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02/18/2008
The Civic Democrat senators group has announced that it intends to press charges against European Democrat senator Josef Novotný. The charges centre around public claims made by Mr Novotný that an as yet unnamed Civic Democrat senator offered him a two-million-crown bribe (around 116,000 USD) to vote for Václav Klaus in the recent presidential elections. The senator’s claims are already being investigated by the police and Josef Novotný has indicated that he will only reveal the name of the alleged person to the police for fear of being accused of slander.
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02/18/2008
According to the German-based Bertelsmann Foundation, the Czech Republic tops the list of the world’s most successful transforming countries. The survey, which evaluates the quality of democracy, market economics and political management in 125 developing or transforming countries, placed the Czech Republic at the top of its list, right above Slovenia and Estonia. However, the accompanying report also strongly criticised the Czech political sphere, noting that the Czech public apparently feel a continued sense of alienation from their political elite.
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02/18/2008
Former adviser to Social Democrat leader Jiří Paroubek, Jiří Koskuba remains in a critical condition after being shot at his family home. Reports have emerged suggesting Mr Koskuba was shot by a gun belonging to him, although police are still investigating the exact nature of the incident. Mr Koskuba, a doctor by profession, worked in the health Ministry under the former Paroubek-led government.
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02/18/2008
A report by the Czech Republic’s highest governmental oversight body has criticised the Czech Environment Ministry for failing to create a promised unified information system related to environmental matters in the country. According to the report, the Ministry also failed to undertake any audit of government money allocated to information and technology improvements in the last three years. Environment Minister Martin Bursík is said to be taking the report seriously.
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02/18/2008
A team from the UN’s education, science and culture body is set to travel to Prague to assess if the Czech Republic is doing enough to protect its historical landmarks. UNESCO has already expressed concern over the number of skyscrapers being built in the Czech capital’s Pankrác region. In the worst case scenario, the Czech Republic could be struck of the UNESCO list of countries that are actively preserving protecting their architectural heritage.
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02/18/2008
A newly released poll by the Czech STEM agency suggests that of all the security-related public institutions, the army maintains the trust of 57% of Czechs. These numbers represent a marginal decline on previous figures. Other statistics released by STEM indicate that the police enjoy the support of around 50% of Czechs, while city police enjoy the support of only 43% of people. On the international front, 55% of Czechs trust NATO, 78% trust Interpol while 94% support the fire services.
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02/18/2008
Newly released figures from the Czech Statistical Office reveal that, 6.7 million tourists visited the Czech Republic last year. The numbers represent a 3.8 percent increase on the previous year’s figures. In line with previous trends, most tourists, around 4.5 million people, visited the Czech capital Prague. The figures also reveal that Germans, Brits, Italians and Americans are the most frequent visitors.
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02/17/2008
Prague will wait for the European Union to agree a common standpoint on Kosovo’s declaration of independence and then proceed in accord with the EU’s position, a Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said. However, Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs Alexandr Vondra said it would be very difficult for the bloc to agree on a joint stance, given that some states were opposed to Sunday’s historic decision by Kosovo’s parliament; Mr Vondra said it was more likely that individual EU states would adopt their own positions, with some of its biggest members likely to recognise Kosovo’s independence in the very near future.
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02/17/2008
The Czech Republic’s efforts to win visa-free travel to the United States for its citizens do not contravene the country’s obligations towards the European Union, Alexandr Vondra said on Sunday. Mr Vondra said Washington regarded the EU as an association of independent states and discussed the abolition of visa requirements with them individually. The Social Democrats’ shadow foreign minister Lubomír Zaoralek has said Prague’s individual approach destroyed EU unity; he also described the Czech Republic as servile towards the US.
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02/17/2008
Václav Klaus has criticised the behaviour of his opponents during two recent presidential elections. Appearing on a TV debate programme, Mr Klaus accused members of the Social Democrats and Greens – who backed his opponent Jan Švejnar – of lying in speeches they made during the elections, something he described as sad and tragic. He said their statements had provided a breeding ground for the threatening letters received by some lawmakers who supported him. However, Mr Klaus played down suggestions the sending of bullets and gun powder represented Mafia practices; he pointed out that benches had been thrown during the election of T.G. Masaryk in 1920.
The 66-year-old Mr Klaus, one of the most important figures in post-communist Czech politics, was elected for a second five-year term as president on Friday.
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