital in critical condition. The fire was reported in the early hours of the morning by neighbours, and it would seem that the family suffocated in their sleep. Police are investigating the cause of the tragic accident.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Slovak miner fatally injured in Czech uranium mine
    12/19/2009

    A Slovak miner was fatally injured in the Rozna uranium mine, in the Moravian highlands, on Friday. A spokesman for the company said the man was injured by flying rocks during an explosion. No other workers sustained injuries. The incident is being investigated.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Two companies enter tender for assault rifles
    12/19/2009

    Two companies have entered the Czech Defence Ministry’s tender for assault rifles – Česká Zbrojovka and MPI Group. The ministry wants to buy 8,000 assault rifles and 400 grenade launchers to replace the MAG-58 machine guns which have been in use since the 1950s. The military has earmarked 1,5 billion crowns for the purchase. Other arms producers, including Heckler and Koch and Beretta, have criticized the fact that companies had only one month to hand in their bids.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Maintenance vehicle damages plane
    12/19/2009

    Czech Airlines announced a 24-hour delay in a planned flight to the Caribbean on Saturday after a maintenance vehicle defrosting the airbus in question accidentally damaged the plane. The flight’s 200 passengers have been given accommodation and refreshments free of charge. The plane is expected to leave on Sunday.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Hospitals report increased number of patients with frostbite
    12/19/2009

    Hospitals around the country report an increase in the number of patients with frostbite, not all of them homeless people. Doctors warn against spending long hours out in the freezing cold weather and trying to stay warm with the help of alcohol. The freezing cold weather, with temperatures dropping to minus 20 degrees C at nights, has put the homeless at great risk, with three people having frozen to death in the past week.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Car thief killed during dramatic escape
    12/18/2009

    A car thief in Olomouc, Moravia, was shot and killed by the police early on Friday during a dramatic getaway. The man, who had stolen a Škoda Octavia at around 3 am, was followed by police in quick pursuit. Eventually, he abandoned the stolen vehicle for a getaway car, where an accomplice was also waiting. According to reports, as the car sped away, one of the officers managed to climb in. But – in danger of falling out and attacked by the suspects – he was forced to use his firearm – killing the driver and wounding his accomplice. The latter underwent an operation in hospital and is in stable condition.
    Author: Jan Velinger

  • 51-year-old bank robber to remain in custody
    12/18/2009

    A Prague district court has ruled that a suspect who held-up a bank in Prague this week will remain in custody ahead of trial. On Wednesday, the 51-year-old assailant held two bank employees hostage for close to four hours, before being apprehended by a special police unit. No one was hurt in the incident. The suspect, who had demanded three million crowns in cash, told police on Thursday he had acted in response to blackmail by an unspecified party. According to reports, the suspect has had trouble with the law in the past, having been sentenced eight times for fraud and financial impropriety over the last three years.
    Author: Jan Velinger

  • Daily: human rights court upholds Czech ruling on former Communist official
    12/18/2009

    The Czech daily Lidové noviny has reported that the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg ruled back in September that a Czech court’s sentencing of former Communist official Karel Hoffman, was just. Mr Hoffman, a former head of telecommunications in communist Czechoslovakia, ordered Czechoslovak Radio broadcasts off the air following the Soviet-led invasion of August 21st, 1968. Over 30 years later he was sentenced to four years in prison for his role in the invasion, but served just 25 days for health reasons. The European Court of Human Rights confirmed that the Czech Republic had not infringed on Mr Hoffmann’s freedoms; in response, the former Communist official criticised the court in November, calling it a “capitalist, bourgeois” entity.
    Author: Jan Velinger

  • Sedláček to step down as head of Czech Post
    12/18/2009

    The head of Czech Post (Česká pošta), Petr Sedláček, has announced the intent to step down as CEO by the end of the year. He informed Interior Minister Martin Pecina of his decision on Friday. Mr Sedláček cited as the reason the fact there was, in his view, not enough political agreement about Czech Post’s future. The firm was previously to have been transformed into a joint-stock company. Some reports have suggested that the Social Democrats have pushed for Mr Sedláček’s departure, but the media reported earlier he has received an offer from another firm.
    Author: Jan Velinger

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