• Student film festival begins in Karlovy Vary
    08/23/2007

    Fresh Film Fest, a festival of student films, got underway in the west Bohemian town of Karlovy Vary on Wednesday evening. Around 200 films are being screened in what is the fourth annual Fresh Film Fest. Thirty-four pictures are in competition, with judges set to select the best three.
    Author: Ruth Fraňková

  • Czechs draw with Austria in friendly
    08/23/2007

    The Czech Republic's footballers drew 1:1 with Austria in a friendly game in Vienna on Wednesday night. Their only goal came from Jan Koller, who extended his Czech record goals tally to 49. In September the Czech Republic take on San Marino and Ireland in qualifying matches for next year's European Championships.
    Author: Ruth Fraňková

  • PM Topolanek against setting date for euro adoption
    08/22/2007

    The Czech prime minister, Mirek Topolanek, says he is against the setting of a concrete target date for adoption of the euro. In an interview for Reuters, Mr Topolanek said if the Czech Republic set a date for adoption this year it might not be able to meet it. The prime minister's position contrasts with that previously stated by the Czech finance minister, Miroslav Kalousek: he had been pushing the cabinet to set 2012 as a target date. However, Mr Kalousek now says he may drop that proposal. The previous Czech government had at one point hoped to introduce the single European currency in 2009.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Cabinet gives green light to reconstruction team for Afghan province
    08/22/2007

    The Czech government has approved the sending of a Czech provincial reconstruction team to Logar in south-eastern Afghanistan. The Czech defence minister, Vlasta Parkanova, said military personnel in the province could work in conjunction with civilian specialists sent by the Czech ministries of foreign affairs, industry and transport. The plan now has to go before parliament.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Former Czech PM Tosovsky Russia's candidate for senior IMF post
    08/22/2007

    Russia has nominated a former Czech prime minister, Josef Tosovsky, for the post of managing director of the International Monetary Fund. But the current Czech prime minister, Mirek Topolanek, says the Czech Republic does not support Mr Tosovsky; the country has given its backing to a French candidate supported by the EU. The senior IMF post is usually filled by somebody from a large western European state.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Nova: German police investigating two over WWII massacre of Czechs
    08/22/2007

    Police in the German city of Stuttgart are investigating two men accused of taking part in a massacre of Czech citizens at the end of World War II, TV Nova reported. The two are alleged to have been members of the Hitler Youth when they participated in the killing of 63 Czechs in Velke Mezirici, just one day before the war in Europe was officially ended. Both men are now aged 77.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • CSA had most flights on time in first half of year
    08/22/2007

    In the first half of this year Czech Airlines succeeded in having more of its flights take off on time than any other major airline, a spokesperson for the national carrier said, quoting a report by the Association of European Airlines. CSA finished sixth in annual surveys carried out in 2005 and 2006.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Forty percent of tourists repeat visitors, says CzechTourism
    08/22/2007

    Forty percent of tourists who visit the Czech Republic have been to the country before, suggests a fresh survey conducted by CzechTourism. The state agency's director Rostislav Vondruska said tourists from neighbouring states made repeated visits more often - and stayed for much longer - than those from further away. One-day visits were not included in the survey.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Brno university offering anti-plagiarism programme to other institutions
    08/22/2007

    Masaryk University in the Czech Republic's second city Brno has offered special anti-plagiarism software it developed to other universities in the country, according to press reports Wednesday. In the programme's first year, academics in Brno uncovered 150,000 examples of what may have been copying in written work submitted by students. One student has been expelled from Masaryk University for plagiarism, while four others are being investigated. A number of other Czech universities are considering introducing the system.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Amnesty International questions Czech arms exports to some states
    08/22/2007

    Amnesty International says some weapons produced in the Czech Republic are being exported to states which do not respect human rights. The NGO pointed in particular to arms exports last year to Ethiopia, Nigeria, Columbia, Venezuela, Vietnam and Yemen. Amnesty International said what it described as a disquieting situation was not helped by inadequate legislation in the Czech Republic.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

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