News

The head of the Czech consulate in Ottawa, Karel Hejc, has accused the Canadian border police of passing on asylum seekers’ details to their homeland embassies. Mr Hejc told the Canadian Press that in his time at the Czech Embassy in Ottawa, he had received several faxes bearing the names, surnames and dates of birth of Czechs seeking asylum in Canada. Mr Hejc said that while the Czech Republic did not discriminate against nationals seeking asylum abroad, this could not be guaranteed in the case of every country, and thus the data leaks could lead to persecution of asylum seekers back home. The Canadian government has responded that it only hands over details with the asylum seeker’s consent, and that it is looking into any possible data leaks.

The Czech Finance Ministry is looking for a consultancy firm to advise it on the privatization of Prague’s Ruzyně airport. On Friday, the ministry called for consultants to start bidding for the contract. The deadline for submissions is August 29, a spokesperson said. The government is looking to have selected its advisors by the end of the year. Prague airport is considered to be one of the Czech government’s most valuable assets up for privatization in the near future. The net profit generated last year by the hub was 1.1 billion crowns (72.6 million USD).

Two replica aircraft, an Avia BH 5 and an Avia BH 1, have taken to the skies this Saturday to reenact a historic air race between Prague and Brussels. Pilots Milan Mikulecký and Marcel Sezemský are seeking to retrace the route flown by Czech pilot Zdeněk Lhota in 1923. Lhota won the air race, organized by the king of Belgium, in what was a proud moment for Czech aviation. Eighty-five years later, Messrs Mikulecký and Sezemský made the aircraft they are flying in themselves. The pilots have changed the route they will be taking slightly from the original, given the different levels of air traffic in today’s skies. They are expected to touch down in Brussels on Tuesday.

Thirty percent of Czechs support Kosovan independence, while 31 percent are against it, suggests a poll conducted by the CVVM agency and released on Saturday. The Czech government recognized Kosovo’s independence in May, and last week, the Czech Republic opened an embassy in Pristina. Almost 40 percent of the poll’s respondents said they didn’t know how they felt about the former Serbian province’s declaration of independence. One thousand and fifty one people took part in the survey.