• 09/16/2007

    Five people were injured following an explosion on a bus on Strelnicna Street in Prague 8. A spokeswoman for the Prague transport authority said that five women were treated in hospital for scald burns after a cooler on a public bus they were travelling on suddenly exploded. The Prague transport authority is investigating the cause of the incident.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/16/2007

    The eagerly awaited top-of-the-table clash between Czech football teams Slavia Prague and Banik Ostrava ended scoreless on Saturday. The result means that Slavia remain at the top of the Gambrinus league with 16 out of a possible 18 points after the first six games.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/15/2007

    Around 300 Czech police and other members of the security forces protested in the centre of Prague on Saturday in protest at the so-called "Service Law". The demonstration was organised by police unions, who claim that the law, which has been in effect since the start of the year, leaves many police officers worse off. Their principal grievances include the fact that the law abolished many bonus payments for overtime work and for working on state holidays and weekends. The Czech Minister for the Interior Ivan Langer denies that the law has had a detrimental effect on police salaries and maintains that the wages of 94 percent of police officers have increased since the legislation was introduced.

    The turnout was a lot lower than expected, but protest organisers claim that the attendance would have been much higher if some police had not been assigned to a special traffic-safety operation. They also said that the number of people protesting was also affected by the fact that a lot of extra police were on duty amid security concerns surrounding a first-division football match between Slavia Prague and Banik Ostrava on Saturday evening.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/15/2007

    Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek said on Saturday evening that negotiations with US representatives on the construction of a proposed American radar base were proceeding without any major problems after holding talks with a delegation from the US Congress on the issue. He also said that a number of obstacles to the negotiations had been removed although he declined to elaborate.

    The US delegation, headed by Democratic congresswoman Ellen Tauscher, also met with the deputy prime minister Alexander Vondra and the head of the opposition Social Democrats Jiri Paroubek. Earlier, Ms Tauscher had said that the proposed US missile defence system involving a radar base in the Czech Republic and an interceptor missile facility in Poland must be fully incorporated into NATO and it must protect both Europe and the United States.

    The proposed US facilities are intended as part of a missile defence system aimed at countering possible attacks from so-called rogue states such as Iran. Polls show that a majority of Czechs are against the proposal even though it has the tentative support of the centre-right government. A final decision on the base is expected early next year.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/15/2007

    An advisor to the Ministry of Education has said that the food served to children in Czech schools could change within the framework of proposed reforms to the education system. Educational consultant David Bartusek has said that in addition to offering parents different education programmes for their children, schools may soon be offering alternative healthy meals on their menus as well.

    The food served in school dinners is currently set by a ministerial decree. Critics say that the food prescribed by the legislation has too much fat and an unhealthy surfeit of protein, which could be a contributory factor in rising obesity levels.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/15/2007

    Jet-ski owners symbolically blocked the Vltava River in Prague for several minutes on Saturday afternoon in protest against a planned amendment to the law on inland navigation, which would ban certain vessels from water courses, including jet-skis. The protesters were also demonstrating against a proposal to introduce charges for recreational navigation on the country's waterways, which has been free up to now.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/15/2007

    Brno's municipal waste-management firm SAKO is being investigated by the Office for the Protection of Economic Competition (UOHS) in connection with a tender it held for the reconstruction of an incineration plant in the Moravian capital, according to Czech daily Mlada fronta Dnes. It was the fourth tender announced by SAKO for the reconstruction of the plant, which is expected to cost as much as 2.25 billion CZK (113 million USD). The first three tenders were cancelled by the waste-management firm itself and the allocation of the fourth has now been delayed for around a year after one of the unsuccessful bidders lodged a complaint with the UOHS.

    The Brno incineration plant has been in need of refurbishment for several years now. Brno's municipal authorities want to obtain funds from the EU to finance part of the project

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/14/2007

    Communist Party leader Vojtech Filip told journalists on Friday that his party will not officially propose its own candidate for next year's presidential elections, but that they favoured certain contenders whom they would like to discuss with other political parties.

    Mr Filip did not rule out any of the names discussed by the other parties such as the chairman of the Czech Academy of Sciences Vaclav Paces, former Czechoslovak foreign minister Jiri Dienstbier, Senate deputy chairman Petr Pithart and economist Jan Svejnar. Nevertheless, the Communist leader did add that the fact Mr Svejnar did not live in the Czech Republic would put him at a this country."

    Mr Filip said his party had a number of criteria for considering presidential candidates including their views on such topics as the future development of the EU and the government's recent economic reforms. He added that any potential candidate's attitude to a proposed US radar base in the Czech Republic and his or her support for a referendum on the issue would also be a major consideration. Vojtech Filip's party has consistently demanded that a public vote be held on the possible establishment of the US radar facility in the Czech Republic.

    The Communist Party is currently in talks with the Social Democrats, the Greens and the Christian Democrats on the possibility of fielding a joint presidential candidate to challenge current incumbent Vaclav Klaus.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/14/2007

    Most of Central Europe's Social Democrat leaders have signed a joint statement calling for a moratorium on more ballistic missiles being located in the region. The statement was issued following a meeting in Prague attended by representatives from social democratic parties in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia and Germany. The statement also said that all EU and NATO countries should be involved in negotiations on the placement of a new US missile base and radar station in Poland and the Czech Republic as part of a missile defence shield against so-called rogue states such as Iran. The statement also calls for greater consultation on the issue with Russia, which has been a fierce critic of the proposed military installations. Only the representative from the Hungarian social democrats did not sign the statement.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor
  • 09/14/2007

    American Secretary of Defence Robert Gates is to visit the Czech Republic to meet with Czech politicians and discuss the possible establishment of a US radar base in the country, according to the Czech Press Agency (CTK). Citing what it calls "a reliable source", CTK says Mr Gates meetings should take place on 20 and 21 October. The US embassy in Prague has so far declined to comment on the report. A number of senior American political figures have already visited the Czech Republic to promote the proposed radar. Nevertheless, opinion polls suggest that a large majority of Czechs are against having the military facility in their country.

    Author: Coilin O'Connor

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